To be honest, I had never heard of “Baumkuchen” before a representative of the Japanese company, Foodtech Meister, a subsidiary of Juchheim Co., reached out to me last week. But now that I’ve learned what “baumkuchen” is, I desperately want one — and I’m willing to fly to Japan to have Foodtech Meister’s THEO robot make me one.

A baumkuchen is a multi-layered spit cake that originated in Germany and is popular in Japan. A roller is dipped in batter and then spins in front of a heat source. This process is repeated over and over, creating a cake with 15 - 21 thin concentric layers (much like when you cut open a tree).

According to a press release from Foodtech Meister:

Baumkuchen is a confectionery that is indispensable for celebrations as a symbol of “longevity” and“prosperity” because of its annual ring on the cross section.

If made traditionally, this requires a human to stand in front of a machine dipping the roller in batter and baking each individual layer.

Here’s how THEO automates this process.