//cotton sponge cake//
Ingredients:
- Melted unsalted Butter – 5 tblsp
- Whole Milk – 3 tblsp (room temperature)
- Salt – a pinch
- Granulated Sugar – 2 tblsp
- Cake flour – 6 tblsp (or)
- All purpose flour – 4 tblsp
- Corn starch – 2 tblsp
Whipping Egg White:
- Eggs – 3 ( cold temperature)
- Granulated sugar – 5 tblsp
- Cream of tartar (or) lime juice – ¼ tsp
- Vanilla essence – 2 tsp (optional)
Procedure:
- Pre heat the oven to 300˚F
- Grease a square/ round/loaf pan with some butter and dust with some flour and keep aside; (I have used 9 inch loaf pan)
- In a sauce pan, add 5 tblsp of melted butter along with a pinch of salt and turn on the heat under medium flame.
- Now add the room temperature whole milk, 2 tblsp of granulated sugar into the sauce pan and mix well.
- When the sugar dissolves completely, remove the pan from heat and add the cake flour slowly into the warm butter-milk mixture; stir well.
- Separate the eggs- yolk and white in a separate bowl.
- Add the yolk (one at a time) into the cake flour mixture and mix thoroughly (approx. 20-25 turns using spatula/ whisker) and keep aside.
- Using a stand/ hand mixture beat the egg whites with ¼ tsp of cream of tartar; in between add a tblsp of granulated sugar into the mixture. Beat well until hook peak forms. Add 2 tsp of vanilla essence and mix well.
- Now add a little amount of whipped egg whites into the cake mixture and blend together; now pour the cake mixture into the whipped egg whites and fold it gently with a spatula/ whisker.
- Pour the mixture gently into the prepared pan and tap it twice over the surface counter to take out the air bubbles from the batter.
Water Bath – The major step in this cake is “WATER BATH”.
- Place the cake pan into a large pan and pour enough cold water surround the cake pan and bake the cake for about 60 mins or until the cake is done(insert a toothpick comes out clean)
- Leave the cake in the same pan once out from the oven for about 10-15 mins and tap it once to relax the cake and remove the cake from the pan and cool completely over a wire rack.
- The super soft COTTON SPONGE “CASTELLA CAKE” is ready to serve.
NOTE/ TIPS:
- Adding vanilla essence is purely optional
- The whipped egg whites- the peaks stand up straight when you lift the beater; don’t whip the egg whites too hard neither soft, it will spoil the cake texture.
- Always fold the egg whites into the cake batter, don’t stir or beat the egg whites, it will lose its fluffiness
