Chiffon Cake
Chiffon cake is a great treat after meal or during Filipino snack time.
Chiffon cake is bake using a special type of baking pan. This pan is in circular shape with a center tube in the middle. This tube in the middle will carry the hot circulating air and would easily cooked the middle part of the cake.
Then, after removing from the oven, this cake pan must be turned upside down so that the cake will not shrink. If you have difficulty in doing it because the cake is out in the rim, I usually grab three to four pieces of same height water glass and place them at the end of the inverted cake pan, in a manner that would balance it.
Below after the cooking procedures is a list a cooking variations that you might like to try in cooking your Chiffon Cake.
Ingredients :
2-1/2 cups cake flour, sifted
3 tsp. baking powder
3/4 cup sugar
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 cup oil (vegetable oil or corn oil)
7 egg yolks, at room temperature
1 tsp. vanilla
3/4 cup cold water
7 egg whites, at room temperature
1/2 tsp. cream of tartar
3/4 cup sugar
Cooking Procedures :
Preheat oven to 350°F. Prepare 10-inch ungreased tube pan.Sift together the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt in a bowl.Make a well at the center and add oil, egg yolks, water and vanilla. Beat until smooth and no lumps occur. Set aside.Using a stand mixer or electric hand mixer, beat egg whites until frothy. Add the cream of tartar. Continue to beat on high until soft peaks begin to form. Add sugar very gradually and continuously beating until meringue is glossy and stiff.Gently fold the egg yolk mixture into the meringue until well blended, ensuring that you scrap the bottom of the bowl as you fold.Pour into prepared ungreased tube pan.Bake until golden and middle springs back when touched for about 45 minutes.Invert onto the neck of a bottle.Cool completely upside down.
VARIATIONS:
Pineapple Chiffon Cake
Same as for orange chiffon except that you use pineapple juice in place of the orange juice and omit orange rind.
Orange Chiffon Cake
Use 3/4 cup orange juice instead of cold water and add 1/2 tsp. orange rind. Omit vanilla.
Mocha Chiffon Cake
Instead of 3/4 cup cold water. Use 1/4 cup of hot water and dissolve 1 tbsp. coffee and add 1/2 cup cold water.
Chocolate Chiffon Cake
Instead of 2-1/2 cups cake flour. Reduce the flour to 2 cups. Add 1/2 cup cocoa powder and 4 tbsp. more of sugar. Dissolve cocoa with 3/4 cup hot water instead of 3/4 cup cold water.
Chocolate Chips Chiffon Cake
Follow exactly the standard recipe except that you add 1 cup chocolate chips or 3 oz grated semisweet chocolate or bittersweet chocolate and fold in last to the mixture before transferring to the prepared tube pan.
Banana Chiffon Cake
Follow exactly the standard recipe except that you add 2 pcs. mashed ripe bananas and fold in last to the mixture before transferring to the prepared tube pan.
Coconut Chiffon Cake
Follow exactly the standard recipe except that you add 1 cup desiccated coconut and fold in last to the mixture before transferring to the prepared tube pan.
