I've adapted this depression era cake to fill our square pan. It's a soft, sweet cake that comes together quickly with no need to wait until any ingredients come to room temperature.
8 eggs
4 cups sugar
4 cups cake flour or White Lily All Purpose Flour
4 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
2 sticks (1 cup) unsalted butter, sliced
2 cups whole milk
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
Preheat oven to 325°F. Prepare Old Country Kitchenware square tube pan by brushing with pan coat and lining the bottom with parchment paper (if using two piece pan, also fit with a parchment paper square between the two pieces first). In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, whip eggs on medium speed. Gradually add sugar in, and whisk for 6 minutes or until much larger in volume, pale, and fluffy. Sift together flour, baking powder, and salt. With a spatula, fold flour mixture into eggs until there are no streaks of flour remaining. Heat milk, butter, and vanilla together until butter is melted, but don’t let it boil. Fold the hot milk mixture into the batter until just combined, making sure to scrape the bottom and sides of the bowl. Pour batter into prepared tube pan and bake for 1 hour 30 minutes to 1 hour 45 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the cake comes out clean. Let cool until the pan is comfortable enough to handle, then use a thin spatula to release the sides of the cake. Transfer the cake to a wire rack in two steps: first, turn the cake up on its side, then invert fully. (If using two-piece pan, invert the entire cake without separating the pieces). Let cool completely.
