and flour a 12-cup tube pan. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Sift flour, baking soda, salt, and nutmeg together.

2. Cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each egg is added. Stir in vanilla.

3. Stir half of the sifted flour mixture into the butter-sugar mixture. Add 1 cup of the buttermilk. Add the other half of the flour mixture, then the remaining buttermilk.

4. Pour batter into prepared tube pan and bake until a wooden skewer inserted 2 inches from edge comes out clean (about 1 hour and 5 minutes). Cool cake in pan 10 to 15 minutes; invert onto a cooling rack, remove pan, and cool completely before serving. Transfer to a serving plate. Dust with confectioners' sugar.