Japanese honey cake AKA Castella cake

Aha!Here I am!back to blogging.There are tons of reason for being away.One of the main reason is lacking in inspiration and idea for a while.OK lets get started!I always wanted to make Castella cake and love eating them.Yesterday,I tried making one and it was my very first Castella cake.
I think everyone know little about this cake already.Castella is a Japanese sponge cake made of sugar, flour, eggs, and honey. You only can find this cake in Japanese/Korean or Chinese grocery stores.The texture is soft and melt-in-your-mouth with scent of honey.It's usually baked in a rectangular loaf baking tin or mold. You'll need the basic sponge cake baking method and you'll also have to make a sort of rectangle mold (just use some parchment paper, and outline a rectangle with it.Then pour the batter in the loaf pan mold and let it set for a few minutes.Then bake it for 30-35minutes or until golden brown.Here is the recipe.


KASUTERA (CASTELLA)

1 cup granulated sugar
1 tablespoon granulated sugar
1/4 cup honey
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon lemon extract(I omit this)
1/4 teaspoon salt
7 large eggs, separated
1 cup cake flour, sifted(for best result)
1/8 teaspoon cream of tartar
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
3 tbsp milk (I add milk for extra moisture)

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F (160 C). Use parchment to line the bottom of a 10-inch tube pan, preferably with a removable bottom or 2 (8 x 4-inch) loaf pans. Grease the parchment.

In a large bowl, whisk 1 cup sugar, honey, vanilla, lemon extract, and salt into egg yolks. With an electric mixer, beat about 5 minutes on medium-high speed until pale yellow and doubled in volume.

Gently fold in sifted flour,alternately with milk.

In a large bowl, beat egg whites in electric mixer on a low speed 1 minute, increasing speed to medium-high. When foamy, sprinkle in 1 tablespoon sugar and cream of tartar. Beat until stiff but not dry.

With a spatula, fold the egg whites in thirds. Pour batter into pan.

Tap gently on the counter to remove air bubbles.

Place on middle rack of oven 35 to 45 minutes or until golden brown.

Cool 20 minutes. Remove from pan carefully. Pull off parchment and cool completely.

Serve or store airtight for soft texture(for best result)

Notes:Don't add oil in this cake!!!!!!!!!!!!!!And do not add baking powder or baking soda!!!!!

Deep fried seaweed

Deep fried foods are my daughters favourite and they also love seaweed(Nori).I normally don’t like them, but after it was deep fried, it was great.I use basic frying batter but you can buy tempura batter from the Chinese or Japanese store.It was good and good combination,but I ‘d like try tempura batter next time.You can't store the deep fried seaweed because it won't crispy anymore if you leave it for more than half an hour.It should be serve right away.

A lot of people think deep frying is an unhealthy food. As long as the oil is hot enough and the food doesn’t stay in the oil too long.I think it should be fine.Don’t knock it til you’ve tried it!Remember to drink enough water especially this coming summer.I know its not good for you but come one once in awhile,anything can be deep fried.lol

Cut the Nori into rectangular shaped

Make a frying batter( rice flour,flour,water and ice cube)

Tips:Dip each Nori slice into the batter with hand to evenly coat and then place directly into the hot oil.Never use the chopstick or else the Nori will tear apart.