If you have lived in France for any length of time you will be familiar with “cake salé”- a homemade staple at parties, picnics and family gatherings. Its called a cake, but only because thats what the French call anything made in a loaf pan. It is a savoury loaf (salé means salty or savoury) similar to an American style quick bread, but richer and with an eggier texture – a cross between quiche and a gougère -and begs to be served with a glass of wine. It is, in fact, most often served as an aperitif. However, a slice would also be delicious alongside a tomato salad or make a light lunch all on its own.
If you want to take things a step further, the slices also make a tasty base, like a crostini, for a sliver of ham or an anchovy and tomato.
The classic cake salé and indeed the first one I ever tasted, is made with a combination of green olives and fine strips of bacon – but any filling can be added to the basic mix of eggs, flour and cheese whisked with olive oil and milk. I was cooking with Betsy the other day and figs were in abundance so we put together this combination to go with a very tasty French rosé.
“Les Cakes de Sophie” by Sophie Dudemaine, published in English as “Sophie’s Sweet and Savory Loaves” (Stewart, Tabor & Chang, 2002) is the definitive guide to these savoury cakes – categorising the recipes for loafs by season! My copy is very dogeared from use. This may not be an exact replication of one of her recipes but it certainly is the inspiration for this very tasty fig “cake”.
Savory “cake salé” with fresh figs and pancetta
Ingredients
- Serves 8 - 10 as an aperitif
- 4 ounces (100 g) pancetta or bacon, cut into 1/4 inch cubes
- 1 1/4 cup (160 g) all purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- freshly ground pepper
- 4 eggs
- 1/2 cup (10 cl) whole milk
- 1/2 cup (10 cl) olive oil
- 8 fresh, ripe figs, diced
- 2 packed tablespoons herbs - chives and basil or another combination
- 1 cup (about 4 oz/100 g) grated Comté cheese (swiss or cheddar)
Instructions
- 9-by-5 inch metal loaf pan lined with parchment paper - (a pyrex loaf dish or even a disposable aluminium loaf pan will work as well, but might cook slightly slower)
- Preheat oven to 350 °F (180 °C)
- In a small skillet over medium heat, cook pancetta (or bacon) until it has rendered its fat; drain on paper towel.
- Mix together the flour, baking powder, salt and pepper in a large bowl and set aside.
- In a medium bowl whisk the eggs until foamy and blended. Whisk in the milk and olive oil.
- Pour the egg mixture over the dry ingredients and stir with a spatula until combined. Don’t overwork the batter.
- Stir in the cooked pancetta, figs, herbs and cheese, mixing just until combined. Transfer the thick batter into the prepared loaf pan and bake 50 minutes to 1 hour or until the top is golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean. Remove from the oven and let the cake cool in the pan for a 10 minutes. Unmold on a wire rack and cool completely.
- To serve with drinks, I cut the loaf into slices and the slices into cubes.
- Well wrapped, the cake will keep several days at room temperature.
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https://www.charlottepuckette.com/recipes/savory-tarts-and-quick-breads-recipes/savoury-cake-sale-with-fresh-figs-and-pancetta/
