French Pound Cake or Quatre Quarts – Easy & Delicious

Quatre-quarts or four quarters is a familiar classic French dessert made with only four ingredients, each of equal weight.

This traditional recipe is from Brittany, the land of French butter.

Starting with the egg weight will allow you to determine how much of the other ingredients you will need.

That is the simple formula for the ingredients for this pound cake.

To make matters more accessible, I have transferred into cup measurements for you.

However, by remembering that all four ingredients’ simple tip is the same weight, you will never need this recipe again.

I was introduced to this beautiful dessert at the tender age of 10-11 and have been making it since. Easy to prepare, as you can see from the quick instructions.

One thing is sure, and the result is always the same: perfection.

In this Article

Why is it called a pound cake recipe?

This cake gets its name due to how the ingredients can be measured: a pound of sugar, a pound of eggs, a pound of flour, and a pound of butter.

This cake is quite rich as well as dense in texture.

What is the secret to a good pound cake?

The eggs and butter should be at room temperature as well. Both should be at the same temperature.

Adding cold eggs to warm butter will cause breakage of the butter and clumps to form.

I suggest leaving the eggs on the counter longer than the butter to ensure proper temperature.

And whatever you do, do not use melted butter from the microwave.

You want soft, manageable butter, not melted butter, which will not perform the same with this recipe or any recipe that requests soft butter.

Baking tips and step-by-step instructions

As with any recipe, prepare your ingredients before you start baking.

Preheat the oven as you want it hot and ready to bake your cake as soon as you finish the recipe.

• Beat the egg white to soft peaks with your electric mixer. The peaks should stay upright when you remove the beaters from the egg whites.
• Another way to ensure that all the egg white is beaten up is to move from side to side of the bowl. By the egg whites staying still, they are beaten to perfection. In my cooking classes, I demonstrate this by turning the bowl upside down.
• I beat the butter in my food processor for a minute to have it entirely at room temperature. Adding the sugar now, it creates beautiful cream.
• Add the eggs one at a time and beat gently after each egg. You will see a beautiful emulsified cream forming.
• Always sift the flour before adding it to this dessert and all desserts.
• Butter the mold very well, a crucial step. I use no-stick bakery spray by Bak-klene ZT. It covers each nook and cranny of all those gorgeous molds we have in the marketplace.
• If you do not have the no-stick spray on hand, grease your mold well with butter and add some all-purpose flour to the mold. Shake well and cover the mold well also. Your naked eye will be able to tell.

Variations

Add lemon zest and a couple of tablespoons of lemon juice.

A dash of vanilla extract, or add some rum, a couple of tablespoons.

Split the quatre-quarts mixture in two and add some cacao to one of the two. Mix well. When spooning it into the mold, alternate cacao and non with a knife, and blend the two flavors slightly.

You will notice a great design once baked and ready to be sliced.

Add some chopped dates and raisins to it.

Or, just to be decadent, prepare some whipped cream and add a dollop over it with some fresh fruits that you will have marinating with brandy, rum, or any spirit of your liking.

How to serve it

You can bake in a rectangular mold, loaf pan or shape mold. I use Nordic Ware as they are the best for even cooking.

Use a cake stand and sprinkle over your cake powder sugar for a dramatic presentation.

Slice and serve it with mulberry jam,  fruit compote, or creme Anglaise.

Baking it into a round mold leaves you room to add fruits in the middle when ready to serve.

Very popular for breakfast or as an afternoon snack with tea.

Baking process

• Not all ovens are the same. After 30 minutes of baking, insert a knife in the middle, and if it comes out clean, the Quatre-Quarts is done. Most noteworthy is not worrying about falling when you open the oven door. We do not use baking powder.
• Let it rest in the mold over a cooling wire rack for 5 minutes before removing it.
• Set on a cooling rack. The cooling rack will help the bottom cool off, and air will circulate underneath it.

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