Strawberry Lemon Crunch Pound Cake

Ingredients:

For the Cake:

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
2 cups granulated sugar
4 large eggs
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
1 cup buttermilk
1 tablespoon lemon zest
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
½ teaspoon strawberry extract
Pink food coloring (optional)

For the Glaze:

1 cup powdered sugar
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
2 tablespoons strawberry puree

For the Crunch Topping:

½ cup crushed vanilla wafer cookies
¼ cup chopped pecans
2 tablespoons brown sugar
2 tablespoons melted butter

Instructions:

Making the Cake:

Preheat oven to 325°F (163°C). Grease and flour a Bundt pan or round cake pans.

In a large bowl, beat butter and sugar until light and fluffy.
Add eggs one at a time, mixing well after each.

In a separate bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt.
Alternate adding dry ingredients and buttermilk to the butter mixture, beginning and ending with dry ingredients.

Stir in lemon zest, lemon juice, vanilla, and strawberry extract.
Divide the batter in half. Add pink food coloring to one half and leave the other plain. Swirl the batters together in the pan for a marbled effect.

Bake for 55–65 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean.
Let cool in the pan for 10 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack.

Making the Glaze & Crunch Topping:

Mix powdered sugar, lemon juice, and strawberry puree until smooth.
For the crunch topping, combine crushed cookies, pecans, brown sugar, and melted butter in a small bowl.

Drizzle the strawberry-lemon glaze over the cooled cake and sprinkle with crunch topping.