Edna Lewis’s Busy Day Cake
Updated May 3, 2026
- Total Time
- 55 minutes
- Prep Time
- 5 minutes
- Cook Time
- 50 minutes
- Rating
- Comments
- Read comments
Advertisement
Ingredients
- Unsalted butter, at room temperature, for the pan
- All-purpose flour, for the pan
- 8tablespoons/113 grams unsalted butter, at room temperature
- 1½ cups/300 grams granulated sugar
- 3large eggs
- 2cups/255 grams all-purpose flour, sifted
- ½ cup whole milk, at room temperature
- 4teaspoons baking powder (see Tip)
- 2teaspoons vanilla extract
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt, such as Diamond Crystal
- Light grating of nutmeg
Nutritional analysis per serving (10 servings)
340 calories; 13 grams fat; 7 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 4 grams monounsaturated fat; 1 gram polyunsaturated fat; 52 grams carbohydrates; 1 gram dietary fiber; 31 grams sugars; 5 grams protein; 221 milligrams sodium
Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
Powered by
Preparation
- Step 1
Heat oven to 375 degrees. Butter and flour the bottom of an 8-by-8-inch cake pan.
- Step 2
In a large bowl, blend the butter and sugar by hand using a wooden spoon, until the color of the butter has lightened and the mixture is fluffy. This will take several minutes. Add in eggs one by one, mixing each in until it’s fully incorporated. Add in ½ cup of flour and ¼ cup of milk together and mix well. Repeat with another ½ cup flour and the remaining ¼ cup milk, incorporating well, then stir in the remaining 1 cup flour.
- Step 3
Add baking powder, vanilla, salt and nutmeg and mix well.
- Step 4
Spoon batter into the prepared pan. Bake for 40 minutes, until a toothpick or knife inserted comes out clean.
- Step 5
Let cool slightly in the pan, about 15 minutes. Cut into squares and serve warm.
- Edna Lewis famously advised against baking with commercial double-acting baking powder because she found the ones on the market in the 1970’s to have a "bitter aftertaste.” If you like, seek out non-aluminum double-acting baking powder (such as Bob’s Red Mill), or make your own: Combine 2 tablespoons cream of tartar with 1 tablespoon baking soda, and then measure out 4 teaspoons for the recipe and proceed as instructed.
Private Notes
Comments
I did it the usual way—blend dry and wet ingredients together in separate bowls, mix together in three stages using a wooden spoon. Then add melted and cooled butter last. And yes, reduce the sugar to one cup as per today’s preference. And then, i mix the dry ingredients for one extra cake since I have the ingredients out on the counter anyway, and put it in a canning jar in the cupboard, so this cake is already half made for the next time.
I've made this at least 50 times over the years. Don't forget the vanilla and nutmeg! Sometimes I lightly sprinkle turbinado or demerara sugar on the top before baking. The cake flavor goes nicely with blueberry compote also.
My mother always made a version of this "plain cake," and it was about the only cake we had, a favorite of us all. She served it with a hot sauce, made with powdered sugar, butter, vanilla, and water. The old Betty Crocker cookbooks called it "dinette cake" or "one-egg cake."
I loved this cake! Very nice sponge and flavor. It does sink a bit, but it doesn’t bother me. I made a fresh blueberry compote and added a big spoonful over the top with a small dollop of whipped cream cheese. Delicious! It’s an easy cake to make. Although I realized in the beginning of baking that I didn’t have nutmeg, so just used cinnamon.
It seemed like an awfully lot of batter for an 8 inch square pan. Plus, it has four whole teaspoons of baking powder and three eggs. That's a lot of leavening! I thought about putitng it in a 9 by 13 pan, but decided to follow the recipe. My fire alarm ended going off and I have a bunch of burnt batter in my oven. The cake is half done. The top browned and the batter is still wet. This is by far the most disastrous cake baking experience I have ever had.
This was just delightful. I followed the recipe exactly, and found the subtle flavors and delicate crumb unbeatable. And it lasted 5 days in a ziploc. Tomorrow I'll try substituting cardamom and fior di sicile for the nutmeg and vanilla, and serving it with the first sweet strawberries of the year.