Mini Cream Cheese Pound Cake Recipe for Friends + Neighbors

I love giving gifts almost as much as receiving them, but we all know budgets are always tight and you can't buy everyone everything they ever dreamed of... Homemade treats are a lovely way to show you care and share something you love with friends and neighbors. Trust me, no one will be mad about an edible gift this time of year.

southern living cREAM CHEESE POUND CAKE recipe

Recipe makes about 6 mini loaf cakes or one 10" bundt cake.

INGREDIENTS

1 1/2 CUPS BUTTER, SOFTENED AT ROOM TEMPERATURE
1 (8 ounce) PACKAGE CREAM CHEESE, SOFTENED AT ROOM TEMPERATURE
3 CUPS SUGAR
6 LARGE EGGS
3 CUPS ALL PURPOSE FLOUR
1/8  TEASPOON SALT
1 TABLESPOON VANILLA EXTRACT

PREPARATION

- Beat butter + cream cheese on medium speed until creamy, ensuring not to over beat
- Gradually add sugar, beating well
- Add eggs, one at a time until well combined
- Sift flour, combine with salt, gradually add to butter mixture on low speed until just blended
- Stir in vanilla
- Grease + flour your mini loaf pans (or a 10 inch bundt pan, or whatever size pan you go with), pour in batter + smooth (be sure to leave some room as the cakes will rise)
- Bake at 300° for about 70 minutes (1 hour 40 minutes for a 10" bundt cake) or until a toothpick comes out clean (Note that time will need to be adjusted for different sized cakes... I usually go be smell and just constantly stab it with a toothpick or fork to gauge it's doneness, super scientific, I know!) 
​- Cool in the pan on a wire rack for about 10-15 minutes, then remove from pan and cool completely. 

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THE PACKAGING

The packaging is also just as important in my eyes as the contents... You don't want to put care and time and thought into baking delicious treats and then not think about the wrapping! If you make cookies or candy, grab some simple white bakers boxes from Walmart or Michaels and tie it up with string and a gift tag. Simple but gorgeous. You don't have to overthink it!

For these little pound cakes, I went with the mini size because, quite honestly, that's literally the ONLY size disposable loaf pans they had left on the shelves... So each set of neighbors will be getting two individual little cakes! Just go with what you're given people. 

I wrapped in parchment paper and a layer of tissue paper and topped it off with twine and a pretty gift tag. Keeping it simple and using things I already had on hand. No stress, people.

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What are your favorite treats to make for gifts this time of year? Some other favorites of mine are Bailey's fudge, and these delicious graham cracker crisp things my mom used to make, but I decided to go with mini pound cakes this year!