July 1, 2020

No Churn Matcha (Green Tea) Ice Cream

Posted by HI Cookery under 07 July | Tags: , , , |
1 Comment 

No Churn Matcha

(Green Tea) Ice Cream

July: National Ice Cream Month

Islander’s home state of Hawaii has a sizeable Japanese population, ranking second behind Filipinos as the largest ethnic minority group. On her cul-de-sac, there are two Japanese families and she attended the same elementary/intermediate/high schools with the neighbors’ children. She also had several co-workers and friends of Japanese ancestry while living on Oahu. Even her bridal shower took place at a Japanese restaurant and two decades later she and Highlander would go to Japan for his kanreki (60th birthday)! Yes, we have an affinity for Japanese traditional culture—and, of course, Japanese food!

We frequently drink green tea and indulge in matcha mochi ice cream desserts when we go to Japanese eateries. At home, we also cook Japanese food once in a while, including matcha infused no-churn ice cream. It is one of the easier recipes to make to highlight the end of a Japanese-inspired meal. No-churn matcha (green tea) ice cream is also a sweet summer snack that one can enjoy throughout National Ice Cream Month.

Recipe

(Adapted from the Food Network)

Ingredients

  • 2 cups (1 pint) heavy whipping cream
  • 2-3 teaspoons matcha (green tea powder), culinary grade
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla
  • 1 can (14 ounces) sweetened condensed milk

Directions

Beat the whipping cream until stiff peaks form. In a small bowl or measuring cup, dissolve the matcha in vanilla and mix to make a paste.

In a large bowl, pour the condensed milk. Stir in the matcha-vanilla mixture. Gently fold the whipped cream into the condensed milk mixture. Place in a loaf pan or ice cream container. Cover and freeze for at least six hours or overnight. Remove from the freezer. Scoop into tiny tea cups, dessert dishes or ice cream cones.

Notes

  • The final food photo above shows a traditional Japanese matcha mixer/bamboo whisk. Thanks to Nan N., who travels often to Japan (Camp Zama) from Hawaii (Fort Shafter) for work, for this gift.
  • Islander’s Daddy, whose last duty station was in Pearl Harbor before retiring from military service, deployed often to different U.S. naval bases in Japan.
  • To boost the green color, stir in a little bit of green food coloring (optional).
  • Search our blog for other Japanese recipes under Theme Menus.
  • Search our blog for other no-churn ice cream recipes for National Ice Cream Month.

 

January 1, 2020

Mochi Matcha Bundt Cake

Posted by HI Cookery under 01 January | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , |
Leave a Comment 

Mochi Matcha Bundt Cake

January 1: New Year’s Day/National Hot Tea Month

Most Asians have a tradition to eat mochi (glutinous rice flour) desserts on New Year’s Day. The sticky chewy texture of the food symbolizes that luck will stick around all year long while the “rice” spelling resembles the word “rich” for prosperity ahead. We have eaten mochi-based Filipino bibingka and Chinese gau many times before. But here now is our double take on this Japanese-inspired mochi matcha bundt cake recipe. The chocolate cake contains mochi for keeping the new year food tradition while the matcha green tea is for commemorating the month-long food holiday. The two-tone color of this mochi matcha bundt cake is a visual representation of celebrating both New Year’s Day and National Hot Tea Month.

Recipe

(Adapted from PopSugar)

Ingredients

  • 1 box (1 pound) mochiko (sweet rice flour)
  • 2 teaspoons baking powder
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • 1 cup (2 sticks) butter, melted
  • 2 cups sugar
  • 1 can (12 ounces) evaporated milk
  • 1 ½ teaspoons vanilla
  • 4 eggs
  • 2 tablespoons cocoa powder
  • 3 tablespoons matcha green tea powder
  • ¼ cup mini chocolate chips

Directions

Grease a bundt pant and set aside. In a medium bowl, combine the mochiko, baking powder and salt. In a large bowl, mix the melted butter with the sugar. Stir in the evaporated milk.

Add the vanilla. Beat in the eggs. Gradually mix in the dry ingredients and stir until smooth.

Divide the batter in half into two bowls. To the first bowl, mix in the cocoa powder. To the second bowl, mix in the matcha green tea powder. Stir in the mini chocolate chips into the cocoa powder mixture.

Pour the chocolate batter into the bundt pan first and smooth it out with a spatula. Next, pour the matcha batter on top of the chocolate batter. Bake in a preheated oven at 350 degrees F for 45-50 minutes, testing for doneness with a toothpick or wooden skewer. Remove from the oven and let cool in the pan for 10 minutes.

Invert the pan onto a wire rack to cool completely. Slice to reveal the two-tone colored cake. Sprinkle powdered sugar over the slices before serving (optional)

Notes

  • This mochi matcha bundt cake bakes up a dull green but photographs okay in the light. Feel free to add a few drops of green food coloring in the matcha batter and mix well to make the hue brighter when baked.
  • Search our blog for other traditional New Year’s and hot tea recipes.
 

August 23, 2011

Matcha Kasutera

Posted by HI Cookery under 08 August | Tags: , , , , , , , |
Leave a Comment 

Matcha Kasutera/Castella

(Green Tea Sponge Cake)

Matcha Kasutera

August 23: National Sponge Cake Day

Happy birthday to Islander! Just as Highlander’s birth date on April 20 is National Pineapple Upside-Down Cake Day, today also marks National Sponge Cake Day. Islander wanted to commemorate the date with a snack cake like the ones sold at some Asian grocery stores. Typically, they are unfrosted and feature flavors that reflect the region. She likes the vibrant colors seen through the slices, such as purple for taro/ube/purple yam and green for pandan and matcha/green tea flavors. For this particular post, we prepared a Japanese-style sponge cake called kasutera (or castella in Portuguese, who were among the first European traders and explorers in the Far East). We flavored our kasutera with Japan’s traditional tea to give it a green hue. Make this moist sponge cake for snacktime, birthdays and National Sponge Cake Day!

Recipe

(Adapted from A World of Cake by Krystina Castella)

Ingredients

  • 2 cups cake flour
  • ¼ cup honey (we used Big Island Bees brand Hawaiian honey) 
  • 3 tablespoons milk
  • 8 eggs
  • 2 cups sugar (plus 2 teaspoons for preparing the cake pan)
  • 2 tablespoons green tea powder (we used Teavana brand matcha)
  • butter (for greasing the baking pan)

Directions

Grease an 8×8-inch square cake pan with butter. Line it with parchment paper with a slight overhang on the pan edges. Grease over the parchment paper. Sprinkle two teaspoons of sugar in the pan. Sift the cake flour until light and airy.  In a small saucepan, melt the honey in the milk but do not boil. Alternatively, mix the honey and milk in a microwave-safe cup or bowl and heat until well-incorporated. Stir until smooth and set aside.

Matcha Kasutera

In another bowl, beat the eggs with the sugar until slightly thickened and the color turns to a pale yellow. Mix in the milk and honey. Gradually add the flour to make a thick batter.

Matcha Kasutera

Stir in the green tea powder until well blended and the color is evenly distributed. Pour the batter into the buttered pan, filling no more than ¾ of the way. Bake in a preheated oven at 350 degrees F for 10 minutes on the top rack. Lower the heat to 325 degrees F and transfer the pan to the bottom rack of the oven. Continue to bake for 45 minutes, testing the cake with a toothpick for doneness.

Matcha Kasutera

Remove from the oven and transfer to a wire rack to cool for about 10 minutes. Lift the cake from the pan using the edges of the parchment paper and continue to cool the cake completely on the wire rack. Remove the parchment paper. Slice off the edges of the cake to reveal the inside green color to contrast with the brown top. Slice into portions, brushing off the crumbs from the cake, and serve.

Matcha Kasutera

Notes

 

Next Page »