Matcha (Green Tea) Cream Puff Recipe

So I was inspired when I saw a video showcasing the Matcha cream puffs that they sell in Bibble and Sip, NY. I figured there was no way I was going to be flying over there anytime soon to try them so I'd make my own.

It does not by far resemble the ones they sell and I feel like I should've put more Matcha powder into the mixture to give it a stronger green colour. But they were delicious and definitely a must make for ANY Matcha lover! 

Choux Pastry (Makes approx. 9 medium-sized puffs)

• 1/2 cup water
• 56.5g butter 
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp sugar
• 1/2 cup flour
• 2 eggs

1. Melt the butter and water in a pan on medium heat
2. Add salt and sugar and bring to a boil
3. Take off the heat and stir in the flour, then put the pan back on heat and cook for 2-3 minutes (or until the mixture starts to come off the pan clean)
4. Transfer the dough-like mixture into a large mixing bowl to cool for 5 minutes
5. Once cooled down, incorporate eggs one at a time, slowly stirring and making sure it combines to form a smooth paste that can be piped

Craquelin (This forms the crunchy crust on the top)

• 85g unsalted butter (softened)
• 100g sugar
• 100g flour
• 1/2 tsp Matcha powder 

1. Cream butter and sugar together in a bowl until smooth
2. Add flour and Matcha powder and mix until a dough starts to form
3. Roll out the dough with a rolling pin onto a baking sheet/a layer of cling wrap (so the dough does not stick to the worktop) to a thickness of about 3-5mm  
4. Place the rolled out sheet in the freezer to cool

Creme Pâtissière (Pastry cream)

• 300ml whole milk
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 3 large egg yolks
• 50g white sugar
• 20g flour
• 20g corn starch
• 1/2 tsp Matcha powder
• Optional: 120ml whipped cream 

1. Heat milk and vanilla extract in a pan on medium heat
2. In the meantime, cream egg yolks and sugar together in a large mixing bowl until pale yellow and thick. Then, whisk in the flour, cornstarch and Matcha powder
3. Once boiling, take the milk off the heat and add to the egg mixture a little at a time, constantly whisking the mixture to ensure that it does not split
4. Pour the entire mixture back into the pan and cook gently while continuously stirring with a whisk
5. Continue this until mixture thickens, and allow it to boil for 1 minute whilst still whisking
6. Pour the pastry cream into a bowl and cover the surface with cling film. Set aside to cool, then refrigerate until using
7. Optional: Depending on what consistency you would like your pastry cream to be, you can fold some whipped cream into the pastry cream to make it lighter.

Assembly 

1. Preheat oven to 180C (170C fan) 
2. With a piping bag, pipe the choux pastry onto a baking sheet, each about 3cm in diameter
3. Remove craquelin from the freezer and with a round cookie cutter (or anything you can find that has a diameter of less than 3cm - I used a shot glass), cut out circles and place them on the piped choux pastry
4. Bake for 15-20 minutes until golden brown
5. Once done, leave the cream puff shells to cool
6. Make a small hole in the center of each one and pipe the pastry cream into the shell
7. Sprinkle with icing sugar to give a finishing touch

For tips on how to pipe or how your cream puffs should look like, I recommend you check out this video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qn1wqaTwpfE

Creme Egg Chocolate Cupcakes with Cinnamon Coffee Buttercream Recipe

 

I decided to bake these in conjunction with the Easter celebrations - pleased to say that they were a hit! The recipe for both the cake and icing I found separately on the internet and they are both simple and easy to follow. The cupcakes came out nice and fluffy, and you can barely tell that they are pure wholewheat. 

100% Wholewheat Chocolate Cupcakes (Makes 24) from Texanerin Baking

• 2 cups (360 grams) white sugar
• 1 3/4 cups (210 grams) whole wheat flour
• 3/4 cup (85 grams) cocoa powder
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 eggs
• 1 cup (240ml) milk
• 1/2 cup (120ml) olive oil
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1 cup (240ml) boiling water

1. Preheat your oven to 350°F / 175°C.
2. In a large bowl, stir together the sugar, flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda and salt.
3. Add eggs, milk, olive oil and vanilla.
4. Mix for 2 minutes on medium and then stir in the boiling water. The batter will be almost as thin as water.
5. Line 24 muffins tins with liners and fill each one just a little more than halfway.
6. Bake for 14 – 17 minutes or until a toothpick comes out with some moist crumbs, but no liquid.

Coffee and Cinnamon Icing from All Recipes

• 1 teaspoon instant coffee granules
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1 pinch salt
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 110g butter, softened
• 360g icing sugar
• 2 tbsp milk (add more if you would like a softer consistency than what you see in the pictures)

1. In a small bowl, mash instant coffee with the back of a spoon until powdery. Stir in cinnamon and salt.
2. In a large bowl, beat the butter until smooth, then stir in spice mixture and vanilla.
3. Alternately beat in icing sugar and milk until desired consistency is achieved.

Last but not least, top your cupcakes off with mini Cadbury Creme eggs - gently push them into the icing to make them stick!

Matcha (Green Tea) Brownie Bites Recipe

Ingredients

• 105g all-purpose (plain) flour
• 3 tbsp (18g) matcha powder 
• 180g white chocolate, melted
• 105g unsalted butter, room temperature
• 90g caster sugar 
• 3 eggs

1. Preheat oven to 180 C/160C Fan
2. Line a 8 x 8 inch baking  pan with baking paper (or greased with butter)
3. Whisk flour and matcha powder together
4. Beat butter and sugar until fluffy, add eggs in one at a time
5. Stir in melted white chocolate until combined
6. Gently stir in flour and matcha powder mixture into the wet batter
7. Pour batter into pan and bake for 15-20 minutes  

You know it’s ready when it starts to come off the sides / a fork or toothpick comes out clean! (you can see where I've stuck my fork in)

Last but not least, sprinkle with icing sugar for a finishing touch!

Leaning towers of brownie bites!

Note: You can opt to fold in some white chocolate chips/disks into the batter before putting in the oven to bake for some extra fudginess :)

Carrot Cupcake Recipe

Carrot Cake

• 100g soft brown sugar
• 175ml sunflower oil
• 3 large eggs, lightly beaten
• 140g carrots (grated)
• 50g pecans (chopped)
• 175g self-raising flour
• 1 tsp sodium bicarbonate
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon

1. Preheat the oven to 180C. 
2. Tip the sugar into a large mixing bowl, pour in the oil and add the eggs. Lightly mix with a wooden spoon. Stir in the grated carrots and chopped pecans.
3. Mix the flour, sodium bicarbonate and cinnamon in a separate bowl, then sift into the wet mixture. Lightly mix all the ingredients – when everything is evenly incorporated stop mixing. The mixture will be fairly soft and almost runny.
4. Spoon the mixture into the cups and fill it up to about ¾ full. Bake for 20-25 minutes until springy to touch/fork comes out clean. 

Cream Cheese Icing

• 100g butter, softened
• 300g soft cheese (low-fat)
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 100g icing sugar, sifted

1. Beat the butter, soft cheese and vanilla until they come together.
2. Add icing sugar in spoonfuls until it reaches the desired consistency. (Tip: to make it less sweet, reduce the proportion of sugar to cheese/add some lemon juice!)

You are then ready to ice your cupcakes! Top them off with more crushed pecans for an extra crunch :)

Matcha (Green Tea) Crepe Cake Recipe

Crepe mix ingredients
200g plain (or cake) flour
2 tbsp matcha powder
100g sugar
4 eggs
400ml milk
20g melted butter

1. Sift flour, matcha powder and sugar all at once into a bowl.
2. Add milk a little by little while mixing with a whisk.
3. Add eggs one by one, mix well.
4. Add butter, mix well.

Cream filling ingredients
900ml double (whipping) cream
6 heaped tbsp icing sugar
3 heaped tbsp matcha powder
2 heaped tbsp red bean paste

1. Use a whisk or hand mixer to beat cream
2. As it starts to thicken, add icing sugar and matcha powder spoon by spoon.
3. Whisk until the cream reaches a smooth but firm consistency.
4. Fold red bean paste in.

Now for the assembly...

• Start off by spreading the cream evenly on one of the crepes, then place another on top and repeat the process until you have used all the crepes.
• Make sure there is an equal amount of cream on each layer, leaving some left to cover the sides of the cake afterwards (like we have done in the picture above).
• You can decorate your cake with any topping of your choice! We used a white chocolate ganache and some fresh strawberries on ours.

Coffee Cupcakes with Coffee Buttercream Recipe

Cupcakes (makes about 20 small ones)
150g unsalted butter
150g caster sugar
3 eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract
175g self-raising flour
30ml strong coffee (approx. 2 tbsp of instant coffee powder)

1. Beat butter and sugar together until light and fluffy
2. Add eggs one by one while continuing to beat (don't worry too much if the mixture looks a little weird after adding the eggs)
3. Add vanilla and then sift in the flour while adding coffee a little at a time
4. Mix all together until combined
5. Bake at 180 C for 15-20 minutes

Buttercream

125g butter
250g icing sugar
20ml strong coffee 

1. Beat butter and icing sugar together
2. Depending on how soft you want the buttercream, add coffee a little at a time until it becomes the right consistency

Chocolate Chip Cookies Recipe

We were bored and decided to test out this recipe that we got from laurainthekitchen.com
If you'd like the recipe for these cookies, click HERE :)

They're chewy and moist, and judging by the amount of time it took for us to finish them, i'd say they're pretty good

*If you don't like them chewy, you might want to bake them a little longer