If this recipe is made, would I receive the same sweet neurological reaction as the Fried Green Tea Ice Cream? Two cups a day of Japanese Green tea helps keep the complexion clear. Green tea is a great detox drink after enjoying a fried and greasy meal. I can’t wait to try this recipe in the future… when I commit to five days of exercising and eating no sweets.
Update: Thursday, October 14, 2010
After running twelve miles in four days, I decided to make a Matcha Lemon Cake. In addition, there were two dozen eggs sitting in the refrigerator. Was it the same sweet neurological reaction at Fried Green Tea Ice Cream? Do I have to run a few more miles this week? It’s a delicious yes to both answers.
Matcha Lemon Cake
Recipe adapted from Mark Bittman’s, How to Cook Everything.
Ingredients
- 1/2 lb. (2 sticks) unsalted butter, soft; plus more for greasing pan
- 1-1/2 plus 1/4 c. sugar
- 5 large eggs; room temperature and separate
- 1 tsp. vanilla extract
- The zest of one lemon plus the juice; separated
- 2 c. flour
- A pinch of sea salt
- 1 tsp. baking powder
- A dash of nutmeg
- 2 tbsp. + 1 tsp. Matcha green tea powder
- Garnish: Roughly chopped Italian pistachios or almonds
Directions
- Grease a 9 x 5 inch loaf pan. Preheat oven to 350°F.
- In a medium bowl, mix together the flour, salt, baking powder, nutmeg and Matcha tea powder.
- In a large bowl, beat together butter and 1-1/2 cup of sugar until light and fluffy, about 3 to 5 minutes.
- Add the yolks into the butter mixture, one at a time, mixing well in between each addition. Add the vanilla and the lemon zest.
- Add dry ingredients into the butter mixture. Do not over mix.
- Meanwhile, in a large bowl, beat the egg whites until soft peaks form.
- Gently fold the beaten egg whites into the cake batter.
- Pour the batter into the loaf pan and garnish with pistachios or almonds. Bake for one and quarter hour, or until a fork or a toothpick comes out clean.
- Meanwhile, over medium heat, mix 1/4 cup of sugar plus the lemon juice in a small saucepan until the sugar dissolves. Set lemon glaze aside to cool.
- When the cake is done cooking, let cool on a wire rack for five minutes before removing from loaf pan. Pierce the top of the cake with a fork.
- Set the cake on a wire rack over a cookie sheet. After the cake has been removed from the pan, drizzle lemon glaze over the cake. The cookie sheet will neatly catch the glaze to make clean-up easier.
- Enjoy your first slice when the cake is completely cool.