Name: Pandan Castella Cake (Dairy-Free)
Prep time: 30 min
Cook time: 85 min
Total time: 115 min
Ingredients: 3 pandan leaves; 60 ml water; 100 g cake flour ( or all-purpose flour); 6 egg yolks; 100 g avocado oil; 100 g oat milk; 6 egg whites; 100 g white granulated sugar

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Pandan Castella Cake. A super soft, fluffy, moist sponge cake that is totally addictive and heavenly. A must try if you are a sponge cake lover. Great for dessert. This recipe is dairy-free.

So I’m not sure if you’ve noticed but I have been obsessed with pandan and castella cakes. I thought why not combine the two together to make an amazing pandan flavoured castella cake?

Totally heavenly!

The texture of this castella cake is unlike any other. It's very soft, jiggly when you nudge it and so moist you can hear it if you open the cake apart. The taste of castella cake is egg-like and it's not overly sweet but sweet enough that you don't need to add icing to this unless you want to.

It's one of those cakes where one piece is honestly not enough and you will keep eating away at it until you ask, "Where did half my cake go?"

Many flavours of Castella Cake

There are many flavours of this Taiwanese castella sponge cake online from vanilla to chocolate but I thought I'd share this pandan version but make it dairy-free. Especially for those with a lactose intolerance or are avoiding dairy. There is no difference in the taste from the one with milk and this one.

What does Castella cake taste like?

This pandan cake is a jiggly moist and very airy sponge cake is very popular in Asia specifically in Taiwan, Japan and Korea. It has a sweet egg like taste with pandan flavour. A must try for any cake lover.

Castella cake origin

This sponge cake has become very popular recently especially in Asia. It was given to the Japanese first as a gift from Portuguese merchants in the 16th century. The name originates from Portuguese Pão de Castela, meaning “bread from Castile”. (Source: Just One Cookbook). It was then brought to Taiwan where it became widely popular, hence why it's often called a Taiwanese Castella Cake.

What is pandan flavor?

It’s a leaf grown in South-East Asia commonly used in Asian cooking and treats especially in Malaysia, Indonesia, Singapore and other South-East Asian countries. It has a naturally sweet vanilla like taste and aroma with hints of coconut, floral grass, and almond.

Can you eat pandan leaves?

No but you can blend them with water running it through a fine sieve to create a liquid or use them to infuse rice or other ingredients with. But I would not recommend eating them as they are tasteless and not that pleasant on their own.

Can pandan leaves be frozen?

Yes, if you freeze them in an airtight bag, they can last for months up to a year before freezer burn.

Why does my pandan cake sink?

I often get the question, ‘why does my castella cake deflate?” This means you did not beat the egg whites to a stiff peak or while mixing the egg whites into the batter, you deflated it by whisking too much.

Egg whites should be beaten to a stiff peak to the point where when you lift the whisk up, a wiggly egg white tail form and doesn’t drop. While mixing the egg whites into the batter, whisk a dollop of the egg whites into the batter to loosen it. And then pour the remaining batter into the egg white using a spatula to fold it to avoid loosing the air in the egg whites.

What can I do with extra pandan leaves?

I usually freeze them in a ziplock bag and they will last me months up to a year until freezer burn. You can also use them for the following dishes:

Nasi Lemak.
Pandan Cake.
Ayam Kapitan.
Kaya.
Chicken Rice.
Bubur Kacang.
Steamed Buns (Pau)

I also share a Classic Castella Cake and a Chocolate Castella Cake. Both are delicious so I hope you check them out!

Other recipes you may like!

CHOCOLATE CASTELLA CAKE
DAIRY-FREE CASTELLA CAKE
BANANA CHOCOLATE BREAD
CHOCOLATE COFFEE MUG CAKE
FLUFFY CHOCOLATE BANANA MUFFINS
CARROT BANANA BREAD
CHOCOLATE ZUCCHINI OAT BREAD

For this recipe

You will need the following pandan castella cake ingredients:

3 pandan leaves
60 ml water
100g cake flour or all-purpose flour
6 egg yolks
100g avocado oil
100g oat milk
6 egg whites
100g sugar

Required: Kitchen Scale, cooking thermometer, electric whisk, 18 cm Square Seamless Baking Pan*, larger baking pan to hold the square one, mixing bowls.

*If you don't own a seamless baking pan but you own one with seams or a removable base, just cover the base of your pan with foil to prevent water from seeping into it as the cake bakes in a bath

How to make a castella cake

Line your square baking pan with parchment paper in a tall manner. The cake batter will rise above your pan.

In a blender, add pandan leaves and 60 ml water. Blend on high until leaves are grinded to a pulp. Run this pandan liquid through a sieve pushing out all the liquid to create your pandan extract. Discard the pulp. Mix 50 ml pandan liquid with oat milk.

Separate your egg yolks from the whites into two bowls. Place the egg whites in a larger mixing bowl for later.

In another large mixing bowl, sift together cake flour.

Heat your avocado oil in the microwave for 70 seconds. Then immediately pour the hot oil into the flour and mix until just combined.

Add pandan milk mixture into the flour mixture and mix until just combined. It should be a smooth thick liquid.

Then mix in your eggs yolks into the batter. The batter should be viscose and a bit runny. Set the batter aside.

Preheat your oven at 300 degrees F.

Using an electric whisk, beat your egg whites and add your white sugar to it in three portions. Beat until just until you have stiff peaks, but do not over beat. If you under beat, you cake will have dents. To check if your whites are stiff enough, stir the whisk and lift it up. If it forms a wiggly tail at the end of your whisk that doesn't fall, your whites are ready.

Gently whisk a large dollop of the meringue into the pandan batter until combined. The pour than batter into your egg whites and gently whisk until it's just combined. Then switch to a spatula to mix and fold the batter, scraping the base of the bowl to ensure it's thoroughly mixed properly.

Pour the batter into your lined baking pan. Tap the pan on a table to release any air bubbles and smooth out the top with a spatula.

Place the square pan with your cake batter into a larger baking dish filled with hot boiling water (85 degrees C).

Bake the cake for 85 minutes until you poke it with a toothpick and it comes out clean. The top of the cake should bounce back and should be harder than the rest of the cake. If it’s not cooked, bake for another 10 minutes.

Remove the parchment paper and slice the cake while hot. This cake can be served warm or cold.

Notes for my Pandan castella cake recipe:

You may see some dents or cracks in your cake but the cake is still delicious!
It is normal to see the castella cake deflate after it is removed from the oven.
If you notice that the castella cake not rising, then the meringue was not whisked enough. But that's okay, it's all about taste and your cake will still be yummy just not as fluffy.

Give it a try!

Well I hope you give my Dairy-Free Castella Cake recipe a try! It always excites me when you guys make my recipes and I hope this is one you try.

Thanks for visiting my blog! If you enjoyed this Taiwanese castella cake recipe, please share it with your family and friends or on social media! Take a picture if you've made my recipe and tag me on Instagram @ChristieAtHome in your feed or stories so I can share your creation in my stories with credits to you!

Made this recipe and loved it?

If you could leave a star rating for my easy Taiwanese castella cake recipe, I would greatly appreciate it 🙂 Thanks so much!

Take care,
Christie

*This post for my jiggly castella cake recipe contains affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. I also earn from qualifying purchases through additional affiliate programs