They have been to my house every week once for the past 3 years or so? haha! I can't really remember.
So, now that we need to depart and having them no longer coming to my house every week once is something that I am going to miss from now on. Sigh~
The reason being is, they are moving to another "state" and their new place will be far from my place. T_T
So, yesterday I have baked them a farewell gift, which the main ingredient is none other than matcha (Japanese green tea powder). Here is a little information that you need to know about matcha.
All Japanese green tea comes from the camellia sinensis tea plant. 30% of the nutrition of green tea leaves is water soluble (this means the nutrients emerge when steeped in water) - catechin, theanine, caffeine, vitamin C, and more. 70% of the nutrients of green tea leaves is non-water soluble - vitamin E, beta carotene, dietary fiber, and more.
Known for its use in Tea Ceremony, Matcha is quickly becoming a very useful and tasty way to health. After harvest, tea leaves for Matcha go through (1) steaming, (2) drying, and (3) grinding with a stonemill. The highest grade Matcha is the brightest green and has the most sweet and mellow flavor, without any hint of bitterness, such as our Matcha Pinnacle and Matcha Super Premium. Lower quality Matcha is less green and more yellow and the flavor is less mellow. Matcha is special because since it is ground into a powder and completely dissolved in water when brewed, you drink the whole constituents of the tea leaves and ingest all of the healthful nutrients without throwing away the leaves as one does with other teas: Gyokuro, Sencha, Genmaicha, and Houjicha. Besides, by drinking Matcha you can also ingest oil soluble constituents (Vitamin A, Vitamin E, Beta-carotene, etc.), which are not extracted into water when brewed.
Catechin is an element of green tea's refreshing aroma and astringency, and is extracted well in water with a temperature of over 167 - 176F (75 - 80C). Catechin is also well known for the beneficial effects of removing free radicals, reducing cholesterol and fat, as well as antibacterial and sterilizing. Theanine is an element of green tea's sweet taste and mellow aroma, and is equally extracted both in low and high temperatures. Theanine is also well known for the effects of relaxing the mind and restoring mental balance. Much Theanine is found in tea leaves of Ichibancha (the first pick of the year). Gyokuro and Matcha are especially rich in Theanine because the tea leaves are grown in diffused sunlight before harvest.
For more information, please visit hibiki-an ^_^
Alright, here are the pictures of matcha soy milk, matcha cookies and matcha cup cakes that I made yesterday's morning for their farewell.
I don't really like baking because the oven I have is really really old and it didn't do good job in baking. Temperatures and all can't really be adjusted. haha! I guess I need to invest into a baking microwave soon? hehe! I don't bake that much anyway.
Enjoy the pictures~ The subtle green color that matcha gave is really beautiful.
I add in a teaspoon of matcha into 1/2 cup of soy milk and whisk it little for the powder to melt and add it into with other half of soy milk.
If soy milk with matcha has been sitting for a while, matcha tend to stay at the bottom separating from soy milk. So, before drinking, just stir it well to drink.
Due to my antique oven's temperature can't be adjusted that much, I always ended up burning the bottom of whatever that I bake before the entire thing cooked. haha!
But this wasn't that bad.. not too burn this time. LOL!
Honestly, I am really not that good in baking. haha! I don't really that into baking. I love cooking more ^_^;
I like how subtle the green color is from matcha.
Yeah shapeless cookies because time was limited. I have to get everything prepare in the morning and get it done before my friends came over in the afternoon. Gee, these look like scones? hahaha! I think I shall blame it on my antique oven? It caught up all the moisture. Yeah! Blame on...
It tastes great! I reduced the measurement of the sugar and added a little more of matcha. The chocolate chips that I used is semi-sweet too. It brings a hint of bitter-sweetness.
The final packing of both cupcakes and cookies~
The card I made for them too. haha!
Alright peeps, that's all for today. It's all about Matcha. ^_^v hehe! I will work on my September tutorial video soon. Been busy with work nowadays. Remember, from my September cooking video onwards, it will be uploaded at my new cooking channel call KantanRyouri.
Those who visited my blog today, thank you.
以上！
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