Castella Cake

Directions

1. 1
   Line a cake pan with aluminum foil, and cut a piece of parchment paper to fit the bottom of the pan.
2. 2
   Dust with strong flour.
3. 3
   Heat and stir milk, honey and vegetable oil until the honey melts, but don't boil.
4. 4
   Separate the eggs.
5. 5
   Beat the egg whites with half of the sugar, until peaks form.
6. 6
   If you add the sugar in three batches and beat the egg whites over a bowl of hot water, it will turn into a stiff meringue.
7. 7
   Make sure the eggs don't get too hot!
8. 8
   Add the other half of the sugar to the egg yolks and beat well until the mixture becomes light-colored.
9. 9
   Add the milk mixture from Step 2 to the egg yolk mixture, and blend well.
10. 10
    Then add the flour, and mix well with a whisk.
11. 11
    Using a whisk, add a dollop of meringue from Step 3 to the batter made in Step 5, and mix in, scraping from the bottom of the bowl.
12. 12
    Repeat twice.
13. 13
    Fold in the remaining meringue with a rubber spatula in 2-3 batches, scooping it up from the bottom of the bowl.
14. 14
    Mix until the white of the meringue is blended in.
15. 15
    Pour the batter into the cake pan.
16. 16
    Gently drop the pan onto the countertop from 10cm, to remove air bubbles.
17. 17
    Bake in an oven preheated to 350F/180C for 10 minutes, lower the temperature to 285F/140C and bake for 50 minutes, or until a skewer inserted in the cake comes out clean.
18. 18
    Take it out of the pan and let cool with the foil on.
19. 19
    When it's cool, remove the foil, invert the cake, and wrap in plastic wrap for about half a day, so it sets and becomes moist.
20. 20
    This is a piece I cut in half, without the edges.