Rice Flour Kabocha Pound Cake
米粉かぼちゃパウンドケーキ
By Aoi, licensed nutritionist · From a Japanese preschool lunch menu
This gently sweet pound cake gets its golden color and moist texture from mashed kabocha squash, with rice flour and potato starch standing in for wheat flour. It is made without egg, dairy, or wheat, and the natural sweetness of the squash means only a modest amount of sugar is needed. The batter comes together in one bowl with nothing but a whisk, so it is an easy one to bake with little helpers on a rainy afternoon.
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Ingredients
Amounts for 1 child (1 serving). An adult counts as 2 servings.
One serving here is 1.5× the portion served to a child in a Japanese preschool, sized for Western appetites. An adult counts as two servings. Tap an ingredient to check it off.
Seasonings
- 7.5 gvegetable oil
- 37.5 gsweetened soy milk (Japanese chosei tonyu)Japanese 'prepared' soy milk that is lightly sweetened and flavored to taste milder than plain soy milk. Substitute: Regular (original, lightly sweetened) soy milk from the supermarket.
- 5.3 gsugar
- 5.7 gpotato starch (katakuriko)Japanese potato starch used for thickening sauces and coating fried foods. Substitute: Cornstarch: start with the same amount and add a little more if it is still thin. It thickens a little less than potato starch and needs a couple of minutes at a gentle bubble to reach full thickness.
- 2 gbaking powder
Ingredients
- 26.3 grice flour
- 22.5 gkabocha squashSweet, dense Japanese pumpkin with dark green skin and orange flesh. Substitute: Butternut squash or another sweet winter squash.
About the Japanese ingredients in this recipe
- sweetened soy milk (Japanese chosei tonyu) (調製豆乳)
- Japanese 'prepared' soy milk that is lightly sweetened and flavored to taste milder than plain soy milk. Substitute: Regular (original, lightly sweetened) soy milk from the supermarket.
- potato starch (katakuriko) (かたくり粉)
- Japanese potato starch used for thickening sauces and coating fried foods. Substitute: Cornstarch: start with the same amount and add a little more if it is still thin. It thickens a little less than potato starch and needs a couple of minutes at a gentle bubble to reach full thickness. Read the guide: Katakuriko (Japanese Potato Starch) and What to Use Instead → Guide: japanese-school-lunch.com/articles/katakuriko-potato-starch/
- kabocha squash (かぼちゃ)
- Sweet, dense Japanese pumpkin with dark green skin and orange flesh. Substitute: Butternut squash or another sweet winter squash.
Directions
- 1
Peel the kabocha squash, cut it into roughly even pieces, and boil until tender. Mash it while it is still warm.
- 2
Add the soy milk to the vegetable oil and mix well until emulsified.
- 3
Add the sugar and mix well. Add the rice flour, potato starch, baking powder, and the mashed kabocha from step 1, and mix well until smooth.
- 4
Pour the batter into a loaf pan lined with parchment paper and bake in a 170°C (340°F) oven for about 25 minutes.
Nutrition
| Per | 1 serving | 1 adult serving | Your total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Energy | 243 kcal | 486 kcal | 243 kcal |
| Protein | 3.3 g | 6.6 g | 3.3 g |
| Fat | 9 g | 18 g | 9 g |
| Carbohydrates | 38.4 g | 76.8 g | 38.4 g |
| Fiber | 1.4 g | 2.7 g | 1.4 g |
| Salt equivalent | 0.3 g | 0.6 g | 0.3 g |
| Calcium | 64.5 mg | 129 mg | 64.5 mg |
| Iron | 0.6 mg | 1.2 mg | 0.6 mg |
| Potassium | 252 mg | 504 mg | 252 mg |
| Energy | Protein | Fat | Carbs | Fiber | Salt equiv. | Calcium | Iron | Potassium | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 serving | 243 kcal | 3.3 g | 9 g | 38.4 g | 1.4 g | 0.3 g | 64.5 mg | 0.6 mg | 252 mg |
| 1 adult serving | 486 kcal | 6.6 g | 18 g | 76.8 g | 2.7 g | 0.6 g | 129 mg | 1.2 mg | 504 mg |
Values are per serving (1.5× the Japanese preschool portion); an adult serving is double. They were calculated by a licensed Japanese nutritionist using the Standard Tables of Food Composition in Japan. "Salt equivalent" is sodium × 2.54, the standard Japanese measure. Allergen flags cover egg, milk and wheat only and come from the nutritionist's records. Soy sauce and miso are made with wheat but are usually allowed on Japanese wheat-free school menus, so check with your doctor.
