How To Make a Japanese Christmas Cake

December 01, 2015

In the run-up to the big day, we'll be sharing lots of great Japanese inspired Christmas recipes and Xmas themed goodies on our blog, so you can have a magical Christmas with just a hint of the far east! 

Don't get me wrong, we love our traditional Christmas, but we think some traditions are certainly past their sell-by date. I want an honest show of hands here; who actually likes traditional British Christmas cake?

Hmm. I thought so. Personally, I love the gorgeous festive scents of Christmas cake, but I'm more likely to dive into a tower of profiteroles than painfully munch my way through a cake filled with dried fruit and booze. It's just not my cup of tea, and honestly, I think it's the same for most of my family, even though they don't always admit it!

So if you want a beautiful centrepiece cake that caters to more tastes, a Japanese Christmas cake is the way to go! Here's the recipe:

You Will Need

• 1/3 Cup Self Raising Flour
• 1/3 Cup Sugar
• 1 Tsp Baking Powder
• 3 Eggs
• 1.5 Tbsp Butter 
• 2 Cups Double Cream
• 4 Tbsp Sugar
• Fresh Strawberries
• White Chocolate

Method

• Take a little butter (not the stuff in the 'you will need' section, extra!) and use it to grease a round cake tin. This recipe caters for an 8-inch tin, but if you want a bigger, more showstopping cake, double the recipe for a 16-inch tin. Line the base of the tin with baking paper too.
• Beat together the eggs and sugar until the eggs become paler and the mix is very light and fluffy.
• Now place the egg-sugar mixture in a bowl over a hot pan filled with about 1 inch of boiling water. Ensure the bottom of the bowl doesn't touch the water. Continue whisking until the mixture thickens and becomes white.
• Remove from the heat and add the sifted flour and baking powder. Incorporate by folding to keep the air in the batter.
• Melt the required butter and mix in gently.
• Preheat the oven to 175C, then pour the batter into the prepared tin. Cook for about 25-35 mins, but longer if you have chosen a larger cake. The cake is done when a knife dipped in the centre comes out clean and free of batter. If your cake is cooking on the top quicker than in the middle, cover the tin with foil.
• Cool the cake on a rack when done and cut in half horizontally.
• Whip up the double cream with the sugar until it forms stiff peaks.
• Now it's time to get creative. Fill the middle of the two layers of your cake with cream, and place strawberries in and around the cake in a decorative fashion.
• Melt the white chocolate, then spread it into shapes and templates to make decorative chocolate for your cake. 
• Serve up!

Did you make a Japanese Christmas cake? We'd love to see your photos. Send them in!