Hello! I’m Cassandre, and today on Caramel Loafing, I’m sharing a timeless, travel-ready French treat: the French Weekend Cake—also known as a travel cake, Le Cake Weekend, Gâteau de Voyage, or French-style pound cake.
This French Weekend Cake lives up to its name: it’s perfect for baking on a Friday and taking along for a weekend trip. Thanks to its firm texture and simple prep, it’s ideal for picnics, getaways, or enjoying at home. Its shape and taste are similar to a classic pound cake—like our Lemon Pound Cake—but the method and ingredients are slightly different.
Unlike traditional pound cake, which uses equal weights of butter, sugar, flour, and eggs, the Weekend Cake follows no strict ratios. It also uses melted butter instead of creamed, meaning no mixer is required—making it delightfully simple to make while still delivering rich flavor.
This version is inspired by a recipe from Le Cordon Bleu, but we’ve added our own twist. We replaced the lemon flavor with grapefruit and swapped the sugary lemon glaze for a refreshing grapefruit syrup to lighten the overall sweetness. The cake is finished with a thin layer of apricot glaze, and we used a small loaf pan, perfect for packing or gifting.
Whether you call it a Weekend Cake or Travel Cake, its laid-back name evokes leisure and indulgence. It stays fresh at room temperature for 3–4 days, making it ideal for road trips, camping, or enjoying in your hotel room. If you’re a fan of pound cakes, this French version is a must-try!
Love pound cakes? Don’t miss our other classic bakes: Gâteau Nantais, Poached Pear Pound Cake, French Chocolate Pound Cake, Banana Pound Cake, and our festive Boozy Fruit Pound Cake.
French Weekend Cake Recipe
Ingredients
Pan size: 14 x 7 x 5 cm (about 4–5 servings)
To adjust for other pan sizes, try our Cake Pan Size Converter.
☞ Cake Batter
- 2 eggs
- Zest of ½ grapefruit + 30g (1 oz) juice
- 80g (2.8 oz) granulated sugar
- 85g (3 oz) cake flour
- 0.3g (a pinch) aluminum-free baking powder
- 80g (2.8 oz) unsalted butter (melted)
- Additional: 10g (0.35 oz) butter + a bit of flour for greasing the pan
☞ Apricot Glaze
- 25g (0.9 oz) apricot jam (or glaze)
- 25g (0.9 oz) water
☞ Grapefruit Syrup
- 18g (0.6 oz) powdered sugar
- 30g (1 oz) grapefruit juice
Use our Dessert Nutrition Calculator to view nutrition facts.
Instructions
- Grease your pan with melted butter and dust lightly with flour. Shake out excess and chill the pan in the fridge.
- Melt butter using a double boiler method and keep it warm under a towel.
- Rub the grapefruit zest into the sugar using your fingertips to release the oils.
- In a large bowl, beat the eggs and grapefruit sugar until thick and pale. Hand whisking takes about 7–8 minutes; with a mixer, beat on medium for 2 minutes, then low for 1 minute.
- Sift in the flour and baking powder. Fold until no dry flour remains.
- Add the melted butter and mix until glossy and smooth.
- Pour batter into the pan until ¾ full. Tap gently to remove air bubbles.
- Use a spatula dipped in melted butter to make a line down the center of the batter—this helps the cake split evenly.
- Bake at 170°C (340°F) for 30–35 minutes. Unmold and let cool completely.
- To make the apricot glaze, heat 25g (0.9 oz) apricot jam with 25g (0.9 oz) water until smooth and fluid. Brush over the cake while still warm.
- Mix powdered sugar with grapefruit juice and brush over the sides of the cake. Let it set before serving.
Watch the full step-by-step video: Classic French Weekend Cake (Grapefruit)