Monday, August 23, 2010

Pandan Chiffon Cake Adventure

PANDAN CHIFFON CAKE - doesn't it sound mysterious and delicious? I came across this recipe while visiting few of my favorite food blogsites (listed under "My Inspiration". ) I always wonder what that peculiar flavorful aroma I smell when I go near Asian pastry with 'green' color to them. I thought it was coconuts. After understanding that 'stuff' is Pandan - I went to the local Asian market in Sacramento to search for it. I found the fresh Pandan leaves. It was named Landau or something like that. I was not sure what it was, so I asked other shoppers, and they confirmed that it is Pandan leaves. Sadly, after the purchase, my work got so busy, I did not have the time to prepare it. So, after a week, I had to discard them. But I had Pandan Paste in my pantry from the previous week's shopping. (I was bit hesitant to use it because of the food coloring, but I only used a drop... it turned out beautiful color and added a delightful complimentary taste to the coconut flavor.) I didn't have fresh coconut meat to shave either. So, I used coconut powder mix to suffice. It brought back the memory of how we used to shave the fresh coconut meat with a shaver and squeeze the fresh milk out -- that was a good ole' days in S. Viet-Nam. In San Jose area, there are several bakeries (Hong Kong style) in 99Ranch that are quite popular. And many people love their cakes. I could not figure out what type of cakes they are. Now, I know--it is this Chiffon. The recipe for this Pandan Chiffon Cake is from the Seadragon's site at http://cornercafe.wordpress.com/2010/02/20/pandan-chiffon-cake/#comment-1635 As many other experienced bloggers have commented at both Happy Home Baking site or at Seadragon, the final gentle folding of the egg white is indeed challenging. This Pandan Chiffon Cake turned out great. Baked in the Angel Food Cake Tube pan. Baking at 160C. I read other bloggers' comments that baking at lower temperature prevents cracking at the top during the rise. Irregardless, I am very pleased with the result and taste. It looks great and yummy.



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2 comments:

  1. Anonymous4:04 AM

    hi there,
    your chiffon cake looks good and yummy. soft and moist. congrats!
    some tips about pandan leaves, if next time you buy them again and afterwards still find no time to use them for whatever purposes, you can freeze them. when you are ready to use them just take them out of the freezer and thaw.
    to use pandan leaves as coloring for chiffon cake as well as other cakes, you can paste them. press the paste until you get the green extract. freeze the extract until you have time to make the cake. the green color will become lighter though.
    all the best and greetings, Retno.-

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    Replies
    1. Thank you so much for your tip. I like learning from other food bloggers. I will try that technique the next time.

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