Brown Sugar Pound Cake 

You're in for a real treat with this weekend bake. Our Test Kitchen pros call this Brown Sugar Pound Cake "the definition of the perfect pound cake."

It all starts with a spectacular Bundt cake, made with a base of cream cheese, butter, and brown sugar. The cake has a very tender crumb and rich, caramelly flavor from the brown sugar, with just the slightest tang from the cream cheese. The key to any good pound cake is to get the batter just right—beat the butter and sugar until light and fluffy, but after that, don't overmix; beat in each egg just until incorporated. When baking in a Bundt pan, don't be afraid to use plenty of baking spray to get into all the nooks and crannies.

This versatile Brown Sugar Pound Cake is meant to be dressed up—we've devised countless ways to top this simple cake. From lemon curd and blueberries to peanut butter and bananas, the opportunities are endless with this blank canvas of a cake. For a fancied-up Southern version, top with bourbon whipped cream, pecans, and orange zest. For a garden-fresh dessert, toss on a dollop of mascarpone cheese, strawberry jam, strawberries and mint. Or you could go the Mexican hot cocoa route with vanilla ice cream, chocolate sauce, cinnamon, cayenne, and pepitas. Anything goes with pound cake; this best-ever brown sugar dessert is incredible however you choose to top it.