French Savoury Cake

This French Savoury Cake is a delicious, airy, and versatile treat that's incredibly easy to prepare. It's packed with grated cheese and ham, making it perfect for snacking, as a side dish, or paired with appetizers, soup, or salad.

As a kid, I loved making this "cake salé" for my family. Its light and fluffy texture, combined with plenty of moisture and flavour, always made it a hit. You can easily customize it with your favorite seasonings, herbs, and other tasty add-ins that I have suggested below.

If you enjoy this savoury sake, be sure to try my Yummy Cheese Biscuit With Herbs, Spinach puff pastry, and French Savoury Chorizo Madeleines.

Jump to:

• 🍴 Why You Will Love It
• 🧀 Ingredients You’ll Need
• 🥓 Variations
• 🥣 Instructions
• 💭 Recipe FAQs
• More Savoury Ideas for Appetizers and Picnics
• French Savoury Cake

🍴 Why You Will Love It

• So versatile: Bring it to a potluck, cut it into little squares for an appetizer, pack it for a picnic or the kid's lunch box and even for brunch!
• It’s filling without being overly heavy - perfect as a snack, side dish, or main meal with salad or soup
• This cake offers a great boost of protein from the eggs, yet it isn’t soggy. 
• The contrast of the moist salty cake with a slightly crunchy top is heavenly!

🧀 Ingredients You’ll Need

This mouth-watering loaf requires simple ingredients that you likely already have in your pantry and/or fridge. With just a few additional fresh ingredients, you’ll be ready to make your family’s new favorite cake!

• Eggs - Bring to room temperature for easy mixing 
• Olive oil - Vegetable oil or canola oil can be used instead
• Baking powder - for an airy cake
• All-purpose flour - Gluten-free flour can be used for those with gluten sensitivities
• Milk - for extra moisture
• Ham - Diced. You could also use bacon previously cooked and crumbled
• Grated cheese - any would work great

🥓 Variations

I know how much I love to add my own personal touch to recipes, so I’ve added a few alternative ingredients that you could try when making this delicious cake.

• Meat: Cooked bacon pieces are another tasty option as a substitute for the ham. Canned tuna is also a delicious option should you want to try a completely different type of meat!
• Vegetarian: Prefer a meatless version? Simply omit the ham and add in some finely diced vegetables previously sautéed to remove their water content.  
• Seasoning and herbs: Change the taste of this fresh or enhance the savoury flavor by including your favorite spices and fresh herbs into the cake batter such as basil or oregano. 
• Extra add-ins: Experiment with sun-dried tomatoes, roasted peppers, or sliced olives.
• Cheese: Cheddar is the perfect cheese for this cake, but you can also use gruyere cheese, Emmental cheese, feta cheese, or goat cheese.

🥣 Instructions

• First, pre-heat the oven and whisk the eggs and oil.

• Next, gradually add the baking powder and flour. Now, pour the milk and mix some more.
• Then, add the ham and cheese, followed by the salt and pepper, or other seasoning of your choice. This would also be a good point to mix in any chopped fresh herbs that you’ve decided to include.

• Finally, pour the batter into a loaf pan and bake for 30 minutes at 400F.

Tip: Avoid over-mixing the batter otherwise the cake can become dense and heavy.

💭 Recipe FAQs

More Savoury Ideas for Appetizers and Picnics

• 
  French Savoury Chorizo Madeleines 
• 
  Yummy Cheese Biscuit With Herbs (with video)
• 
  Cheesy Garlic Bread: The Most Appetizing Pull Apart
• 
  Spinach Feta Puff Pastry Tartlets

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