Cotton Cake (Japanese Cotton Cheesecake Style) ☁️🍰
Light, airy, and softly sweet — this cake has a delicate, “cotton-like” texture that jiggles slightly when warm. It’s often associated with bakeries in Osaka and made famous by shops like Uncle Rikuro.
🧀 Ingredients
- 8 oz (225 g) cream cheese, softened
- ¼ cup unsalted butter
- ½ cup milk
- 6 eggs, separated
- ½ cup sugar (divided)
- ½ cup cake flour (or sifted all-purpose flour)
- 1 tbsp cornstarch
- 1 tsp vanilla extract (optional)
- ¼ tsp salt
🔥 Instructions
- Preheat oven to 320°F (160°C). Line an 8-inch round pan with parchment.
- Melt cream cheese, butter, and milk together over low heat. Stir until smooth; cool slightly.
- Whisk in egg yolks one at a time. Add vanilla.
- Sift in flour, cornstarch, and salt. Mix gently until smooth.
- Beat egg whites with half the sugar to soft peaks; gradually add remaining sugar and beat to medium peaks.
- Fold whites into batter in three additions, gently to keep air.
- Pour into pan. Tap lightly to release large bubbles.
- Bake in a water bath (place cake pan in a larger pan filled with hot water halfway up the sides).
- Bake 60–70 minutes until lightly golden and set but still slightly jiggly in the center.
- Cool gradually in oven with door cracked to prevent collapse.
✨ Tips for That Signature Texture
- Don’t overwhip egg whites.
- Use a water bath to keep the cake moist and crack-free.
- Let it chill before slicing for clean cuts.
If you’d like, I can also give you a simple Southern “cotton soft” sponge cake version without cream cheese.
