[Matcha May] Matcha Tiramisu Cake

Matcha Tiramisu Cake

When I heard that teapigs  were holding ‘Matcha May’ I just knew I had to get involved. I am a HUGE matcha fan - obsessed with the stuff - so I dropped them a line and before I knew it a sample was on its way. A sample I could experiment with...

The idea behind Matcha May is to get people talking about all things matcha, and to tell everyone and anyone who will listen just how great it is.

I’ve been drinking Matcha for quite a whole now and it definitely gives you more energy. I’d also agree that it is more slow releasing than your regular tea, coffee or bottle of coke. This means that you don’t get that mid morning, pre-lunch caffeine crash!

As much as I love Matcha I won’t lie to you, it can be a bit of an expensive habit. If you have the money then I highly suggest you take it up and keep to it – especially if those stats are correct.

Because it’s a little bit pricey I’ve always been a bit wary to experiment with it, instead I simply drink it in the traditional way (or as close as you can get to doing so in an English town.) But I’ve finally decided to see what else Matcha offers in terms of cooking.

Although it was originally only used in Japan for tea ceremonies it is now used in a whole variety of dishes such as green tea ice cream, I’ve even seen it used to flavour and colour soba noodles, and it is also used in Wagashi which is a Japanese confectionary.

Thinking about Wagashi led me to think of other sweet dishes I could cook using this special tea. After careful consideration I decided to do a twist on a classic. What if instead of making tiramisu with coffee...I made it with Matcha tea!

And so the Matcha Tea-ramisu was born.

The idea is simple – I take layers of Matcha flavoured sponge and layer it with a mascarpone mix and chocolate sponge. The top is sprinkled with extra Matcha and cocoa powder for a tasty treat that you don’t have to feel guilty about.

It's worth noting that my recipe not only differs from traditional tiramisu by using green tea instead of coffee, but it uses baked sponge layers rather than lady fingers and the mascarpone cream filling is egg free! This means its ok for people who can't eat raw egg.

Because of this it really is an incredibly simple recipe that is tasty and is visually awesome to look at. A bright green cake really is a show stopper!

I'd recommend eating this recipe for afternoon tea out in the garden but it can be eaten as a dessert after dinner.

So there you have it, Matcha is not just for drinking! Is there any end to this marvellous tea’s talents?

Just one scour of the internet and you can find hundreds of recipes using this amazing powder. So if drinking it straight every day isn’t for you. I’m sure you will find something else a little more to your tastes.

(Xinmei over at Pudding Pie Lane has also experimented with Matcha in the past showing what else it is capable of: Matcha Green Tea and Raspberry Cake and Matcha Cheesecake)

As much fun as it is making bright green cakes without the aid of liquid and gel food colourings I think for the meantime I will continue to drink it each morning in the traditional way. I think it will become handier as I go out to work in the big City.

If you would like to try Matcha for yourself the people over at teapigs have kindly let me treat you, the readers to 15% off at www.teapigs.co.uk. Simply enter the code BLOGGERS12 at checkout. But note the discount does not apply to gifts and cheeky deals as these are already discounted.)

You can also follow teapigs on Facebook and twitter: @teapigs.  

I hope you love it as much as I do.