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Dessert

Kasutera

A light Japanese sponge cake made with sugar, honey, vanilla, lemon, eggs, flour, and optional green tea or cocoa.

From the Recipes Wiki (Fandom) · 9 ingredients
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Why it works: Sugar and vanilla are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 8% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 35,032 recipes. Both carry beta-damascenone, which smells apple, rose. The science ↓

Kasutera

Oven325°F (160°C)
Time35 to 45 minutes

Ingredients

Directions

Prepare

  1. Preheat oven to 325°F (160°C).

  2. Line the bottom of a 10‑inch tube pan (or two 8×4‑inch loaf pans) with parchment paper and grease the parchment.

Make the batter

  1. In a large bowl, whisk 1 cup sugar, 1/4 cup honey, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract, 1 teaspoon lemon extract, and 1/4 teaspoon salt into the egg yolks.

  2. Place the bowl in a large pan of hot water.

  3. With an electric mixer, beat the yolk mixture for about 5 minutes on medium‑high speed until pale yellow and doubled in volume.

  4. Gently fold in the sifted cake flour.

Whip the whites and fill the pan

  1. Wash the beaters.

  2. In a large bowl, beat the egg whites on low speed for 1 minute, then increase to medium‑high.

  3. When foamy, sprinkle in 1 tablespoon sugar and 1/8 teaspoon cream of tartar.

  4. Beat until stiff but not dry.

  5. With a spatula, fold the egg whites into the batter in thirds.

  6. Pour the batter into the prepared pan.

  7. Tap the pan gently on the counter to remove air bubbles.

Bake and cool

  1. Bake on the middle rack of the oven for 35 to 45 minutes or until golden brown.

  2. When done, the cake sides will pull away from the pan slightly; the top will be flat and feel spongy when pressed with a finger.

  3. Cool the cake for 20 minutes.

  4. Run a small knife around the edge of the cake and pan.

  5. Remove the cake from the pan carefully.

  6. Pull off the parchment and cool completely.

  7. Serve or store airtight.

Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)

876Calories
22 gProtein
21 gFat
147 gCarbs

Counts 9 of 10 ingredients. The other 1 aren't in our nutrition table and add nothing above, so the real totals are higher.

What these numbers assume: 9 portions
IngredientPortion assumedkcal
Flour1 cup (125g) all-purpose455
Chocolate1 oz (28g) semisweet155
Egg1 large egg (50g)78
Honey1 tbsp (21g)64
Cream1 tbsp (15ml) heavy51
Sugar1 tbsp (12.5g) granulated49
Vanilla1 tsp extract (4ml)12
Lemonjuice of 1 lemon (48ml)12
Salt1 tsp (6g)0
Green Teanot in our table0

One typical portion per ingredient; the recipe's quantities are not counted. A rough guide only, not for medical or dietary planning.

Recipe from the Recipes Wiki (Fandom).

Steps grouped into stages for easier reading; the method is the source's own.

Explore the science

The flavor team

The pairs that carry this dish. Each one is judged two ways: how much their aromas overlap, and how often cooks already put them together.

  1. Sugar + vanillatop 8% of all pairs
    Smell alikelow
    Cooked together35,032 recipes

    Shared aroma: beta-damascenone (apple, rose).

  2. Honey + vanillatop 9% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together1,262 recipes

    Shared aroma: beta-damascenone (apple, rose).

  3. Sugar + creamtop 9% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together43,450 recipes

    Shared aroma: 2,3-butanedione (butter, sweet).

  4. Vanilla + green teatop 12% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together27 recipes

    Shared aroma: sotolon (curry, maple).

  5. Honey + green teatop 12% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together25 recipes

    Shared aroma: 2-acetyl-1-pyrroline (popcorn, roasted).

Sugar and vanilla barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 35,032 recipes: they work on texture and structure more than aroma.

Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs

What each ingredient does

Eggs
Whipped whites and beaten yolks create the airy foam that gives the cake its rise and sponge.
Cake flour
Provides the starch and gluten structure that holds the airy foam in a tender crumb.
Granulated sugar
Sweetens the cake and helps stabilize the egg foams.
Honey
Adds sweetness and moisture, and helps the crust brown.
Cream of tartar
Acidifies the egg whites, helping them whip to a stable, stiff foam.

The step that matters

Beat the egg whites until stiff but not dry. Under-beaten whites will not hold enough air to lift the cake, while over-beaten whites turn dry and grainy and deflate when folded into the batter, leaving a dense sponge.

Swap the lemon

The recipe marks lemon as optional. How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (sugar, honey, vanilla, egg, flour, cream, green tea):

  1. Peachfits better
  2. Blueberryfits better
  3. Pineapplefits better
  4. Lemonthe original

Fit is the average pairing score against sugar, honey, vanilla, egg, flour, cream, green tea. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes.

“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.

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