Basic cake batter - the French way


Basic cake batter - the French way
The cake is one of the classic cakes of the pastry world (The frenchs call them "journey cake"), and there are many ways to make it.

Here's a new basic recipe for its dough, into which you can then add the flavors (pistachio, lemon, chocolate, etc.) and ingredients (dried fruit, fresh fruit, etc.) of your choice.
61 K 4.2/5 (6 reviews)
Grade this recipe:
Keywords:
Last modified on: September 7th 2025
For this recipe: Comment Send to a friend Ask me a question Follow Printable Diaporama Video
For 510 g, you will need:

Change these quantities to make:
Change measures:
Times for this recipe
Preparation: 10 min.
Cooking: 7 min.
All in all: 20 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 - ⌛ 7 min.
Basic cake batter - the French way : Stage 1
Melt 40 g butter in a small pan on low heat.

Bring to the boil, then wait until it stops boiling and begins to give off a nutty smell (you have just made noisette butter).

Take off the heat and leave to cool until just warm.

Stage 2 - ⌛ 2 min.
Basic cake batter - the French way : Stage 2
Mix 120 g egg and 150 g caster sugar in a bowl with a whisk.

Stage 3 - ⌛ 1 min.
Basic cake batter - the French way : Stage 3
Add 80 g cream...

Stage 4 - ⌛ 1 min.
Basic cake batter - the French way : Stage 4
...and mix again.

Stage 5 - ⌛ 2 min.
Basic cake batter - the French way : Stage 5
Sieve 120 g flour, 3 g baking powder and 2 g salt together into the mixture.

Stage 6 - ⌛ 1 min.
Basic cake batter - the French way : Stage 6
Mix again.

Stage 7 - ⌛ 2 min.
Basic cake batter - the French way : Stage 7
Pour the warm noisette butter into the mixture through a fine strainer.

Stage 8 - ⌛ 1 min.
Basic cake batter - the French way : Stage 8
Mix one last time.

Stage 9
Basic cake batter - the French way : Stage 9
Your cake batter is ready.

You can now add your chosen flavourings (chocolate, pistachio, lemon...), or leave it plain, before pouring it into the tins or moulds.

Stage 10
Basic cake batter - the French way : Stage 10
If you want to make a plain cake straight away, pour the dough into a mold and bake for about 40 minutes at 390°F (200°C).

Note: As always with cakes, if you want a nice opening on top when baking, try this very effective trick.
Remarks
If you are using salted butter, omit the salt.

For a plain cake, you can use replace half an ounce (10 g) of the sugar with vanilla sugar.
Keeping: Should be used the same day.
Source: Based on a recipe by Christophe Michalak.
Nutritional information
Proteins (gr)Carbohydrates (gr)Fats (gr)Energy value (in k-calories)Energy value (in k-joules)
Whole recipe30 RDI=10 %240 RDI=20 %70 RDI=10 %1,730 RDI=90 %7,240 RDI: 90 %
Per 100 g5 RDI=2 %50 RDI=4 %10 RDI=2 %340 RDI=20 %1,410 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
Possible allergens in this recipe: milk, egg, Gluten
How much will it cost?
  • For 510 g : 1.25 €

Change currency:

Note: Be careful, these prices are only an estimate, you can consult the table of prices by ingredients used for this estimate.
Some other recipes using this recipe
Pistachio cake
Pistachio cake

Here's a loaf-style cake made with a classic batter, flavoured with pistachio (of course), and with a crunchy "macaronade" topping.
49 K 1 hour 55 min.
This recipe uses (among others)
Other recipes you may also like
How to seal a terrine or casserole dish
How to seal a terrine or casserole dish
The French have a term for it: "luter", which means to seal around the lid of a cooking dish with dough. The dough forms a crust and hermetically seals in all the steam and flavours while the dish is cooking in the oven. This is a good way to concentrate flavours. The dish is brought to the table sealed and the crust broken open in front of diners so that everyone can share the delicious smells as they are released at that fleeting moment. It is possible to use ordinary January 11th 2017201 K3.7 35 min.
Clafoutis-style plum financier
Clafoutis-style plum financier
The classic French "financier" is normally a little cake, but it can also be made clafoutis-style over fruit in an oven-proof dish.
May 17th 202045 K 1 hour 2 min.
Jamaican cup
Jamaican cup
A delicious combination of flavours: coffee with rum, the first in a cream, the second in a sabayon, with the added crunch of a few toasted almonds.
June 29th 202231 K 50 min.
Confectioner's custard (Crème pâtissière, or French pastry cream)
Confectioner's custard (Crème pâtissière, or French pastry cream)
Quite similar to crème anglaise but much thicker. It is used in many pastries like choux pastry (pâte à choux) or millefeuille.
January 27th 2017778 K 313.8 40 min.
How to succeed in making sabayon (syllabub)
How to succeed in making sabayon (syllabub)
A sabayon is a delicious and delicate preparation based on egg yolks and sugar, with a liquid added (wine, alcohol, fruit juice, etc), which is then whipped in a bain-marie until it is both light and smooth. Usually sabayon is sweet (syllabub), but you can make it savoury, in which case there is only egg yolk, salt, and the chosen liquid, which could be stock, reduced wine, roasting juices, etc... This recipe is for a...
November 12th 2017952 K 54 20 min.
News list of cooking-ez.com

Sign up to receive the latest recipes (next batch due to be sent on 2025-11-02)

*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