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Steamer cake tastes
better than it looks

Today's lesson in fusion comes from France, via China, via Japan.

Gary Matsunami e-mailed in search of a Japanese-style "mushi" cake -- a light, steamed, vanilla cake.

Many Japanese cookbooks have recipes for chiffon-like cakes, sometimes called castella cakes, but they are baked. The steamed cake seems to be Chinese, usually cooked in a bamboo steamer over a wok, and the Chinese, by all appearances, were adapting the soft, airy French sponge cake.

I found several recipes for Chinese steamed cakes, but they all required extra-larger bamboo steamers. I figure your kitchen isn't any better equipped than mine, so I worked on a version that uses a 9-inch round pan, which can be steamed in a 12-inch skillet or wok.

Three cakes later, a nice, bouncy version emerged.

One caution: This is an anemic-looking cake. Because it isn't baked, it won't brown. But it's spongy, moist and would be a perfect foil for some sliced fruit and whipped cream.

Final tip: Whenever beating egg whites, be sure your bowl and beaters are clean and dry, and make sure there is no trace of yolks in the whites. Otherwise you'll have trouble achieving the proper degree of fluffiness.

Fill wok, skillet or shallow pan with about 2 inches of water. Set a large bamboo steamer on top, or place a vegetable steamer into water. Spray 9-inch round cake pan with cooking oil spray.

Sift flour and baking powder together; set aside.

Whip egg whites until foamy. Add sugar, 1/4 cup at a time, then beat until stiff peaks form.

Beat yolks with water and vanilla just until combined. Fold into egg whites and stir until no yellow streaks remain. Fold in sifted flour, stirring to combine well.

Pour into pan. Smooth top. Tap pan firmly on counter to get rid of large air bubbles.

Bring water in steamer to a boil; reduce heat to medium. Place pan in steamer. Drape a clean dish towel over cake, with edges hanging outside wok (this will keep condensation from dripping onto cake). Cover and steam 20 minutes, until a pick inserted into center comes out clean (at halfway point, check water level, adding more if necessary).

Cool cake on a rack. May be served dusted with powdered sugar, or topped with whipped cream.