Cake salé
In France a “cake” is a loaf baked in a long tin, and “salé” means savoury. A simple batter of flour, eggs, milk and olive oil, full of cubes of ham, Gruyère and green olives, bakes in 45 minutes and is cut into slices. It goes to breakfast, picnics, lunchboxes and aperitifs. It is soft, moist and salty from the cheese and olives. It is best slightly warm or at room temperature, and you can vary it endlessly while keeping the batter proportions.
Your own work in that: 10 min.
- Fillings 15 min
- Batter 10 min
- Baking 45 min
- Cooling 15 min
Step by step
0 / 8 donePrepare the tin
Heat the oven to 180°C. Line a loaf tin about 25 cm long with baking paper.
Ingredients: 180 g plain flour · 2 tsp baking powder · 3 pcs eggs · 100 ml milk · 80 ml olive oil · ½ tsp black pepper · ¼ tsp salt
Cut the fillings
Cut the ham and cheese into 1 cm cubes, halve the olives and pat them dry with kitchen paper. Toss the fillings in a spoonful of the measured flour — they will not clump and will spread more evenly through the batter.
Ingredients: 150 g cooked ham, in one piece · 100 g Gruyère or Emmental · 80 g pitted green olives · 1 tsp dried thyme
Tossed in flour — they will not clump together.Mix the wet ingredients
Whisk the eggs with the milk, oil, pepper and salt. Use little salt, as the ham, cheese and olives are salty.
Ingredients: 180 g plain flour · 2 tsp baking powder · 3 pcs eggs · 100 ml milk · 80 ml olive oil · ½ tsp black pepper · ¼ tsp salt
Combine with the flour
Mix the rest of the flour with the baking powder, pour in the wet ingredients and whisk just until combined, with no lumps.
Ingredients: 180 g plain flour · 2 tsp baking powder · 3 pcs eggs · 100 ml milk · 80 ml olive oil · ½ tsp black pepper · ¼ tsp salt
Add ham, cheese and olives
Fold in the fillings and thyme with a spatula. The batter will be thick.
Ingredients: 150 g cooked ham, in one piece · 100 g Gruyère or Emmental · 80 g pitted green olives · 1 tsp dried thyme
Bake
Spoon the batter into the tin, level it and bake 40–45 minutes, until golden and a skewer comes out dry. If the top browns too fast, cover it with foil.
Ingredients: 180 g plain flour · 2 tsp baking powder · 3 pcs eggs · 100 ml milk · 80 ml olive oil · ½ tsp black pepper · ¼ tsp salt
Thick batter into the tin — it rises in the oven.Cool in the tin
Cool the loaf in the tin 15 minutes, then lift it out by the paper onto a rack.
Ingredients: 180 g plain flour · 2 tsp baking powder · 3 pcs eggs · 100 ml milk · 80 ml olive oil · ½ tsp black pepper · ¼ tsp salt
Slice
Cut the loaf into 10 slices (about 2.5 cm), slightly warm or fully cooled. Serve with salad, tomatoes or simply with coffee.
Ingredients: 180 g plain flour · 2 tsp baking powder · 3 pcs eggs · 100 ml milk · 80 ml olive oil · ½ tsp black pepper · ¼ tsp salt
Slightly warm — the cheese still stretches.
Before you start
Other versions
Keep the batter proportions and change the fillings: feta with spinach, goat's cheese with courgette, smoked salmon with dill, sun-dried tomatoes with basil. About 330 g of fillings in total.
For picnics
Cake salé travels well. It contains ham and cheese, so keep it unchilled for 2 hours at most; in hot weather or on a longer trip pack it in a cool bag.
Storage
Once cooled, wrap it in film and refrigerate — it keeps 3 days. Slices can be frozen and reheated in a toaster or dry pan.
