카스텔라

카스테라는 16세기경에 포르투칼의 선교사로 인해 나가사키현에 전해졌다. 달걀, 밀가루, 설탕이라는 유럽의 과자로는 특이하게 심플한 재료로 만들어지고 있으며, 그 당시 일본에서 잘 먹을 수 없었던 버터 등의 유제품을 사용하지 않는 것부터 일본풍으로 변해, 어느샌가 독특한 일본과자로 뿌리를 내리게 되었다. 일본의 나가사키가 카스텔라의 본고장이며 나가사키에 있는 후쿠사야가 카스텔라를 최초로 제작한 제과점으로 알려져 있다.

Castella

The castella was first introduced to Japan by Portuguese missionaries during the 16th century when Nagasaki, which is located on the northwest coast of Kyushu island, was a Portuguese trading outpost. They introduced many then-unusual things to the Japanese, such as guns, tobacco, and pumpkins. Many Portuguese sailors also brought with them castella cakes – since they were at sea for extended period of time, the cakes were ideal simply because they could be stored for longer durations. It is said that the priests would offer the luxurious sponge cake as gifts to the locals. The cake was known as Pão de Lo in Portugal, but was introduced to the Japanese as “Pão de Castela,'' meaning “bread from Castille” (Castille is a region in Spain). It then became known as “Castela,” or kasutera as pronounced in Japanese.