Featured image: Kase’s Mochi Pound Cake | Kellie Walton
Pound cake is a staple in the South, originally named for having a pound of each ingredient: flour, butter, eggs, sugar. Back in the day, families guarded their pound cake recipes like crown jewels, sharing them only with a chosen few who were deemed worthy of carrying on that sweet, buttery family legacy.
But here’s the thing about pound cake: it’s basically begging to be customized thanks to its simple ingredients. It’s a blank canvas for bakers to sprinkle in a little personality—a splash of vanilla, a hint of zest, a swirl of chocolate. Or in this case, a little international flavor.
Chef Dung “Junior” Vo, behind both Noko and Kase in Nashville, put his own spin on this classic at his buzzy new omakase restaurant. While crafting the dessert menu for Kase, he wanted something that felt like the perfect sweet bite—familiar but fresh. Enter: the mochi castella pound cake. Junior started with a traditional castella recipe gifted by a friend, then gave it a glow-up, swapping ingredients left and right until he landed on something truly unique. Mochi flour took the cake (pun intended), giving it a bouncy, chewy bottom layer that’s pure mochi magic, while the top stays soft, light, and fluffy.
The best part? This mochi twist is naturally gluten-free, making it a win for everyone at the omakase table. With the recipe perfected, his creativity continued with the toppings. We have a hunch it’ll change seasonally, but it’s currently topped with a sweet fig jam
If you’re still vying for that Kase reservation, you can now bring a bite of the experience into your own kitchen in the meantime.
Junior shares his recipe with us below.
Kase’s Mochi Pound Cake
Equipment
- 1 8×8 cake pan Non-stick
Ingredients
- 115 grams Milk
- 115 grams Mochi flour
- 7 Eggs Large
- 115 grams Butter
- 115 grams Sugar
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 325F and heat the 8×8 cake pan inside.
- Separate the egg yolks and egg whites into clean bowls.
- Whip the egg whites until firm peaks from (roughly 8 minutes) using a hand beater on high or a stand mixer with the whisk attachment. As the egg whites becomes fluffy, slowly add the sugar in increments until completely dissolve into the egg whites. Set aside.
- Melt the butter using a pan or microwave. Set aside.
- Note: the order of adding ingredients is very important. In a separate bowl large enough to mix all ingredients, add the milk to the mochi flour and mix (it’ll be clumpy at first but make sure it’s mixed well). Then, add the egg yolk and whisk well together until smooth. Once the mixture is smooth, add the butter all at once and mix well.
- To bring it all together, pour the egg whites into the egg yolk mixture and “fold it in” with a silicone spatula. Make sure not to whisk it, but use the folding technique so you don't deflate the egg whites. Keep folding until the batter is all even in color.
- Take out the cake pan and grease it well with butter or cooking spray. Pour the whole cake batter into the pan. No need to drop the pan or shake the pan or anything.
- Bake for 40 minutes at 325. Let cool and serve room temp.
