pandan cake...two way

I made two pandan cakes this week. The two ingredient lists were almost identical but the preparation method differs slightly.

I wouldn't call this a pandan chiffon cake. Although it was made using separate eggs method, the texture was closer to a sponge cake instead. The preparation method is slightly different from making a chiffon cake. To make this cake, the egg whites are first beaten still close to stiff peak. The yolks are then added directly to the meringue, followed by vegetable oil, coconut milk, vanilla extract and pandan paste...all dump in together. The mixture is then combined with a balloon whisk. The last step is to fold in the flour with a spatula. The cake is baked in a bundt pan or a tube pan...which has to be well greased and floured. After baking, the cake pan is inverted and the cake will slip off from the pan right away.

This pandan cake didn't rise too much upon baking. Either I have deflated the batter when trying to fold in the flour, or it could be due to the smaller sized eggs that I used...the cake pan was only half filled. I didn't do a good job in preparing the pan either...there was a thin layer of flour on the surface of the cake :(

Once the cake was released from the pan, I cut a slice to taste it. The crust is quite crisp and the crumb tasted moist and soft. The cake didn't taste as moist upon cooling but I still find it delicious.

With some left over coconut milk, I made another pandan cake...this time, it is a real chiffon cake. The cake rose quite well during baking despite the fact that I must have deflated the batter since the finished batter was not as thick as I would expect.

Closer to the end of the baking, the cake started to sink a little. Fortunately it managed to stay well above the rim upon cooling. I am quite satisfied with the height of the finished cake. I have deliberately omitted cream of tar tar and baking powder which are called for in the original recipe. Apparently this didn't cause any damage.

I really like the airy texture of this cake! It is cottony soft, moist, light and fluffy.  This recipe is certainly a keeper. The only thing I need to improve upon is to enhance the flavour. I have left out the pandan juice since I do not have a blender or a mortar and pestle to extract the juice from pandan leaves. I will have to think of a way to get around this problem before I could make the perfect pandan cake.

(I will be leaving for a short trip and will not be able to access blogger during the time I am away. You may leave your comments and questions and I will respond to them when I return.)



Pandan Chiffon Cake

Ingredients:
(for 7" tube pan)

3 egg yolks (use large eggs, 60g without shell)
35g caster sugar
70g coconut milk
55g vegetable oil
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon pandan paste
1 tablespoon pandan juice  
pinch of salt
100g cake flour

4 egg whites (use large eggs, 60g without shell)
50g caster sugar
(Note: I omitted the baking powder and cream of tar tar which is called for in the original recipe.)


Method:

1. Sieve flour and set aside.
2. Place egg yolks in a mixing bowl. With a manual hand whisk, whisk the yolks a little. Add in sugar and whisk till the mixture turns pale and thick. Add coconut milk gradually, stir to combine. Add vegetable oil gradually, stir to combine. Add vanilla extract, pandan paste, pandan juice (I replaced with water) and salt. Stir to combine. Sieve over the flour and whisk till the flour is fully incorporated. Do not over mix. Set aside.
3. In a clean, dry mixing bowl, beat egg whites with a handheld electric mixer on low speed until mixture becomes frothy and foamy.  Add half of the sugar amount and turn to high speed and beat the mixture. Continue to add in the remaining sugar and beat until the egg whites reaches the soft peak stage.The soft peak stage is reached when the peaks of the whites curl over and droop slightly. The egg whites should appear smooth and glossy. (Do not over beat the whites still stiff, it is better to beat the whites still soft peaks for easy folding with the yolk batter.)
4. Add the beaten egg white into the egg yolk batter in 3 separate additions, each time folding gently with a spatula until just blended.
5. Pour batter into a 17cm tube pan (do not grease the pan). Tap the pan lightly on a table top to get rid of any trapped air bubbles in the batter.
6. Bake in pre-heated oven at 170 degC for 35 mins, or until a toothpick inserted into the centre comes out clean, when lightly pressed the cake will spring back. Invert the pan immediately and let cool completely before unmould. To remove the cake from the pan, run a thin-bladed knife around the inside of the pan and the center core. Release the cake and run the knife along the base of the pan to remove the cake.

Recipe source: adapted from ieatishootipost