Pandan—a tropical plant with long, spear-like leaves—infuses this light and fluffy cake with its distinctive herbal flavor, jasmine-like aroma, and light green color. This variation of the chiffon cake is popular in Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore, where pandan is plentiful and found in many desserts and drinks.
In the United States, frozen pandan leaves are easier to find than fresh (in most Asian supermarkets). They can also be easier to work with. To extract the juice, give it a quick blitz in a food processor and wring it through a cheesecloth. The fresh stuff is so much more fragrant than bottled pandan extract, which is missing the juice’s delicate herbal flavor….