Steamed Sponge Cake

A great Steamed Sponge Cake recipe for those do not have an oven to bake on. Simple love the appetizing lemony cranberries taste. A sponge cake that you can never stop eating until it is finished.

Usually, when I craved for a cake I will either go to buy one from a bakery shop or bake one at my mom’s house. But, during the weekend, I was hit by the mood of steaming cake at home.

If you know me well or have read through some of my stories here, you will know that I don’t have an oven for food.

I do have an oven for craft but not for food… lol, but hubby promised me to get me a fully equipped kitchen when we move to a new home. Hope it is a soon to happen dreams come true…..

Back to the cake… I have got this recipe from a local baker’s recipe book: Magic Steamed Cake, by Alex Goh, ISBN #: 978-967-5413-35-5, the original name for this recipe is Lemon Angel Cake.

This Steamed Sponge Cake is a meringue-based sponge cake and I find it quite healthy as it has used only little oil in it. Since I have all the ingredients in hand, I gave it a try.

Due to the recipe is made by steaming, I already predicted that the cake won’t come out as fluffy as a baked cake. Well, I am glad that my assumption is not quite right, it is still fluffy but a little denser due to moisture it has in it.

The steamed sponge cake has to be served fresh, the longer you keep, the denser it will be.

Since it has to be served fresh, a mini cake will be the right portion for a small family. The smaller cake is easier to steam too. I modified the recipe a little, then, halve the portion.

Steamed Sponge Cake

Serve: 2-4 person as snack or dessert.

INGREDIENTS:
A:
Egg White – 2 (Size: large, around 60g net without shell)
Sugar – 60 gram
Salt – 1/8 teaspoon

B:
Vegetable Oil – 30 gram
Lemon Juice – 20 gram (squeezed from 1 large lemon)
Water – 20 gram
Lemon Zest – from 1/2 lemon (1/2 for mixing and 1/2 for sprinkles)

C: sieved twice
Cake Flour – 70 gram
Baking Powder (double action) – 1/2 teaspoon

D:
Dried Cranberries – 20 gram (chopped and dust with C)

UTENSIL:
4 1/2 inch round cake tin (lined)
Electrical Mixer
Flour Sieve
Kitchen Scale
Measuring spoon
Silicon Spatula
Steamer

METHOD:

• Whip A until smooth and soft peak.
• Add B, mix well with low speed.
• Fold in sieved C with silicon spatula gradually, then D, mix until well-combined.
• Pour batter into cake tin.
• Place into steamer and steam for 25 – 30 minutes in high heat. Or, until test skewer comes out clean.
• Let cold and remove from tin. Serve fresh.

Note:

• Steamed cake tense to be denser than baked cake and has more moisture in it.
• If you make a larger cake, increase the ingredient proportionally. The steaming time need to be increase as well.

Measure and prepare all the ingredients.
Lined cake tin.
Set up the steaming station and standby with medium heat, turn to high heat just before you are about to steam.

Place ingredient A, egg whites, sugar and salt into a mixing bowl.
Beat with low speed then gradually increase to high speed when foam is formed.

Continue to beat until smooth and soft peak, similar to a meringue batter but softer in stiffness.

Add in ingredients B, lemon juice, water, oil, and lemon zest, and mix in low speed until well-combined.

Slowly and gently fold in ingredient C, double-sieved cake flour and baking powder, part by part until mix well.

Lastly, mix ingredient D, chopped and dusted dried cranberries, into the sponge cake batter, mix well and evently.

Pour sponge cake batter into a lined 4 1/2″ cake tin and steam with high heat for 25 – 30 minutes.

I used a big wok with a tall lid to cover and steam on my gas stove.

Check with test skewer to confirm that the cake is well cooked, in usual circumstance, it is cooked after 20 minutes since it is just a small cake.
Take out and let cool.
Remove from cake tin and serve fresh.