Cream Cheese Pound Cake and Strawberry Coulis

I've posted quite a few pound cakes on this blog and I think this is one of my favorites. Maybe even my very favorite. It is to absolutely die for. I didn't think that any pound cake could top my favorite which is the Five Flavor Pound Cake but man this one rocks! I found it over at Smitten Kitchen. It is a really great food blog. I've made several things that I've seen there and they were all great. The strawberry coulis puts it over the top, but the cake does not really need it if you don't feel like making it. It's simple to make and I can eat it right out of the dish!!! I never even heard of coulis before. I think I will try this sometime with blueberries when they are in season.

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1 1/2 cups (3 sticks) butter, unsalted at room temperature
1 package (8 ounces) Philadelphia brand cream cheese, at room temperature
3 cups sugar
6 large eggs
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon almond extract
3 cups all purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt

Preheat oven to 325 F. Lightly butter a 10 inch tube pan, then line the bottom with parchment paper. Or you can use a 12 cup Bundt pan (I used that) and simply butter and flour it.
Place the butter and cream cheese in a large bowl and beat with a mixer on medium speed until smooth. Add the sugar and increase the speed to high, and beat until light and airy, at least 5 minutes. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating after each addition and scraping down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula as needed. Add the vanilla, almond, then the flour and salt all at once. Beat just until incorporated.
Pour the batter into the prepared pan and shake lightly to even out the top. Bake until the cake is golden brown and a toothpick inserted into the cake comes out clean, 1 1/4 hours.
Place the pan on a cake rack for 20 minutes, then remove the cake from the pan and let it cool completely. Serve at room temperature.

Strawberry Coulis (I halved the recipe below)

2 cups quartered hulled strawberries(about 12 ounces)
1/4 cup water
3 tablespoons sugar
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice

Combine strawberries, water, sugar and lemon juice in blender. Puree until very smooth, then press through a fine mesh strainer to remove seeds. Cover and refrigerate until cold. Coulis can be prepared one day ahead.