Plain cake


Plain cake
This is a classic, loaf-shaped cake, deliberately left plain for you to embellish as you choose.
82 K 3.5/5 (19 reviews)
Grade this recipe:
Keywords:
Last modified on: December 30th 2019
For 1 cake, you will need:

Change these quantities to make:
Times for this recipe
Preparation: 25 min.
Resting: 30 min.
Cooking: 35 min.
All in all: 1 hour 30 min.
When should you start or finish this recipe?
If you start now, at , you will finish around : ?.Change start time
To finish around 7pm, you'll need to have started before: .Change end time

Step by step recipe


Stage 1 - 4 min.
Plain cake

Allow ingredients to come to room temperature


Take the butter out of the fridge at least 1 hour beforehand.

Break the eggs then weigh 125 g butter carefully; this is important for the rest of the recipe. Put into a bowl and leave at room temperature for at least 1 hour.

Stage 2 - 3 min.
Plain cake

Make the cake batter


Put into a food-mixer bowl: 125 g butter (cut into small pieces), 110 g caster sugar and 15 g vanilla sugar.

Stage 3 - 5 min.
Plain cake
Start beating and mix the sugar and butter thoroughly.

Stage 4 - 3 min.
Plain cake
Add the eggs one at a time...

Stage 5 - 2 min.
Plain cake
...and beat until the mixture is smooth.

Important: If the mixture begins to curdle, stop beating and plunge the bowl into a pan of hot water, beating with a hand whisk until the mixture homogenizes (normally about 1 minute).

Stage 6 - 2 min.
Plain cake
Sieve 160 g flour and 10 g baking powder together.

Stage 7 - 30 min.
Plain cake
Mix into the batter with whisk.

Refrigerate the batter for 30 minutes.

Stage 8 - 2 min.
Plain cake

Bake the cake


Preheat the oven to 390°F (200°C).

Pour the batter into the mould or tin.

Stage 9 - 35 min.
Plain cake
Bake for 30 to 40 minutes. Test the centre of the cake to check that it is cooked .
Remarks
If you want to include dry fruit, chocolate chips, etc., add these at stage 6, mixed with the flour.
Keeping: Several days.
Source: Based on recipe by Gaston Lenôtre.
Nutritional information
Proteins (gr)Carbohydrates (gr)Fats (gr)Energy value (in k-calories)Energy value (in k-joules)
Whole recipe30 RDI=10 %310 RDI=30 %120 RDI=20 %2,220 RDI=110 %9,290 RDI: 110 %
Per 100 g5 RDI=2 %50 RDI=5 %20 RDI=3 %390 RDI=20 %1,630 RDI: 20 %
The % figures are calculated in relation to the Recommended Dietary Intake , or RDI of 2,000 k-calories (or 8,400 k-joules) per day for a woman Change to a man
Possible allergens in this recipe: egg, Milk, Gluten
How much will it cost?
  • For 1 cake : 2.10 €

Change currency:

Note: Be careful, these prices are only an estimate, you can consult the table of prices by ingredients used for this estimate.
This recipe uses (among others)
Other recipes you may also like
French croissants
French croissants
In this famous and highly technical recipe from a piece of yeast-based flaky dough we are going to cut and shape ("roll") croissants.
June 26th 2019625 K 24.4 2 hours 35 min.
How to prepare an onion or shallot
How to prepare an onion or shallot
Onions and shallots are widely used in the recipes on this site, generally finely chopped. Here is a method to do it quite easily with a simple knife.
February 21th 2011182 K5 10 min.
Fish in a salt crust
Fish in a salt crust
Fish cooked in a salt crust is simply baked in the oven, surrounded and completely covered by a layer of coarse salt. This allows the fish to cook gently and it should be eaten as soon as the salt crust is opened. In this version, it is stuffed with lemon and herbs. Using a thermometer is the best...
January 29th 2012169 K3.8 1 hour 8 min.
Chocolate mug cake
Chocolate mug cake
A mug cake is fun to make and only takes a few minutes. It cooks in just one and a half minutes in the microwave.
June 4th 2014117 K5 15 min.
Spaghetti with mushrooms
Spaghetti with mushrooms
In this recipe, the mushrooms are cooked in the oven first and are then combined with the cooked spaghetti, shallots and dressed with white wine and soy sauce.
March 12th 201573 K4.1 1 hour 3 min.
News list of cooking-ez.com

Sign up to receive the latest recipes (next batch due to be sent on 2025-05-11)

*Your e-mail Your first name or nickname
I am not a leaving thing
Note: We'll never share your e-mail address with anyone else.
Post a comment or question
Posted by:
I am not a leaving thing

Follow this recipe
If you are interested in this recipe, you can "follow" it, by entering your email address here. You will then receive a notification immediately each time the recipe is modified or a new comment is added. Please note that you will need to confirm this following.
I am not a leaving thing
Note: We'll never share your e-mail address with anyone else.
Alternatively: you can subscribe to the mailing list of cooling-ez.com , you will receive a e-mail for each new recipe published on the site.

Back to top of page