Matcha Green Tea Cupcakes with Matcha Green Tea Butter Frosting

Matcha Green Tea Cupcakes with Matcha Green Tea Butter Frosting

The Matcha Green Tea Powder in these cupcakes and frosting make these baked goods a healthy way to have dessert. That's my story, and I'm sticking to it.I've been enamored with Matcha Green Tea powder for a few years. I've used it in many meals, catering menus and food gifts. In this blog I've posted recipes for Matcha Green Tea Donuts, Green Tea Croquembouche, and Ice Cream Bombe. I also contributed a recipe for Matcha Green Tea Marshmallows in the cook book to benefit Japan's rebuilding, called Peko Peko.

Recently I made these Matcha Green Tea Mini-Cupcakes for a "Hollywood Benefit" and topped them with edible gold for a little glamour. Then, oops, I made a few too many, what will I ever do with the extra? I guess I'll have to just keep them here in case someone at home (ME) would want one (SEVERAL) for lunch (and ALL DAY.) It's okay, they're a "healthy" dessert. Sorta. Here's the true healthy part:

Matcha Green Tea is a special crafted tea from Japan. It is grown in an elaborate process involving tender plants covered at a certain time to protect the chlorophyll and keep the leaves soft and dark green. Then it's steamed, dried and ground by stone (and sometimes machine) to create the fine brilliant green powder. Matcha Green Tea is not just tea made from brewing the leaves in water, but you are actually drinking the powdered tea leaves, so the benefits are multiplied. Matcha is full of antioxidants, nutrients, fiber and chlorophyll. It can be used as a tea, or as an ingredient for baking, sauces and other drinks.

Matcha has a long history in Japan that includes traditional ceremonies and the correct way to whisk and serve Matcha Green Tea. As with all teas, there are degrees or grades of Matcha based on the age and processing of the ground tea leaves.Many people drink Matcha Green Tea every day. If you have never tried it, or think you didn't enjoy it the first time, keep one rule in mind: Preparation is crucial. Like all fresh quality tea, the temperature of the water, the timing of the brew and the handling of the preparation can make the difference between a delicious cup of tea or a bitter misunderstanding of the libation.As luck would have it, these were also made just in time for this month's LET'S LUNCH bunch. The theme is GREEN and you can't get much greener than Matcha Green Tea Powder. My growing group of virtual lunch pals from all across the globe have even more inventive GREEN food in store for you, so check them out on twitter at #LetsLunch (and a list to be here soon):

Monday Morning Cooking Club - Avocado Dip
A Cook and Her Books - Green Bean Soup
Cowgirl Chef - Notos Pesto
Hapa Mama - How To Brew a Better Pot of Tea
Spice Box Travels - Eat More Kale Chips
Burnt Out Baker - Even Greener Green Chorizo
Wok Star - Honey Ginger Wok Brussel Sprouts
Zest Bakery - Pandan Tapioca with Coconut Cream
Geo Fooding - Asparagus with Poached Egg
Maria's Good Things - Brussel Sprouts Slaw
Joe Yonan - Winter = Wood

Recipe: Matcha Green Tea Cupcakes
(makes about 48 mini-cupcakes)

2 cups Flour
1/2 Tablespoon Baking Powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
6 ounces Butter (soft or room temperature)
1 1/2 cups Sugar
2 Eggs + 1 Egg Yolks
2/3 cup Milk
2 Tablespoons Matcha Green Tea

1) In a bowl, sift the flour, salt and baking powder together. Hold.
2) In a cup, mix the milk and Matcha together. Hold.
3) In a Mixing bowl, beat the butter and sugar together until creamy and fluffy, about 5 minutes.
4) Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each one.
5) Add the flour mixture and the milk/tea mixture to the batter, alternating and beating well after each one.
6) Spoon out into cupcake papers placed in muffin baking tins, filling 3/4 full. Bake at 350F for about 20-25 minutes (a little less if making mini-cupcakes)Recipe: Matcha Green Tea Butter Frosting

1 Cup Butter (2 sticks) soft
1/4 Cup Cream
4 Tablespoons Matcha Green Tea
4-5 Cups Powdered Sugar

1) Mix the Matcha with the Cream into a paste.
2) Beat the butter until light and smooth, then add the Matcha paste.
3) Sift the Powdered Sugar and beat into the butter mixture 1 cup at a time until it reaches the spreading consistency desired.

Loving Lunch with Joy the Baker, Cristina Ferrare, Kitchen Aid and White On Rice Couple ~ (recipe: Single Girl Melty Chocolate Cake)

If you're reading this because you'd like the recipe for a simple, chocolate filled, melty-in-the-middle single serving cake from Joy the Baker's new book - keep reading.

If you're reading this because you'd like to know more about Cristina Ferrare's new cook book - keep reading.

If you're reading this because you've started feeling like people are fake, selfish, celebrity driven a-holes, then I don't know how you got to this page, but keep reading because I have great news for you.

This past week I was invited to a casual luncheon given by Diane and Todd (photographers/writers/teachers and artists of the blog, White On Rice Couple .) It was so exciting to get their invitation because I know them to be talented, inspiring, authentic and truly giving people.

Cristina Ferrare (whom I've adored since her modeling/television days), and her daughter, Alex Thomopoulos (with a standup comedy background turned culinary artist - after my own heart), would be joining other food writers, bloggers and food fans at the lunch.

Also giving her time and talents would be Joy from Joy The Baker, (one of the most down-to-earth, beautiful and funny food gals I've ever met). It was sponsored by KitchenAid (I've never received any free equipment from them, but I would sing their praises 'til the cows came home because I have products that are over 20 years old that I still use.)

So, for those of you with dampened spirits about humanity, let me address you first:

In a time of tiresome vile political discourse and reality television assuring us that almost every gathering evidently breaks into name calling, table toppling and crying - this luncheon was full of friends and strangers laughing together and being moved by the video created by Diane and Todd. It wasn't a video selling a product. It was a video reminding us to open our eyes to all the moments in life and appreciate our own story. With their very personal images, they urged us to stay connected with the people, animals and details that matter most to our hearts. The best photography is the capturing of those stories.

With that vulnerable and emotional beginning, who wouldn't be moved to chat and stretch out of your own comfort zone? With a soft white light streaming across their studio, the 30-40 of us milled about meeting new people.

Diane and Jenny (Picky Palate)

We munched on smoked salmon-topped Potato Plates from Cristina's new book (Big Bowl of Love), and Alex's (KitchenAid-sliced) Zucchini and Cucumber Carpaccio, and Marshmallow Fluff Frosting demonstrated by Joy from her new book (Joy The Baker). We used the frosting to decorate our cupcakes.

Me and Rachel (Fuji Mama)

I've worked in the entertainment business for years. I've seen "celebrity" go to people's heads whether they were starring in a box office hit, writing the next straight-to-dvd knock-off, or reading lines into a camera about this week's mattress sales. It happens and it's weird.

Then there are people who really have the right to be patting themselves on the back and you'd never know they were in the room; their feet are firmly planted on the ground and they're always ready to help. Cristina and Joy have created wonderful cook books, Diane and Todd have an enormous following and the talent to back it up, yet all of these folks are the kinds of people you'd like to hang out with and have over for dinner.

I was fortunate enough to be given a copy of their cookbooks that day, but I've honestly purchased a copy of both just to share with a couple of my friends far away.Okay, now the recipe (but if you skipped to this part, you missed out on a story about hope, just saying. :D )

Within hours of returning from my luncheon, I was already thumbing through both cookbooks, leaving sticky tags on pages to study later. Then, standing alone in my kitchen knowing my husband wouldn't be home til the wee hours from work and my son off on a school trip to New York, I gave in to a picture of chocolate staring at me from Joy's cookbook. I had to make it.

The recipe was just too easy to not whip up and eat - all of it - all by myself. I killed this so fast~

In the book, it's called "Single Girl Melty Chocolate Cake", but really "single" is just a serving size on any given day, right?
Recipe: Single Girl Melty Chocolate Cake
(given with permission from Joy the Baker)

serves 1

1 Tablespoon unsalted butter
1/4 cup semisweet chocolate chips
1 large egg
4 teaspoons granulated sugar
1 teaspoon all-purpose flour
pinch of salt* Place a rack in the center of the oven and preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Place a cookie sheet in the oven as the oven heats.
* Generously butter and flour a 3/4 -or 1-cup ramekin. Set aside.
* In a small pot, bring 2 inches of water to a simmer
* Place butter and chocolate in a heatproof bowl and place over, but not touching, the simmering water. Stir until chocolate has melted. Allow to cool slightly.
* In a small bowl, whisk together egg and sugar. Pour in the melted chocolate mixture, and whisk together until well incorporated. Add the salt and flour and stir until just combined.* Pour batter into prepared ramekin and place in the oven atop the cookie sheet. Bake for 7-10 minutes. The less time in the oven, the more gooey the cake will be.
* Remove from the oven. Allow to cool for 2 minutes. Using pot holders, carefully invert cake onto a plate and dig in. Cake will be gooey and melty and slightly underdone -- super delicious!This cake is intended for immediate consumption (duh).

It was immediately consumed, thank you to Joy.

When Good Bananas Go Bad - Make Banana Salted Caramel Muffins

Is it just me, or do bananas go from perfect to over-ripe in 5 minutes? Here's what to do when Good Bananas Go Bad.Sometimes, I feel like bananas are jerking me around. If I buy them a bit green and sit them out gently and wait patiently for the peel to yellow (and the fruit to be sweet yet have a soft snap), I will still somehow miss the moment. I swear it feels like they are unripe in the morning and before I get home in the afternoon, the whole bunch have been in a big banana brawl and left each other black and streaked.I take great pride in using every morsel of my ingredients to the best of my ability. So, I have made Banana Ice Cream, Banana Cake, Banana Mousse, and even Banana Face Cream just to use up those bad boys. When time is tight and good bananas go bad, this is my Go-To "Bad Banana" Muffin Recipe. It's fast, simple, moist and freezes well (for that teenager who likes to grab something on the go for later.)

These muffins are great all alone, but can be enhanced with a dollop of cream cheese, Earl Grey Tea Milk Jam, Honey Butter or the following recipe for Salted Caramel Drizzle.Bananas are so good, but like all of us, they have their bad days.


RECIPE: "Bad Banana" Muffins

1 cup flour
1 teaspoon Baking Soda
Pinch of each: Ground Cardamom, Cinnamon, Nutmeg and Salt
1/4 cup Brown Sugar
1/4 cup Butter (room temperature)
1 Egg
2 Bananas (over ripe)
1/4 cup Sour Cream
1 teaspoon Vanilla


1) In one bowl, mix together the dry ingredients of flour, baking soda, and spices. Hold.
2) In a mixing bowl, beat together the butter and sugar til smooth. Add the egg and continue beating until fully incorporated.
3) In a small bowl, using a fork, mash together the over-ripe bananas, sour-cream and vanilla.
4) Add the banana mash to the butter/sugar mixture and stir together with the fork.
5) Add in the dry ingredients and continue to stir with the fork until the whole batter is fully mixed in, but just a bit lumpy.
4) Fill each muffin container about 3/4 full. Bake in pre-heated 350F oven for about 20-25 minutes.


Salted Caramel Drizzle:

1/3 cup sugar
2 Tablespoons Butter
1/4 cup Heavy Cream
1/4 Teaspoon (plus more for garnish) Sea Salt (course grain)

1) In a saucepan over med/high heat, add the butter and sugar together stirring constantly until it reaches a dark caramel color (about 3-5 minutes.)

2) Carefully pour in the cream and stir vigorously until mixed together. Add the salt and continue to stir while it dissolves. If it's too thick for a drizzle, add a bit more cream.

3) While the caramel is hot, very carefully drizzle with a teaspoonful over the muffins, then garnish with a few grains of Sea Salt.

Chicken and Dumplings Roxie Waller Style

Chicken and Dumplings is a humble food that brings people together. No matter who you are, where you live or how you got here, a bowl of steaming salty broth with chunks of tender chicken floating on little rafts of parsley speckled dough will heal your woes.

Chicken and Dumplings is like a slow grinding blues song. First you just like it, then you can't help but get into it, and pretty soon all you can think about is wanting more.When I was growing up in Southern United States (in the 70s) "Integration and busing" was still new and struggling. I remember being told that many of the "Black" parents were mad because their kids were being made to go to my "White" school, instead of the school all their parents had gone to as children. It never occurred to me then how it must have felt to have integration only move in one direction.

I lived way out in the country on a dirt road beside my Grandparents' farm and next door to my other set of Grandparents. Both Grandmothers cooked a lot, their kitchens always steamed with bubbling pots of stew or canning jars filled with jam or tomatoes. There wasn't a lot of money in those homes, it wasn't anything like the movie "The Help", and when folks made food it was generally shared with a bunch of neighbors with no regard to much else than who needed it.I was lucky, the messages I got from my mom were about God's unconditional love and not so much of the cliches we hear about the South, now. My family is very emotional, my mom plays piano by ear (and can tear it up), and I heard a lot of gospel music. By the time I was out traveling on my own, I had a natural love for gutsy, soul-throbbing-with-just-a-touch-of-humor blues (oh, yeah.)This month my global buddies (we call ourselves the Let's Lunch bunch) are posting recipes that are inspired by music. To tell ya the truth, I can hardly listen to music when doing anything else because it just takes me over; I'm not kidding. I love all kinds of music and it was hard to pick just one, but eventually I always go back to my beginnings.Both my Grandmothers made Chicken and Dumplings, but my mom's mother (Roxie Waller) made hers just a little differently. Grandma Waller rolled out the dumplings instead of leaving them in clumps. As my mom will tell ya, my grandfather absolutely loved Roxie's food and would hardly ever eat anyone else's cooking. I can still hear him slurping up those dumpling noodles, and then sopping up the broth with a biscuit til the plate almost didn't need washing.

I guess when I mixed the feel I get from Chicken and Dumplings, the memories of the South, and how the food brought people together (even in the midst of poverty, tension and growing pains), it just felt like Jazzy Blues. Of course, this food can't help but make ya feel good, so it couldn't be sad blues. It had to be funny, and the song, "If I Can't Sell It", has always made me giggle out loud and grind my hips. If you can listen to it without moving, I think you should get your pulse checked.

I'll post the video, but if they have to take it down - here's the link, too:

If I Can't Sell It, I'm Gonna Sit On It, Cuz I Sure Ain't Giving It Away :D




RECIPE: Chicken and Dumplings Roxie Waller Style

1 (3-4 pound) Whole Chicken (farm raised preferred)
1 Carrot (chopped)
1 Celery Stalk (chopped)
1 Onion (chopped)
1 Bay leaf
salt/pepper
*optional - pinch of Red Pepper Flakes

(Dumplings)
1 cup Flour
1/4 teaspoon Baking Soda
1 teaspoon salt, pinch of pepper
1 Tablespoon Crisco (melted) or you can use Bacon Fat
1/3 cup Buttermilk
2 Tablespoons Chopped Fresh Parsley


1) Place whole chicken in a large pot with the chopped carrot, celery, onion and bay leaf. Cover completely with water and bring to a boil. Cover and simmer for about 1 1/2 hours til chicken is tender and fall off the bone good. (Make the dumplings while the chicken is cooking.)

2) Skim the broth, then remove the pot from the heat. Using a fork, remove the chicken meat from the bones and hold to the side in a dish.

3) Strain the broth and discard the vegetables, then return the broth and the chicken to the pot. Season with salt and pepper and optional red pepper flakes.

4) Bring to a simmer and place the dumplings into the pot, also. Cook at a low simmer for about 15-20 minutes, stir occasionally. Season, to taste and serve in bowls.

Recipe: Dumplings

1) In a bowl whisk together the flour, salt and baking powder.

2) In another bowl, whisk together the melted shortening (fat) and buttermilk.

3) Using a fork, combine the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and add the chopped parsley. Continue until mixed and starting to hold together. (If you need more moisture, add ice water just a Tablespoon at a time.)

4) Using your hands, press the dough together and remove to a lightly floured board. Knead for only about 5-6 times. Roll dough out to about 1/4 inch thick. Cut into long pieces, about 1 inch by 2 inches or your preference. Hold until you add them to the Chicken broth.

Check out all these fun Music and Food posts from my Lets Lunch buddies around the world:

Cowgirl Chef's Tiger Cakes (and a really sexy song)

Monday Morning Cooking Club (Hawaiian treat)

HotCurries and Cold Beer - (tribute to her dad with a song)

Burnt Out Baker - (rock and roll in the house)

GeoFooding - (a very fun video about One Meatball)

Grongar Blog (You can Polka while the Kishke bakes )





More to be added - check back often :D

A Little Nutella Filled Cookie Pie

A cookie, that's a pie, that fits in your hand and is filled with Nutella?

Now, that's dangerous.

This is my newest offering for this year's World Nutella Day that happens every year on February 5th. Recipe lovers all over the world share a favorite idea using Nutella and contribute to my growing collection (and waist line.)

This itty-bitty pie is so simple to make and the cookie crumble on the top is the same as the pie shell, so no extra time is needed there either. If you prefer, you can make these bigger for a perfect individual dessert or keep them mini for the perfect lunch pack surprise or party pleaser.The crust is a sugar cookie recipe that is my GO-TO because it's easy, but also makes a great blank slate to add your own flavor ideas or topping creations.

See more Nutella recipe ideas at World Nutella Day (created by MisAdventuresInItaly.com and BleedingEspresso.com.)


Recipe: Nutella Filled Cookie Pies

Sugar Cookie Crust and Crumble~

3 cups AP Flour
2 Teaspoons Baking Powder
1 teaspoon Salt
8 ounces Butter (room temperature)
1 cup Sugar
1 egg
2 teaspoons Vanilla
*optional - finely chopped candied orange peel

1) In a mixing bowl, beat the sugar and butter.

2) Add the egg and vanilla, beat until batter is smooth, about 2 minutes.

3) Mix together the Flour, baking powder and salt, then add this to the butter batter. (If using candied orange peel, add now.)

4) When mixed well, wrap the dough in plastic wrap and chill for about 20 minutes (up to overnight.)
Nutella Filled Cookie Pies:

1) Roll out cookie dough to about 1/4 inch. Cut into circles a little bigger than the opening in your mini muffin pan. Gently press the cutouts into the muffin tin to form a crust. Save the leftover pieces of cookie dough for the crumble on top.*You can also pinch off pieces of the dough and roll into balls about 1 inch in diameter to press into the muffin tins to make a crust.2) Gather up the dough scraps and roll them in your fingers to use as crumble. The pieces should be about the size of peas or smaller.3) Drop about a teaspoon of Nutella into each cookie pie shell, top with cookie dough crumble (you can also add a few grains of Sea Salt.)4) Bake in a preheated 350F oven for about 8-10 minutes. Don't over cook because the Nutella will get too firm. Allow to cool for a few moments and then carefully remove cookie pies to cool on a rack. Serve warm or at room temperature. These held well in an air tight container for a few days.

Happy World Nutella Day and every day~