January 1, 2020

Mochi Matcha Bundt Cake

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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.
 

January 1, 2011

Matcha Macarons

Posted by HI Cookery under 01 January | Tags: , , , , , , |
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Matcha (Green Tea) Macarons

Matcha Macarons

January: National Tea Month

East meets West when finely milled green tea powder mixes with ground almonds to make matcha macarons. Japanese green tea adds color and flavor to the famous French cookie in this unique recipe combination. Fusion foods like this are frequently featured in our home since we are a mixed married couple. Often our mealtime menus include items reflecting Highlander and Islander’s cultures, giving us a taste of the best of both worlds!

We made these matcha macarons by adapting a recipe from a Japanese author’s cookbook and using the French meringue method. They are perfect as a tea time treat, especially during National Tea Month.

Recipe

(Adapted from I Love Macarons by Hisako Ogita)

For the matcha green tea macarons

 

  • 1 cup almond flour/meal
  • 1 cup powdered sugar (we used C&H brand)
  • 2 tablespoons matcha green tea (we used Teavana brand)
  • 3 egg whites (aged overnight at room temperature)
  • pinch of cream of tartar
  • ¼ cup sugar (we used C&H brand, granulated white)

Directions

Sift together the almond flour/meal with the powdered sugar and matcha. Whip the egg whites with a pinch of cream of tartar until frothy. Gradually add the granulated white sugar while continuing to whip the eggs whites until peaks form. Stir in the green almond flour/meal-sugar mix until the consistency “flows like magma.”

Matcha Macarons

Fill a pastry bag with a large round tip. Pipe one-inch discs on a parchment paper on top of an insulated baking sheet. Let the discs air dry to develop a thin skin for at least 30 minutes. Bake in a preheated oven at 300 degrees F for about 15 minutes. Watch the “feet” develop, but be careful not to brown or burn the macarons. Remove from the oven and let cool for 15 minutes. Peel off the macarons from the parchment paper. Sort by size and match pairs. Make the filling.

Matcha Macarons

For the matcha (green tea) and white chocolate ganache filling

(Adapted from Matcha Source)

  • 2 ounces (2 squares) of white chocolate (we used Baker’s brand)
  • ½ cup heavy whipping cream, divided use
  • 1 teaspoon matcha green tea (we used Teavana brand)

Directions

In a microwave safe bowl, melt the white chocolate as directed on the package. Stir in 2 tablespoons of cream until smooth. Cool completely. In another bowl, beat the remaining cream with the matcha green tea until well blended. Add the white chocolate-cream mixture and continue beating until soft peaks form. Refrigerate to thicken the ganache. Re-whip again until it is a filling consistency. 

Matcha Macarons

Fill a piping bag with a large round tip. Pipe in the filling and sandwich the macarons together. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes to let the filling set. Bring to room temperature before serving.

Matcha Macarons

Notes

  • Click on our Mac Attack page to see more macarons.
  • January is also known as National Hot Tea Month while June is known as National Iced Tea Month.
  • Learn more about the health benefits of green tea from the Green Tea Library—AFTER consuming calories from sugary-sweet macarons!
  • Thanks to Lisa L. for sending us ground almonds from Germany. Our dear friend is also in a mixed marriage—she is German-American and her husband, John, is Welsh.

  • We have corrected/updated the original matcha-white chocolate ganache recipe. This yields enough filling for the matcha macarons. If our recipes have errors, please refer to the source from where we adapted them. We apologize for any inconvenience.