FRENCH BUTTER CAKE

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I came upon this cake while taking a cooking class in Beaune, France.  It has become one of my all-time favorites and an instant go-to when I need a quick and slightly impressive dessert.  I’ve adapted this from the original recipe to make it a little more wine-friendly.  I pair it with rose’ in the summer, and the rest of the year it’s dry to medium-dry wines such as Viognier, new world sauvignon blanc, anything that is a little citrusy, herby, and unoaked.

The most beautiful thing about this cake is that it is not seasonal.  Drop cranberries onto during the fall, citrus in the winter, strawberries in the spring.  Whatever you can find in your local market that is ripe will be perfect.  Think of this as your little black dress in your cake repertoire.  

Ingredients:

  • ¾ cup granulated sugar

  • 1 ½ c flour

  • ½ cup butter (1 stick) at room temperature

  • 1 egg plus 3 egg yolks  at room temperature

  • ¼ cup plain whole milk yogurt

  • ½ teaspoon salt

  • 1 ½ teaspoons baking powder

  • 2 teaspoons lemon zest (about half of a lemon)

  • 1 tablespoon lemon juice

  • 2 teaspoons fresh thyme

  • ½ a nectarine or ¾ cup any fresh fruit

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Butter and flour a 9-inch cake pan then line with parchment paper.

Begin by whipping butter for at least three minutes.  This may seem like a solid 2 and a half minutes too long but taking the time to thoroughly beat the butter will make your cakes considerably fluffier.  It is worth the time in the end.

Beat in the sugar until mixed and follow by beating in the egg and then the egg yolks, all one at a time.  Scrape down the bowl and stir in the yogurt, lemon zest, lemon juice, thyme, and salt.

Sift in the flour and baking powder.  Mix to combine.  Scrape the batter into the prepared pan.

Arrange slices of nectarine or any fruit of your choice on top of the cake batter in a fan shape.  The thickness of the slice is your preference.  I like them thin because I can get away with using slightly under-ripe fruit if necessary, and find the cake much easier to cut in the end.  If using berries, lightly drop them onto the top of the cake.  If you press them in, they are guaranteed to sink into the batter. 

Bake for 38  - 45 minutes or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean.

Dust with powdered sugar when cool.


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