Matcha Spelt Castella

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Matcha Spelt Castella

Labels: { Asian, Coffee and Tea, Foam Cakes Chiffon Sponge Angel, Honey, Spelt }

Castella, (or Kasutera) soft, delicate with sweet aroma, is a highly popular Japanese sponge cake, raised only by the air incorporated into the eggs and oil-free. The origin of castella is believed to have come from Portuguese merchants who introduced European sweets to Nagasaki Japan in the 16th century.
Castella cake is traditionally baked in a wood box, which helps to bake the cake evenly, but a standard baking tin would work just great. Unlike most cakes, castella cake is baked with bread flour (I used spelt bread flour), not cake or all purpose flour.
There are now many varieties of this sponge cake made with chocolate, honey, green tea, and brown sugar. If you have baked other foam cakes before, the process of creating castella is quite similar. Please do drop by Biren of Roti & Rice to read all the detailed instructions with beautiful photos. And if you are interested in learning more background of castella, please refer to Wise Geek.
You can also find castella on
Anncoo Journal
Nasi Lemak Lover
No Frills Recipes

120 g Spelt bread flour
13 g Matcha tea powder
Pinch of salt
5 Large egg whites, at room temperature
5 Large egg yolks, at room temperature
130 g White fine sugar
20 ml Medium sweet sherry
20 g Honey

Line an 8-inch / 20x20-cm rectangular baking dish with aluminum foil. Whisk and sieve spelt bread flour, matcha powder and salt together 2-3 times into a mixing bowl. Warm sherry and honey in a bowl over a pot of hot water, stirring until honey completely dissolves. Set aside. Preheat the oven to 160C/320F.
Beat the egg whites in the bowl of your stand mixer at high speed until foamy, about 30 seconds. Beat in sugar in 3 additions until firm peaks form, about 3-4 minutes. Add in egg yolks, one at a time, at medium-low speed until well combined, about 1 minute.
Now add in prepared flour mixture, still at medium-low speed, and stir until just combined. Pour in the sherry-honey mixture and continue to stir for another minute until well-combined and smooth.
Pour the cake batter from a 30-cm / 1-foot height directly into the prepared baking dish. Tap the baking dish on the counter to remove bubbles. Using a spatula, smooth the surface to remove any remaining bubbles.
Bake in the center of the hot oven for 50 minutes until evenly brown. Remove and drop it from a 30-cm / 1-foot height onto the counter to prevent shrinkage. Cool the cake on the counter for 5 minutes. Lift the cake from the pan and invert it onto a piece of parchment paper. Peel the aluminum foil. Wrap the cake with a plastic wrap and store in the refrigerator overnight to preserve moisture.
To serve, trim off the sides of the cake with a sharp serrated knife, then cut up into the even slices.

112 comments:

Awayofmind Bakery House 20/3/12 06:51: Angie, the famous Casttela comes to your house too!! Your bake is so beautiful, like the soft texture! Thanks for sharing the background on Casttela.
Lisa Ho 20/3/12 06:53: Beautiful slices....
haven't had any and now I am curious about Castella... after reading few posts... :)
ann low 20/3/12 07:03: Beautiful castella cake! Your cake look so soft and perfect. Thanks for the mention, Angie :)
Honey Bee Sweets 20/3/12 07:29: How special! I've seen this flavor before at the Japanese store but yet to try. Lovely!
Sonia ~ Nasi Lemak Lover 20/3/12 07:47: I feel with egg separation method make more easy to handle this cake. Anyway , I still want to perfect the recipe I use now then I will try this method . Thanks for the mention, appreciate much!
Easy Recipes, Stunning Presentations 20/3/12 07:58: I love everything with green tea powder and specially sponge cake. It is so great with a nice cup of tea. I have never made it myself but think I will give it try soon. Thanks for sharing.
Rosa's Yummy Yums 20/3/12 08:02: A great cake! It looks so smooth and delicious. This recipe is very original.

Cheers,

Rosa
Cheah 20/3/12 08:25: Gosh, this is so lovely and soft. Nice green colour too. Thanks for the mention, Angie.
jasna varcakovic 20/3/12 09:09: 'Alien cake' - love matcha!!!
Lenia 20/3/12 09:27: What a great cake!Love its strange color!Have a great day,dear!
kitchen flavours 20/3/12 10:03: Wow, beautifully baked, Angie! Looks wonderful! Love the colour!
Anonymous 20/3/12 10:26: This looks great Angie, I am sure we ate something similar when we were living in Mauritius but can't remember what it was called.
:-) Mandy
Ana Regalado 20/3/12 10:42: Beautifully-baked , Angie ! Love the matcha flavor ;)
Belinda @zomppa 20/3/12 10:58: I didn't know they came in a box...I love the texture and density and sweetness of sponge cakes. I find them just a wee bit magical. Love this version.
Umm Mymoonah 20/3/12 11:37: Learnt a new word from your post, Castella. Beautifully baked cake.
Heather S-G 20/3/12 11:48: Such a beautiful, delicate little cake. And I love the photos - so Springy and comforting at the same time.
Joanne 20/3/12 12:01: I love the texture of castella and this matcha version sounds so delicious. Plus it's an awesome color!
Hotly Spiced 20/3/12 12:16: It looks like a beautiful cake and the colours are amazing. xx
Nupur 20/3/12 12:32: wonderful color imparted to such different cake.. love this one..
Liz That Skinny Chick Can Bake 20/3/12 12:46: Such beautiful rectangles...with a perfect crumb! These cakes look delicious, Angie!
Becki's Whole Life 20/3/12 13:53: This sounds so yummy. I am yet to try the matcha flavor, but I did buy some spelt flour and made pancakes. They were good!
Edith 20/3/12 14:00: Angie, this look so awesome! So may I know whether can I replace spelt flour with bread flour as to 1:1?
lena 20/3/12 14:01: hello angie, you never failed ? to impress me all the time! you even got a matcha flavoured castella here! what can i say? Perfect!!
Viviane Bauquet Farre 20/3/12 14:52: Yum, Angie! Matcha is a great but unusual flavor - it's wonderful to have another recipe for it - especially one so attractive and appealing as yours. Thank you for sharing!
sally 20/3/12 14:53: Looks delicious! I've never baked with matcha before, but it looks like a great addition to castella and many other desserts.
Tricia @ saving room for dessert 20/3/12 14:59: Absolutely fascinating! I've never heard of this before. Thanks for opening this new world to me! Have a lovely day.
Kit @ i-lostinausten 20/3/12 15:25: Lovely! I just love the texture & the color of these Matcha castella! Looks very appetizing & love how elegantly you've presented them! :)
Unknown 20/3/12 15:30: drooling, wish i taste it
ping 20/3/12 15:52: Seems like castella mania going on lately :) This looks very nice indeed with the beautiful matcha green.
Robyn 20/3/12 16:32: Mmm, that looks like a nice dessert!
mr. pineapple man 20/3/12 17:59: I love castella!! These are soo good would azuki beans too!
Rosita Vargas 20/3/12 18:07: Woooow...luce estupendo un bello color ,un cake maravilloso,abrazos hugs,hugs.
Choclette 20/3/12 18:26: Ahh, they look so pretty especially with your tea cups. I love the flavour of matcha in cakes. In fact I'm just putting off writing up my post on the matcha cakes I made on Friday. I didn't think the Japanese made cakes, not traditionally anyway, so that was a revelation.
Unknown 20/3/12 19:20: I adore Japanese sponge cakes like this. They're unbelievably soft and delicious. I didn't realise bread flour is the key ingredient, rather than cake or all purpose flour. Thanks for sharing.
Pam 20/3/12 19:40: It looks delicious.
TinaRBK 20/3/12 20:01: Glad to stop in a learn something about japanese sponge cake! I have never used matcha powder before, but it seems to be a pretty popular ingredient for baked goods. Your cake here is fabulous! I really like the texture as well as the hue. Well done!
Lyn @LovelyPantry 20/3/12 21:04: Such a rich cake! A pretty colour too. I've never cooked with these ingredients before, so thank you for sharing. I can now pick up spelt flour with confidence! :-)
Unknown 20/3/12 21:48: Angie, I always love coming over to your blog because you make so many WONDERFUL and NEW things I've never heard of. This cake sounds delicious and I love the color too!
Magic of Spice 20/3/12 21:48: Such beautiful texture and color! Looks amazing Angie...delightful!
Katia 20/3/12 22:43: Angie, I love castella cake but I've never thought to make it before! The recipe seems to be easy and your pics are lovely as usual :)
Carol @ Always Thyme to Cook 20/3/12 22:46: Looks so light and so good. I'd love a cake with both sherry and honey! Delicious!
Unknown 20/3/12 23:10: I like the beautiful color of your cake and I'm always happy to learn something new! I'm going over to Biren to learn more, thanks for sharing Angie;-)
Kiri W. 21/3/12 00:04: Absolutely beautiful - what an elegant treat! I imagine the flavor subtle yet intriguing :)
Kathy 21/3/12 00:36: Angie, Simply beautiful…looks so delicious! I love matcha…my favorite drink is a matcha latte!
Catherine 21/3/12 00:55: Dear Angie, There are so many beautiful recipes here. You are just wonderful, an artist in the kitchen.
This cake looks just perfect. Blessings my dear friend, Catherine xox
Amy (Savory Moments) 21/3/12 01:03: These are beautiful! I was reading recipes for Matcha cupcakes recently. I think that Matcha is such an interesting addition to baked goods.
Jo 21/3/12 01:13: Very nice and I bet it was very soft as well. I guess my next to do would be a Castella (have heard so much about this cake).
Kelly Mulcair Registered Nutritionist. Content © 2011 Trinity Nutrition. 21/3/12 01:21: Simply Fantastic. Two of my very favourite things: spelt flour and matcha green tea - yay!!
Pavithra Elangovan 21/3/12 01:24: Wow what a gorgeous looking cake.. everything is awesome about this post..Love the Matcha in cakes.. Pictures are absolutely beautiful I can touch the cake thru the screen.
Reeni 21/3/12 02:25: Your castella is perfect Angie! I would hate waiting overnight to eat it!
Unknown 21/3/12 02:48: I have never had a castella before... but I'm craving one now! It looks so wonderfuly delicious!
Angela 21/3/12 04:08: What a beautiful texture!
Angie's Recipes 21/3/12 07:15: @edith
Yes.
Mary Bergfeld 21/3/12 09:38: Your cake is lovely and it has wonderful texture. This is one I have never made. You've inspired me to give it a try. I hope you have a great day. Blessings...Mary
SavoringTime in the Kitchen 21/3/12 14:46: I love simple cakes and this one looks simply delicious! I've never had Castella but would love to try it. I will be checking the other links too - thank you, Angie!
thesis help 21/3/12 14:49: Honey smell is one of my favourite in cakes to be honest!
Katerina 21/3/12 15:18: This is so interesting, I have never heard of this cake before! I am bookmarking this to try! Looks delicious!
Baking Diary 21/3/12 17:08: So lovely! I love the crumbs, so fine!
Cucina49 21/3/12 18:34: I love matcha tea--it must be delicious used in this cake. What a perfect afternoon snack!
Helene Dsouza 21/3/12 18:57: How wonderful such amazing clicks! The flower is fitting well with the matcha in the shots. I d love to try your recipe too, soon. so refreshing thank u!
Elisabeth 21/3/12 19:40: The texture, color, and the perfection of this delicate matcha cake is totally divine and almost too gorgeous to be TRUE!
Angie, you have produced another "masterpiece" and photographs to match, for the superb cake:DDD
Anonymous 21/3/12 22:11: I'm not sure if my first comment went through, so let's try this again! I've never heard of castella, but it sure sounds delicious. Interesting technique to bake the cake in a wood box. So unique. x
Miriam 21/3/12 23:36: Such beautiful pictures! Sounds delicious :), Miriam@Meatless Meals For Meat Eaters
Claudia 21/3/12 23:50: I don't think I've ever seen anything baked with spelt looks so airy and delicate. It is so tender. The photos are stunning.
Kiran @ KiranTarun.com 22/3/12 00:46: Where can I find matcha tea powder?! Drool-worthy photos. Perfect tea loaf if you ask me ;)
Anne@FromMySweetHeart 22/3/12 01:19: What a lovely textured cake and wonderful unique flavors! : )
Baker Street 22/3/12 03:44: Love the color and it has a nice tight crumb. Absolutely delish! Looks gorgeous A! :)
Geni 22/3/12 03:51: Oh, my gosh! This cake looks so incredibly soft and spongy. Must get spelt flour! Beautiful presentation.
Janine 22/3/12 07:05: i've said this many times but i really enjoy coming to your site for spelt flour recipes because you broaden my horizons by using them everywhere! this castella looks perfectly spongey even though you used spelt!
Biren @ Roti n Rice 22/3/12 13:42: Your castella turned out beautifully! Looking at your pictures make me want to bake it again. Thank you for the mention and link back :)
beti 22/3/12 14:03: I really like the color that they have, adding tea or making a dessert with tea is a great idea, so far I've seen desserts with green tea but I can't wait to try this ones with matcha
tinyskillet 22/3/12 15:06: I have been seeing these castella around the food blog world and they look amazing. I like how yours looks just perfect, and you used spelt flour. I am wondering if I dare to try making it! Love the matcha flavor!
Eva kitcheninspirations.wordpress.com 22/3/12 17:46: What an interesting cake, Angie, I must find some spelt flour and try it — you have some wonderful recipes using that kind of flour. Would you just eat it plain or drizzle honey and perhaps some whipped cream on it?
Mary 22/3/12 21:35: I've been admiring the simple sponge cakes on Sonia's and Anncoo's blogs for a while now. This one looks perfect!
lisa is cooking 22/3/12 22:04: The cake looks tender and delicious! So interesting that it was originally baked in a wood box.
Lorraine 23/3/12 02:01: Very interesting. I have never seen this before, but it sounds really delicious. I love sponge cake; so I know I would enjoy this:)
Vicki Bensinger 23/3/12 02:23: I've never had spelt or matcha but have read quite a bit about them. I would love to try this just so I know what it tastes like. Your photos are beautiful and the cake sounds delicious. Thank you for sharing this recipe and inspiring me to try these ingredients.
Dawn @ Words Of Deliciousness 23/3/12 03:32: This looks like a perfect cake. Your photos are lovely.
Roxana GreenGirl {A little bit of everything} 23/3/12 04:47: Such a beautiful cake. I have seen a couple of pictures going on on Facebook last couple of days. Hard to choose which variation to try first
Choc Chip Uru 23/3/12 13:42: This cake is stunning - what wonderful flavours and photography :D
Wonderful!

Cheers
Choc Chip Uru
Angie's Recipes 24/3/12 09:41: @Kiran @ KiranTarun.com I got mine in a local Asia store.
reyah 24/3/12 15:38: I wish knew the taste of castella cake. But base on what i have saw here, i believe this is delicious.
Shoutforfood 24/3/12 18:12: The colors and textures in your photos make it look so tempting.
OysterCulture 25/3/12 20:36: What a delicious sounding cake and I love the story behind it. I had this with tea in Tokyo (my first time) and I loved it.
ATasteOfMadness 27/3/12 05:31: MATCHA! Oh, I love it so much! this looks to die for!
Happy Flour 1/4/12 13:36: I had tried out this recipe and it was fantastic. Thanks for sharing, happy baking. ;)
Yi @ Yi Reservation 3/4/12 04:58: wow these matcha sponge cakes looks so soft and fluffy!! I've always liked sponge cake and anything matcha. Will give this recipe a try shortly. thanks for sharing!
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