Remake : Chocolate and matcha steamed cupcakes

Looking back at my previous post 2 years ago, where I have posted a steamed cupcake recipe. Old-fashioned steamed cupcake I remember from my childhood. Mom used to buy me cat face-shaped steamed cakes every time we go to the hospital for a monthly check-up. The cake was too cute to eat and I didn't even want to share the cake to my younger sister and brother. I was a selfish sister back then. :D

When tiramisu meets green tea

When I heard the word "tiramisu", I think about creamy dessert, sweet, scrumptious and difficult to make (this was what I was thinking before I finally try to make one). I love...love...love tiramisu. Beat me, this is the simplest tiramisu I know how to make and I was really enjoy and satisfied with the result. For the introduction, tiramisu is an Italian dessert. In English, the word tiramisu means "pick-me-up" or "cheer-me-up". Now I know what I need to cheer myself up ! :D

I'm going to leave you with a super simple recipe of green tea-ramisu below. Am not going to make this as a long post. So you won't waste your time to read my ramblings :P

Green Tea Tiramisu

Coffee solution :

- 35 gr sponge finger, cut into thirds
- 2 tsp instan coffee
- 1 tbsp sugar
- 100 ml of boiled water

Green tea mascarpone mixture :
- 300 gr mascarpone cheese
- 1/2 tsp tiramisu paste
- 1 tsp matcha / green tea powder
- 125 gr sweet condensed milk (white)
- 100 ml heavy cream
- 1/2 tsp cocoa powder (for dusting)

How to :

1. Coffee Solution : mix instan coffee, sugar and boiled water in a bowl. Mix to dissolve. Set aside.
2. Green tea mascarpone : beat mascarpone cheese, tiramisu paste and matcha until smooth and creamy. Add sweet condensed milk and heavy cream. Mix to blend well. Set aside.
3. Dip the sponge fingers into the coffee liquid. Let them soak on each side enough to become damp but not soggy.
4. Line the bottom of the glass with a layer of sponge fingers. Spread the green tea mascarpone mixture on top of the sponge fingers layer.
5. Refrigerate for at least a couple of hours or preferably overnight to let it set well.
6. Dust with cocoa powder just before serving.

Bahasa Indonesia

Larutan kopi :
- 35 gr sponge finger, potong-potong
- 2 sdt kopi instan
- 1 sdm gula pasir
- 100 ml air mendidih

Green tea mascarpone  :
- 300 gr keju mascarpone
- 1/2 sdt pasta tiramisu
- 1 sdt bubuk green tea
- 125 gr susu kental manis putih
- 100 ml krim kental
- 1/2 sdt coklat bubuk (untuk taburan)

Cara :

1. Larutan kopi : campur kopi instan, gula dan air mendidih. Aduk rata. Sisihkan
2. Green tea mascarpone : kocok keju mascarpone, pasta tiramisu dan green tea bubuk sampai rata. Masukkan susu kental manis dan krim kental. Kocok rata. Sisihkan.
3. Celupkan sponge finger ke dalam larutan kopi.
4. Tata di dasar gelas kecil. Sendokkan campuran green tea mascarpone.
5. Dinginkan dalam kulkas.
6. Sajikan dingin setelah ditaburi coklat bubuk.

Enjoy.....

Birthday cupcakes : Black sesame matcha cupcakes

This recipe from Xiaolu - 6 Bittersweets has stolen my attention from the very beginning I came across to the post. Black sesame on the cake is new to me. If you have time to sneak out and take a look at Xiaolu's photos of these cupcakes (which are really far away better and prettier than mine), you must be agree with me ! I don't know what was wrong with my frosting. Mine was too runny, while Xiaolu's was firmer and steady.

I made this on my second attempt with cold cream cheese, the swirls look much better than my first attempt

I have to admit, these cakes are delish, rich in texture from the grounded black sesame seeds and the sweet smell from vanilla extract. Even the unbaked batter already spread the good smell throughout the kitchen. And for the result....I'm in love with the shape, smell and the taste of it ! 

I made it for my hubby's birthday. Though we didn't celebrate his birthday with a party, but we like to spend the time only for the three of us (me, hubby and son). All my best wishes goes to you, Ayah. Hope Allah give you health and strength. Amiin.

Black sesame matcha cupcakes (adapted from 6 Bittersweets)
makes 12

Ingredients for cupcakes :
- 6 Tbsp (3/4 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
- 3/4 cup sugar (I use 1/2 cup sugar)
- 1/4 cup black sesame seeds PLUS extra for garnish
- 1 large egg, room temperature
- 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1 1/4 tsp baking powder
- 1 1/4 cups (155 g) all purpose flour
- 1/2 cup PLUS 3 Tbsp milk

How to:

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Line a standard muffin pan with 12 baking liners.
2. Toast the sesame seeds in a dry pan on the stove over medium heat, stirring them constantly, until they are fragrant (about 2 minutes). Crush toasted seeds with a mortar and pestle OR spice grinder until they are the texture of damp sand and set aside. Separately, sift the dry ingredients into a medium bowl; set aside.
3. Cream the butter and sugar in a large bowl until light and fluffy. Add the ground sesame seeds, egg, and vanilla and beat until combined. Gradually beat in half the dry ingredients. Add the milk and mix well. Lastly, add the remaining dry ingredients and mix until batter is well-combined and smooth.
4. Fill cupcake liners until they are about 2/3 full. Lift the pan 1-inch above the kitchen counter and carefully slam it down to expel any large air bubbles in the batter. Bake for 14 to 18 minutes, or until a skewer inserted in the center comes out clean. Remove cupcakes from pan as soon as safely possible. Cool completely before frosting as desired. Sprinkle the top of each cupcake with extra sesame seeds.

Ingredients for matcha cream cheese frosting :

- 1/2 cup unsalted butter (1 stick), room temperature
- 1 to 2 cups (4 to 8 ounces) powdered sugar, sifted (more if needed)
- 10 ounces cream cheese, cold and cut into small pieces
- 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
- 2 to 4 tsp matcha (green tea) powder, or to taste

How to : 

Sift powdered sugar and matcha together into a small bowl. In a larger mixing bowl, cream the butter, powdered sugar mixture, and vanilla until thoroughly blended. Add the cream cheese, a chunk at a time, beating after each addition (just enough to work it in).

Enjoy.....

Chinese flaky pastry

This Chinese flaky pastry is also known as bakpia in Indonesia with mung bean  paste as the filling. But now there are various filling such as chocolate, cheese, durian, black sticky rice, etc.

I never thought making this flaky pastry would be so easy :) You don't need a mixer, all you need is only your two hands to knead the dough. Too bad I was running out of matcha powder, so I have to reduce the usage of it for pastry dough and the result wasn't as green as in the magz. If you don't like green tea, you could replace the matcha powder with chocolate powder. Definitely will try this flavor next time !

I have funny story while I was making this pastry. I like the shape of this pastry since the first time I saw it from the magazine. They look so pretty with layers on the outside. Layer by layer with different colors, green and white. But then....my flaky pastries didn't turn out the way they should be. I didn't see any layers on the outside of them ! What went wrong ? I used the wrong technique. Yeah, I should have checked the flaky pastry technique first. (I promise you, if I make the chocolate flavor ones, I'll share the technique including the photo!) 

Chinese flaky pastry with green tea and mung bean paste filling
make 16

Water dough (outer layer) :
- 100 gr all purpose flour
- 100 gr cake flour
- 25 gr castor sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 80 gr water
- 75 gr unsalted butter

Green tea dough (inner layer) :
- 210 gr all purpose flour
- 140 gr unsalted butter
- 10 gr green tea powder

Filling :
- 150 gr peeled mung bean,  soak in water for 1 hour
- 50 gr thick coconut milk
- 100 ml water
- 5 gr green tea powder
- 1 pandan leaf
- 75 gr granulated sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon salt

How to :

1. Filling : Steam mung beans for 20 minutes on medium heat.
2. Transfer the cooked mung bean to a blender, add coconut milk, green tea powder, water, sugar and salt, and puree to a fine paste. Place mung bean paste in a saucepan, over medium heat, add pandan leaf. Stir well until dry. Move from the heat. Let it cool down.
3. If the filling already cool then form into ball, 25 gr for each ball. Set aside.
4. Water dough : Sift flour, sugar and salt. Add in water until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs. Add butter into the mixture and mix to form a soft and non-sticky dough. Cover and set aside to rest for 15 minutes.
5. Weigh the dough for 50 gr each and form into ball. Set aside.
6. Green tea dough : mix flour, butter and matcha powder. Mix to form a soft even coloured dough. Form  a soft ball that doesn't stick to your hands.
7. Weigh the dough for 50 gr each and form into ball. Set aside.
8. Take a piece of water dough, flatten. Place the green tea dough in the center of the flat dough. Gather the outer edges of the water dough circle and wrap up the green tea dough ball. Seal and pinch the edges.
9. With the heel of your palm, gently press the dough to flatten it lightly. Using a rolling pin, roll out the flatten dough. Roll the dough up.
10. Turn the rolled dough 90 degrees. Roll out the dough again. Roll up again.
11. Cut the dough crosswise into 2 pieces. Flatten out the dough. Place filling in the center. Gather the outer edges of the dough circle and wrap up the filling.
12. Grease the pan with butter then place sealed side down on baking tray.
13. Bake them in the oven for 25 minutes at 180 degrees Celcius.

Bahasa Indonesia
16 buah

Bahan kulit luar :
- 100 gr tepung terigu protein sedang
- 100 gr tepung terigu protein rendah
- 25 gr gula tepung
- 1/4 sdt garam
- 80 gr air
- 75 gr mentega tawar

Bahan kulit dalam :
- 210 gr tepung terigu protein sedang
- 140 gr mentega tawar
- 10 gr green tea bubuk

Bahan isi :
- 150 gr kacang hijau kupas, rendam 1 jam
- 50 gr santan kental instan
- 100 ml air
- 5 gr green tea bubuk
- 1 lembar daun pandan
- 75 gr gula pasir
- 1/4 sdt garam

Cara :

1. Isi : Kukus kacang hijau kupas yang sudah direndam di atas api sedang selama 20 menit.
2. Blender kacang hijau dengan santan dan air. Tambahkan green tea bubuk, gula pasir dan garam. Masak di atas api sedang, masukkan daun pandan, aduk sampai kalis. Sisihkan.
3. Timbang adonan masing-masing 25 gr. Bentuk bulat. Sisihkan.
4. Kulit luar : campur tepung terigu, gula tepung dan garam. Tambahkan air, uleni sampai kalis. Tambahkan mentega. Uleni sampai licin. Diamkan 15 menit.
5. Timbang adonan kulit luar masing-masing 50 gr. Bentuk bulat.
6. Kulit dalam : campur tepung terigu, mentega dan green tea bubuk. Aduk sampai bergumpal.
7. Timbang adonan masing-masing 50 gr. Bentuk bulat.
8. Pipihkan adonan kulit luar. Beri adonan kulit dalam. Bentuk bulat.
9. Giling adonan memanjang. Gulung. Giling lagi adonan memanjang. Gulung.
10. Potong adonan menjadi 2 bagian. Pipihkan adonan. Beri isi. Bentuk bulat dan motif ada di luar. (yang ini saya rada bingung maksudnya gimana, jadi bentuknya ga sesuai dengan contoh di majalah !)
11. Letakkan di loyang yang dioles mentega putih.
12. Oven 25 menit dengan suhu 180 derajat Celcius sampai matang.


Enjoy.......

Green tea steamed bun with chocolate filling

The basic recipe of this steamed bun is from Chinese steamed bun recipe also known as bao. But I modified by adding matcha powder into bun batter. Well, I can say this was my first time making bao / steamed bun. I can say, I finally successed in making this bun dough. I simply love the soft texture of steamed buns, and what shocked me is, my son loves it !!

For me, the hardest part on making steamed bun is the kneading part ! I feel painful in my right arm after I finished kneading the dough. So bad !!

Chinese steamed buns usually plain or filled buns, comes in various forms with a variety of fillings (meat, red bean, chocolate, etc). For this modified recipe, I used dark chocolate for the filling. Let's make some...

Without further ado, here is the recipe of Green tea Steamed Bun with Chocolate Filling.
Serving : 16 buns.
Ingredients :

Bun
- 250 gr all-purpose flour
- 40 gr caster sugar
- 6 gr dry yeast
- 1/2 teaspoon of baking powder
- 1 teaspoon of green tea powder
- 150 ml milk
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 20 gr of white butter

Filling
- 50 gr dark cooking chocolate

How to :

1. Sift the flour, powdered sugar, yeast, green tea powder and baking powder into a bowl.
2. Add the warm water a little at a time, mixing all the time, until it forms a shaggy ball.
3. Add salt and white butter, knead in the bowl until the dough cleans the sides. Roll it into a ball. Cover and let it sit for 20 minutes.
4. Punch down the risen dough. Split the ball into 16 roughly even sized pieces. Flatten the dough balls into circles.
5. Cover with a dampened kitchen towel and let rest for about 10 minutes.
6. Then roll out each piece and put the dark chocolate for the filling.
7. Gather up the dough around the filling, pinching to seal well. Flip the bun over, and form into a longish oval shape.
8. Place each bun onto a piece of parchment paper. Let them rest for about 15 minutes..
9. Steamed the buns. About 8 minutes later they should be done, so plate them.

Enjoy....

Green tea ice cream

Green tea month..!! I still have half a bottle of green tea powder. So come on, to chill your day out, let's make green tea ice cream. I made this from the scratch. To be honest, it's my first time making ice cream from scratch. And you know what..?? It was fun !! I never thought it would be so easy.

When I tell my son about my plan to make green tea ice cream, he said "oh no....not green tea again !". I was laughing out loud. He already bored with green tea. But I kept going on with my plan on making ice cream.

Well, in this recipe I made this without ice cream maker, that's because I don't have one. But don't worry, you just need to mix the mixture couple of times. But it's worth it !

Green Tea Ice Cream

Ingredients :
3/4 cup milk
2 egg yolks
5 table spoons granulated sugar
3/4 heavy cream
1 table spoon green powder
3 table spoon hot water

How to :
1. In a small bow, mix the green tea powder with hot water. Set aside.
2. Lightly whisk egg yolks in a pan. Add sugar in the pan and mix well.
3. Gradually add milk in the pan and mix well. Put the pan on low heat and heat the mixture, stirring constantly.
4. When the mixture is thickened, remove the pan from the heat. Soak the bottom of the pan in ice water and cool the mixture.
5. Add green tea in the egg mixture and mix well, cooling in ice water.
6. Lightly whip the cream and then add it to the cold green tea-milk mixture and stir gently.
7. Transfer the mixture to a large container and put it in the freezer. As ice crystals start to form, remove, and mix well with a spoon to break them up and return the mixture to the freezer. Repeat this a few times as it freezes to ensure that the ice cream is smooth.

The ice cream is very rich and creamy. I am very happy with it and will definitely make again.

Enjoy...

Green tea smoothie

Holidays ..... who hates holiday ? Students, kids, fathers, mothers, even me who works as an employee loves it. So, when holiday come, I took my son to one of mall in South Jakarta, to play ice skating. This was his first chance to try it. He had so much fun there.

You can feel the Christmas atmosphere everywhere, even though I don't celebrate Christmas. Snow, white, holiday, vacation, happy, those are what happen when end of the year is coming. Enjoy and have fun, before back to our daily routines. (I really need long time getaway with my family)

I always love holiday, after 5 days doing things on my work, I can relax myself with cooking, photographing and also spending time somewhere with my family. Nothing compares to that.

At my own tiny kitchen, I'm improvising to make anything with green tea powder. Green tea smoothie. Once I drink my first green tea smoothie was at Oh La La Cafe. I like the sensational taste of green tea. I love how it smell. Magic powder.

My version of green tea smoothie is a mixture between milk, sugar, green tea powder and ice cubes. Then blend all the ingredients in a blender until smooth. Serve it in a glass. Grab a book, sit relax on a couch, take a deep sip of green tea smoothie. Yum !!

Do you see that green color ? Fresh ! For my eyes and also my throat. Just try, I hope it gives freshness to you as well.

Enjoy...

You can read behind the scene story here.

Steamed cupcakes with matcha and chocolate flavors

It's been too long keeping a bottle of matcha powder in my cupboard. I searched some of easy recipes I could try on weekend. I gathered all my recipe books and magazines, thinking carefully, choose wisely what is the easiest recipe for me. And also, I think it's gonna be a green tea month in this blog :D

I found this steamed cake recipe from an old magazine. The original recipe is "Three-flavors Coconut Milk Steamed Sponge cake" (chocolate, plain and mocha), but I change the mocha flavor with green tea flavor. Besides, steamed cake in a magazine was steamed in a large cake mold. But I want to make this cake as cupcakes. So here's the recipe.

Steamed cupcakes with matcha and chocolate flavors

Ingredients :
- 4 eggs
- 120 gr granulated sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 120 gr flour
- 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
- 75 gr thick coconut milk
- 1 teaspoon cake emulsifier
- 1/4 teaspoon chocolate paste
- 1/2 teaspoon matcha powder

How to :

1. Beat eggs, sugar, salt and emulsifier until fluffy. Shifted flour and baking powder. Fold in flour and coconut milk into the egg mixture alternately until well combined.
2. Divide dough into 3 equal portions. Set aside one portion for plain flavor. Add the two portions with chocolate paste and matcha powder. Mix well.
3. Pour every batter into the cupcake molds that have been given paper cups using spoon. It's all up to you, if you want to make it layer by layer with different flavors is fine.
4. Steam for about 20 minutes on medium heat until cooked.
5. Serve

Make 15 cupcakes

The picture above is the inner part of my cupcake. Beautiful color indeed :)
Enjoy.....

Bahasa Indonesia

Bolu Kukus rasa coklat dan green tea
untuk 15 cupcake

Bahan :
- 4 butir telur
- 120 gr gula pasir
- 1/4 sdt garam
- 1 sdt emulsifier (SP/TBM)
- 120 gr tepung terigu protein sedang
- 1/4 sdt baking posder
- 75 gr santan kental instant
- 1/4 pasta coklat
- 1/2 sdt matcha powder

Cara :
1. Kocok telur, gula pasir, garam dan emulsifier sampai mengembang. Masukan tepung terigu dan baking powder sambil diayak dan diaduk perlahan bergantian dengan santan kental instant.
2. Bagi adonan. Satu bagian tambahkan 1/2 sdt pasta coklat, satu bagian tambahkan 1/2 sdt matcha powder dan satu bagian lagi dibiarkan putih.
3. Tuangkan ke cetakan cupcake yang sudah dialasi kertas cupcake. Anda bisa mencampurkan ke tiga adonan tsb ke dalam cetakan.
4. Kukus 20 menit dengan api sedang sampai matang.