Cotton Sponge Cake

Was in the midst of baking the sponge cake when a call came in. In a hurry, the hand whisk fell from the bowl and spluttered some egg yolk batter on my notebook. :[

The call brought me one good news followed shortly by a bad news. I hate such calls. :(

But after brooding about it for quite a while, I figured it depends on how I see it. There's a famous Chinese saying "赛翁失马焉知非福, 赛翁得马焉知非祸" - which in my own simple words, means that "If something seemingly bad happens, it might be a blessing in disguise. If something seemingly good happens, it might be too early to jump for joy as who knows what might happen next?"

For those who are interested to know about the story behind this Chinese saying:

Long long time ago, there lived an old man who love horses. He had a fast-racing mare (female horse) and naturally, it became his favourite. One day, the mare went missing and he was so sad that he could not stop lamenting about his loss. However, not long after, the mare reappeared and brought with it a herd of stallions (male horses). The old man was simply overjoyed by the change in his luck! The old man had a son who immediately set about training these wild stallions. Unfortunately, while his son was riding one of the wild stallions, he fell and broke his leg. The injury was so severe that rendered his son crippled and wheelchair bound. Once again, the old man plunged into another depth of despair. Soon, a war broke out in the country and the military launched a country-wide recruitment of young men to be trained as soldiers. All the young and healthy men had to leave the village to fight the war except for the crippled son. After the war, few men returned to the village and it was only then that the old man realised that it was indeed a blessing in disguise for his son to become crippled. Otherwise, he would have lost more than just a limb.

That's all for story time. Now, the recipe:

Cotton Sponge Cake

Ingredients:

60g melted butter

80g flour

80ml UHT milk

1 egg + 5 egg yolks

5 egg whites

90g sugar

pinch of sugar

Method:

(1) Beat 1 egg and 5 egg yolks until creamy and fluffy. Fold in the flour and alternate with the milk. Add in melted butter and mix well.

(2) Whisk the egg whites with a pinch of salt and sugar until soft peaks form.

(3) Fold the egg white mixture into the egg yolk batter until well incorporated.

(4) Pour into a fully lined baking pan.

(5) Bake at preheated oven of 170°C for 25 mins, then reduce heat to 150°C for another 10 mins or until the cake is done.

(6) Let the cake sit for 2 mins and unmould it. This cake will collapse in height after cooling as there is no stabilising agent added to it.

Verdict:

(+) Simple recipe to follow if a hand mixer is readily available.

(=) Cake is soft to the touch - but not as cottony soft as the name suggests.

(=) Nevertheless, it tastes light and not too sweet - almost similar to the Pandan Chiffon Cake with the exception of the pandan fragrance and taste.

(=) Excellent choice if one is craving for a light snack.