Lime, poppyseeds & blackberries cake with cream cheese frosting

Versiunea in limba romana: Prajitura cu limeta, mac si mure & cream cheese frosting 

I love poppyseeds! I love poppyseeds cakes and I keep thinking of a dessert we had some time ago in Germany, in Garmish. A kind of pie filled with an enormous quantity of poppyseeds. Crazy... It was winter, snow capped mountains, hours and hours of walking to the lodge... We would have skied, if we knew how :) The path was so beautiful, the mountains so magnificent and dramatic, the lodge so perfect and cozy, that instantly everything, including the dessert, was forever in my heart, in the favorite memories "folder". I remember my kid's red noses and their happy little eyes... Probably the hypnotic effect of the poppy seeds was exactly what we needesd after such a trip :) Anyway, winter is far away... At list, that's my hope. Spring is here. Blackberries. Strawberries. Raspberries. Sun. Green. Blue. Yellow. Gold. Light...

A wonderful cake for a beautiful day! Easy to prepare & so delicious, with a well deserved festive touch from the cream cheese frosting... What to celebrate? Spring! Spring is here...

85 g unsalted butter, at room temperature + 245 g sugar + zest of 2 lime + 50 g poppyseeds
170 ml milk
235 g flour + 2 tsp baking powder + a little salt
3 egg whites, mixed until it becomes a dense foam
150 g blackberries, mashes (with the fork)

Cream cheese frosting
130 g Philadelphia cream cheese, very cold
50 g unsalted butter, at room temperature + 250-300 g confectioner's sugar

Heat the oven to 170 degrees C. Prepare a round cake tray (removable bottom), with butter and baking paper. Mix well the butter, sugar, lime zest and poppy seeds. Slowly add the milk, mixing (the consistence is not homogenous yet). In another bowl mix flour, baking powder and salt, then add the poppyseeds cream, in three steps, mixing well each time. With a silicone spatula scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl, making sure there are no solid parts left. Add the mashed blackberries, mix slowly. Add the egg whites foam and mix carefully.

Pour the batter in the prepared tray and cook in the heated oven for 30 minutes. Let the cake cool in the tray. Prepare the cream cheese frosting: mix well with the mixer the butter and sugar, until you obtain a fluffy foam; add the cream cheese and mix for aprox 5 minutes; do not over mix.

When the cake is cold, put the cake in the plate you like and put the frosting on top. Lovely ♥

I love matcha ice cream

 Versiunea in limba romana: inghetata de matcha/ceai verde

What is Matcha?

A premium Japanese green tea, from the region of Uji Tawara. This region assures the perfect environment for the matcha plants: fog, hills, temperature etc. It is used in the tea ceremony, but also for cakes and  shakes. It is said to be the heart of the Japanese tea ritual for centuries.  Uji Tawara area is well known for it's famous teas:  shincha, gyokuro and sencha. 

 

Advantages

♥ a cup of matcha equals 10 cups of green tea (nutritional value)

♥ rich in antioxidants, fibers and chlorophyll 

♥ no sugar 

♥ contains L-teanine, a relaxing amino acid

♥ contains caffeine, as any green tea 

♥ while drinking matcha, we also consume the plant's leaves, not just an infusion. 

Matcha releases 4-6 hours of "calm" energy in our body.

How is it produced?

Just a few days before the spring harvest, farmers cover the plants with bamboo sheets, reducing the sun reaching the plant. This process is increasing the level of chlorophyll in the leaves. These become dark green, the distinct matcha color. After the harvest, leaves are boiled in vapors and air dried. Later these are sorted and rough parts removed: tencha. Tencha becomes matcha after grinding. Matcha produced from very young leaves has the most intense color and finest texture. 

Type of Matcha

Kama Matcha: Koicha (thick): the richest in amino - acid, complex taste, strong flavor; made of more than 30 years old plants. 

Morning Matcha: Usucha (thin): recommended for beginers; produced from plants younger than 30 years.
Gotcha Matcha: perfect for cakes, smoothies, latte, sauces, etc.
During the tea ritual, Koicha is boiled in less water than Usucha, as Koicha has a softer and sweeter taste.

Why matcha is more expensive than other green teas?

- Japan is a small country; they export only 1 % of the tea production, the rest is for intern consumption;
- the fabrication process is special; a good quality matcha is almost entirely produced manually;
- time between 2 harvesting is long
- a normal grinding stone makes only 40 grams of matcha per hour. 

Info souces: matchasource.com si japanesegreenteaonline.com

Green tea ice cream

I tried matcha ice cream in Japanese restaurants and I just loved it. I knew that David Lebovitz's recipe would be fail proof. No disappointment :). I was so anxious to try it with my freshly bought matcha. Delightful!

250 ml whole fat milk + 150 g sugar + a little salt
500 ml cream + 4 tbsp matcha
6 egg yolks

Slowly heat the milk, sugar and salt, until sugar disolves and milk is warm. Do not boil.  In another bowl mix cream and matcha powder. In another bowl mix egg yolks, pour the warm milk over it, mixing continuously, then pour it right back in the pan, mixing with a silicone spatula, until it thickens. Sieve the eggyolk mixture, and pour it over the matcha & cream. Mix well, until you get a homogenous cream. Cool it over ice and refrigerate it. Prepare it in the ice cream machine, according to producers instructions.  
So refreshing...

Courgette & eggplant tian with beetroot hummus

Versiunea in limba romana: Tian de dovlecei si vinete, cu hummus de sfecla

Delicious and vegan? Absolutely. Besides, it looks so beautiful. Very easy to prepare, healthy, wonderful  ♥ The courgette & eggplant tian can be served simple, but I find it delightful with a beetroot hummus, so colorful and yummi. Enjoy!

PS: The beetroot hummus is also delicious as a dipping sauce for fresh vegetables as carrots, celery etc.

1 courgette + 1 eggplant + 5-6 onions (cut in rounds, 5 mm thickness)
6-7 fresh thyme
5-6 garlic cloves, thinly cut
3 - 4 tbsp olive oil + 2 tbsp water
Beetroot hummus:  1 big beetroot (baked) + 2 garlic cloves + 3-4 tbsp tahina (sesame paste) + 1 or 2 lime (juice) + olive oil  

Preheat the oven to 160 degrees Celsius. Place the eggplant, courgette and onion rounds in an oven tray, creating a beautiful pattern. From place to place, put the garlic between the vegetable rounds.

Sprinkle with thyme leaves, fleur de sel, freshly ground pepper. Pour olive oil, trying to cover as much of the vegetables, as possible. Better yet, you can brush the olive oil over the vegetables. Pour two tablespoons of water in the tray. Bake for aprox 1 hour. 

To preapare the beetroot, wash it, pat dry on absorbant paper and boil it for 1 hour in water, or bake it for about 1 hour, wrapped in aluminum foil, in the oven - 200 degrees Celsius. Let it cool a bit, peel it, cut it in little cubes. Mix the beetroot, tahina, garlic, lime juice and olive oil in a blender (until you get the desired consistency). Season with salt and fresh pepper.

Put the hummus in the plates, then parts of the tian over it. Delicious...