Yuzu Chiffon Cake

Riding onto the Pandan Chiffon post yesterday, let me share the Yuzu Chiffon recipe I modified from Richard Goh's Pandan Chiffon recipe. I've tried making this flavour once with ieatishootipost's recipe but I overestimated the heaviness of the yuzu paste and ended up adding too much liquid to the whole batter, resulting in a overly wet and clumpy interior.

Great taste, but super bad texture that's beyond rescue. This time, in order to prevent me throwing away a whole 10" cake (it's 9 eggs!!), I decided to modify from my baking teacher's Pandan Chiffon recipe. There are only a few slight changes and the instructions remain pretty much the same.

Yuzu Chiffon Cake (makes 21cm tube tin)
(Modified from Mr. Richard Goh's Pandan Chiffon recipe)

Mixture A
     5       Egg Yolks
   80g     Castor Sugar

Mixture B
   50g     Corn Oil
   40g     Yuzu Tea Jam/Paste
~100g    Yuzu Juice and/or Milk (may require more)
Optional
A drop of Yellow food colouring

• You may choose between Yuzu Juice or Milk or a combination of both, depending on how "strong" you want the yuzu taste to be.

Mixture C
   75g     Plain Flour (I used Top Flour)
   35g     Corn Flour
     3g     Baking Powder

Mixture D
     5       Egg Whites, room temperature
   70g     Castor Sugar
1/8tsp    Cream of Tartar

Preheat oven to 170ºC (Original 180ºC, I find that the top browns too fast)

1. Dissolve the Yuzu Tea Jam/Paste into the Yuzu Juice/Milk and top up the mixture to 120g if not sufficient. If your jam/paste has got yuzu zest, whizz them in a food processor along with the Yuzu juice/milk and top up the mixture to 120g. Then combine this yuzu mixture with the corn oil till homogeneous.

2. Sift Mixture (C), twice if you want, and reserve.

3. Using a whisk attachment, whisk together Mixture (A) till the colour is pale and the volume has doubled.

4. Reduce the speed of mixer and slowly add in Mixture (B) till combine. Add in Mixture (C) and whisk till batter is thick, smooth and lump-free. Transfer batter to another bowl, wash and clean mixer thoroughly.

5. Using the whisk attachment, start whisking the Egg Whites till foamy before adding Cream of Tartar then gradually add in the Sugar. Stop whisking when meringue turns glossy and just reaches stiff peaks.

6. Gently stir in 1/3 of the meringue into the batter to lighten the mixture. Gently fold in the remaining meringue with a spatula or your hand (recommended) till no white spots can be seen.

7. Sharply rap the bowl against the countertop a couple of times to release trapped bubbles before pouring into the tube (aka chiffon) tin.

8. Place the cake at the lowest possible rack and bake at 45-55mins till cake tester/skewer comes out clean. (My top browns too fast. So I turned down the temperature to 150ºC at about 30mins into baking and covered the top with aluminium sheet)

9. Immediately turn the tin over and elevate it using a bottle/funnel (I use a funnel on a wired rack) and let cool completely.

10. When completely cooled, insert a sharp knife and go around the sides to release the cake. Try to use one swift movement and keep the blade as close to the tin as you can. Repeat the same for the bottom of the cake. Voila, you're done!

Although Yuzu falls within the same citrus family as Lemon, its fragrance and tanginess is not as sharp as that of a lemon. Not saying that lemons are not good for bakes but personally, I find Yuzu's flavour profile more suitable for delicate bakes such as chiffon whereas lemon's sharpness cuts through sweetness and creaminess better.

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