Strawberry Matcha Pound Cakes

March 24, 2023

strawberry matcha pound cakes

makes 4 mini cakes

Ingredients

Cake batter

150 gr unsalted butter

150 gr granulated sugar

½ tsp salt

3 eggs (150 gr)

90 gr milk (⅓ cup)

150 gr cake flour (1 ¼ cups)

1 tsp baking powder (3 gr)

2 tbsp strawberry powder

2 tbsp matcha powder

White chocolate glaze

100 gr heavy cream

100 gr white chocolate

Garnish

Dried strawberry crumbles

Matcha powder

Preparation

Chocolate glaze

Over medium-low heat, bring the heavy cream to a simmer.
Pour the hot cream over the white chocolate and mix until the chocolate is completely melted.
Cover with plastic wrap, ensuring the plastic wrap presses on top of the chocolate.
Place in the refrigerator to cool.

Pound cakes

Preheat the oven to 350F.
Cream the butter, sugar and salt until well combined, about 3-5 minutes.
Add the eggs, one at a time.
Make sure each egg is well incorporated with the batter before adding the next.
Scrape down the side of the bowl occasionally.
Add the milk.
Sift in the flour and baking powder. Mix until fully incorporated.
Avoid over mixing as it will make the cake tough.
Divide the batter into two separate bowls.
Add the strawberry powder to one bowl and mix until well combined.
Add the matcha powder to the other bowl and mix until well combined.
Butter the loaf pans.
Pipe the two batters into the pans- matcha first then strawberry.
Marble them together using a chopstick or tooth pick.
Bake for 20-25 mins.
Let cool completely before removing from the pans.

Assemble

Remove the white chocolate from the fridge and give it a good mix. If the mixture is too thick, you can microwave it in 5 seconds increments. A slightly runnier consistency will make it easier for glazing.
Pour the glaze over the cakes and smooth out using an offset spatula.
Decorate with matcha powder and strawberry crumbles.
Enjoy!

Strawberry Vanilla Vegan Cheesecake

February 10, 2019

Strawberry vanilla vegan cheesecake

makes 12-14 (2”x 2") mini cheesecakes

Ingredients

Silicone mold

Crust:

1/4 cup roasted almond

3/4 cup roasted walnut

5 Medjool dates, pitted

2 tbsp coconut oil

1/2 cup shredded coconut

2 tbsp cacao nips

1/8 tsp salt

Filling:

2 cups raw cashew

2 cups dried strawberry

1 1/4 cups coconut cream

5 tbsp cacao butter

5 tbs coconut oil

10 tbsp agave nectar

2 tbsp lemon juice

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 pinch salt

Preparation

Soak cashews for at least 6 hours, preferably overnight.
For crust: blend all ingredients together in a food processor until a crumbly, sticky paste is formed.
Press crust evenly onto bottom of mold. About 1 tbsp per square.
For filling: blend cashews until smooth.
Add rest of filing ingredients, except dried strawberries.
Blend until creamy.
Save about 1/2 cup of filling to use for frosting later.
Add dried strawberries to rest of the filing, blend until smooth.
Pour strawberry filing into mold, freeze until set. About 30 minutes or overnight.
Thaw for 5-10 minutes before serving.
Pipe on vanilla frosting and enjoy!

Good to know

You can use fresh strawberries instead of dried ones, but I don’t recommend doing so. Fresh strawberries are high in water content, which will give the cheesecakes an icier, popsicle-like texture.

Always allow the cheesecakes to thaw for at least 10 minutes before serving. This will bring out its soft and creamy texture.

Keep the cheesecakes in the freezer until ready to eat.

Linzer Cookies

January 8, 2019

Linzer Cookies

makes makes 48 cookies or 24 cookie sandwiches

Ingredients

2 cups all purpose flour

2/3 cup almond flour

1⁄2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

2/3 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 cup unsalted butter

2/3 cup granulated sugar

2 large eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/3 cup strawberry jam

1/3 cup almond butter

Powdered sugar, for dusting

Preparation

In a large bowl, whisk together flour, almond flour, cinnamon, baking powder and salt.
In a stand mixer, beat butter and sugar together on medium high until light and fluffy. About 2 to 3 minutes.
Scrape down sides of bowl to ensure sugar and butter are well incorporate.
Add egg to sugar and butter mixture, one at a time. Let mixer run for 30 seconds in between each egg addition.
Add vanilla extract and beat until well combined, stopping occasionally to scrape down bowl.
Add in the flour mixture and mix on low speed until well incorporated.
Divide dough in 2 pieces. Wrap each piece in plastic wrap and roll each of them out to about 1 inch thick.
Place dough disks in the refrigerator and let chill for least 2 hours before baking.
Preheat the oven to 325 degrees.
Line the baking sheets with parchment paper.
Roll out the dough disks to about 1/8 to 1/4 inch thick.
Use a round cookie cutter (mine is about 2 inches in diameter) and cut out as many circles as possible.
Use a smaller heart shape cookie cutter to cut out the center of half of the cookies. These will be the top cookie pieces.
Transfer cookies to baking sheets, cover loosely with plastic wrap and chill in the refrigerator for 5 - 10 minutes before baking.
Remove cookies from refrigerator, remove plastic wrap and bake for 12 to 15 minutes. The edges should be slightly golden when done.
Remove the cookies from the baking sheets and let cool completely before filing.
To fill, add about 1 teaspoon of jam or almond butter to the flat, bottom pieces. Place the heart cut out pieces on top and gently press together.

Good to know

The high fat content from the butter, almond flour and egg will make the dough very moist so make sure to flour your work surface generously before rolling them out. Alternatively, you can roll out the dough between 2 sheets of parchment paper.

If the dough get soft while handling, put it back in the fridge for 5-10 minutes before continue handling.

Chilling the cookies again right before baking will help them retain their shape and not spread out too much. Again, this is due to the high fat content.

You can re-roll the scraps to make additional cookies if needed.

The dough can be made 5 days ahead, tightly wrapped and refrigerated.

Match top and bottom cookie pieces before filling to make sure they are the same size.

Dust the heart cut out cookies with powdered sugar first then place them on top of the strawberry jam. This will avoid getting powdered sugar on the jam and helps retain the cookies’ vibrant red center.