TGIF! It’s been quite a while since i have posted but i have been baking weekly still. I’ve been rather hardworking going to libraries, browsing through cookery and baking books, reading and feeding my knowledge. Learning is a never ending process.

There’s a recent craze about this Le Castella that comes to Singapore and they are everywhere in the media. Castella (カステラ^?Kasutera) is a popular Japanesesponge cake made of sugar, flour, eggs, and starch syrup. When this cake comes to Taiwan, the wait was 5 hours and when it comes to Singapore it was a 3 1/2 hours. The Queue was CRAZY and I was initially jumping with excitement but after i’ve seen alot of media photos of the cake, with alot of so-so reviews, i was reluctant to try.

Some friends tried it and gave the feedback that it’s not worth buying, they taste like normal sponge, just softer or fluffier. The cakes look inconsistent, dense and charred on the surface. An over-baked charred skin is a huge turn off to me, becasue a charred skin could overpower the original taste of a good cake/any baked goods.

There’s also a link here –> http://www.asiaone.com/singapore/taiwans-famous-castella-cake-town-heres-our-verdict which doesn’t seems to have very good reviews about the cake as well..

And so.. i did my own version (adapted from guai shu shu’s cheesy sponge cake). There are still rooms for improvement, however this is my first try =)

Honey Cheese Castella Recipe

 

 

Ingredients:

The yolks batter
80g melted butter
6 egg yolks ( i used 60g eggs)
100g of cake flour
60g honey
20g milk
1/2 tsp salt

The white meringue
6 egg whites
60g sugar
1/2 tsp cream of tartar (optional)

Grated cheddar cheese or any cheese preferred

 

Method

 

1. The yolk batter – Pre-heat oven to 160 degree
2. Whisk egg yolks and 2 tbsp of sugar till light and fluffy
3. Add salt, milk, melted butter and honey, mix well.
4. Add cake flour, mix well until smooth, put aside.

 

 

1. The white meringue – Pour all your whites in clean mixing bowl, using a machine and whisk till it’s frothy, add in your cream of tartar. Gradually add in your sugar in batches when the whites becomes soft peaks while whisking till it reaches soft peak form.
2. Take 1/3 of the white meringue, fold it into the yolk meringue. Do this in 3 batches until fully combined. Try not to over mix and deflate the batter.

 

 

Baking time!!

 

1. Line your baking tin. I used a rectangular tin for my bake today. Pour in half of the batter.
2. Spread/Sprinkle cheddar cheese all over your cake and top up the other half of the batter over it.
3. Level the top lightly, and bang it on the table a few times to remove large air bubbles trapped inside the cake.
4. Steam bake for 30-40 mins or until a skewer comes out clean.
5. Remove from tray. Cut and Serve =)

 

I might be baking mine for too long or did not use the water bathe method so the cake comes out slightly more dry as compared to the original recipe. However, the cake taste heavenly of honey, it’s soft and fluffy and it stays that way for the next 2 days!

 

 

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