Matcha ~ Green tea Castella

Matcha  Castella was next on my list after my first attempt with Honey Castella.  I followed Angie's Recipes    on Matcha Spelt Castella but tweaked it a wee bit.
I substituted sherry with hot water and reduced the sugar by a mere 10 gm. and also changed the method a little.  The cake was soft, light, moist with a hint of matcha and so delicious.  Thank you, Angie.  On the other hand, Biren of  Roti n Rice also posted a beautiful matcha castella but mirin was one of the ingredients which unfortunately, I didn't have on hand.   Oh,  Ann of Anncoojournal  has also been bitten by the castella bug and just posted a fabulous Matcha Marble Castella cake recipe. Do drop by these blogs to view their lovely pictures and grasp their useful tips on how to bake a castella.  You name it, they have it!

 

 

This is indeed a very delectable sponge cake and will pair extremely well with a cup of hot green tea.  Trust me, you won't stop at one, reach out for more!

Recipe for Matcha ~ Green tea Castella  (Adapted from Angie's Recipes with slight modifications)

Ingredients

• 120 gm bread flour
• 1 Tbsp  matcha powder
• 5 egg yolks
• 5 egg whites
• 100 gm caster sugar  ( reduced from 130 gm)
• 20 ml/4 tsp sherry     ( substituted with hot water)
• 20 ml/4 tsp honey

Method    (Same as for my recipe on Honey Castella)

1. Line an 8 inch pan with alluminium foil and add a piece of parchment paper onto the base of the pan.
2. Mix the honey with hot water till honey has dissolved.  Set aside.
3. Sift the flour with matcha powder, twice to ensure thorough mixing.
4. In a mixing bowl, beat the egg whites at high speed until foamy.  Add in the sugar in 3 batches. Beat till stiff but not dry peaks form.
5. Add in egg yolks one at a time on low speed until well combined and soft peaks form when the whisk is lifted up.
6. Add in sifted flour and mix on low speed until just combined and no pockets of flour are visible.
7. Add honey mixture and mix on low speed.
8. Pour batter through a sieve into the prepared cake pan.  Use a spatula to help the thick batter go through the sieve. 
9. Tap pan on the counter to remove any large bubbles and smooth out the surface with the spatula.
10. Bake in a preheated oven @ 160 deg.C for 55 mins. till golden brown and test with a skewer till it comes out clean.
11. Take the cake out of the oven and drop the pan on the counter top from about a foot in height to prevent shrinkage, thrice.
12. Cool cake.  Invert cake onto a fresh piece of parchment paper, remove foil and base parchment paper, wrap up with the parchment paper and put the wrapped up cake into a plastic bag and keep chilled in the fridge, upside down, overnight.
13. Cut off the edges of the cake with a serrated knife and slice to pieces to serve.

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