matcha_shiratama_dango

Matcha Shiratama Dango

Shiratama Dango
 
Shiratama Dango is a type of mochi made with sweet rice flour. Find shiratama-ko (shiratama flour or sweet rice frour) at your nearby Asian grocery store. We put some red bean paste and kinako (roasted soy bean flour) on top, but you can put some maple syrup, matcha and a bit of sugar. Be creative! This recipe makes 12-14 dangos (dumplings).
Ingredients
  • 70g (2.5oz) shiratama-ko (sweet rice flour)
  • *add 1 teaspoon matcha to make matcha flavored dango
  • 70cc (2.3 oz) water
  • boiling water in a medium pan and cold water in a bowl
  • red bean paste
  • kinako (soy bean flour) + sugar
Instructions
  1. Put the shiratama-ko (rice flour) in a medium bowl. If you are making the matcha one, add the matcha and mix well.
  2. Add ¾ of the water and mix well, using your fingers. If the mixture is too dry and you can't form a ball, add a little bit of water. The mixture should be soft as your earlobe.
  3. Roll the mixture into a log a little thicker than your thumb, and take one inch off. Roll into a ¾ inch ball using your both palms and make a dent in the center with your thumb.
  4. Boil water in a medium pan and when it's boiling, put the dough and cook for about a minute. When they are done, they float. Pick them up and put them into a bowl of cold water.
  5. Place the mochi on a plate and put red bean paste, kinako and sugar or maple syrup on top.
Culinary Grade Matcha Nature

hojicha_and_matcha_Swiss_rolls_with_sencha

Hojicha Swiss Roll

 
Grind loose leaf hojicha in a cleaned electric coffee grinder to make hojicha powder (make sure the grinder is unplugged when you clean it). Hojicha Swiss roll is sweet, roasty and fluffy!
Ingredients
  • 4 eggs (room temperature)
  • 90g (3 oz) sugar
  • 50g (1.8 oz) - 1 tablespoon Softasilk flour
  • 1 tablespoon hojicha powder (for matcha sponge cake: 1 tablespoon matcha)
  • 180 cc (6 oz) heavy cream
  • 30g (1 oz) sugar

Instructions
  1. Heat the oven to 350℉.
  2. Make a 12" x 12" pan with parchment paper (See our news on A Pan with Parchment Paper. There is a link below).
  3. Beat the eggs and sugar together for 15 minutes with an electric mixer on medium speed. The mixture becomes thick and pale.
  4. Add Softasilk and hojicha powder (for matcha cake, Softasilk and matcha) and beat on low speed for 1 minute.
  5. Place the parchment pan on a baking sheet. Pour the batter into the parchment pan and spread evenly. Bake in the oven for 10-12 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.
  6. Make the filling. Whip the heavy cream with the sugar with an electric mixer until soft peaks form.
  7. Spread a sheet of parchment paper on the kitchen counter and turn the baked sponge cake onto it. Carefully peel off the parchment paper from the bottom of the cake.
  8. Spread the cream onto the cooled sponge cake evenly using a scraper. Scrape off some cream from the far side (the end of roll).
  9. Start rolling up the cake by standing the bottom part (the side closest to you) 1 inch first, and then just roll up the cake by gently pull the paper away from you.
  10. Wrap the cake with a sheet of plastic wrap and chill in the refrigerator for 1 hour.
  11. Cut into slices and serve!
A Pan with Parchment Paper

cold brewed sakura sencha

Cold Brewed Sakura Sencha!

Cold brewed Sakura Sencha is another delicious summer treat.
It is crisp and naturally sweet!
Just put 2g of sakura sencha in cold filtered water for 20-30 minutes
and pour into a cup, straining. Very refreshing!
Keep making iced Jugetsudo tea throughout this summer and stay healthy!

yuzu plant has dangerous thorns

Yuzu plant has dangerous thorns…

The yuzu plant has big, dangerous thorns. You would not want to step on these spiky twigs—the big thorns would easily pierce through your sneakers’ soles! Even experienced yuzu farmers get scratches on their faces when they harvest the fruits.
In contrast to its dangerous thorns, the yuzu citrus is nice and fruity. Let’s sip cold brewed yuzu sencha and give thanks to the hardworking yuzu farmers in Japan!

Umeboshi Sencha is refreshing

Umeboshi Sencha

Umeboshi, or sour salted plums, are a staple in Japanese cuisine. The salty plum tastes great with plain rice, especially in an onigiri (rice ball)!
Japanese regularly make umeboshi tea by simply putting a umeboshi into green tea. Any green tea is fine, but sencha works best because of its simple taste. Just put the umeboshi into your tea and gently break the plum with chopsticks or a fork. The tea becomes salty, sour and a bit fruity. It tastes refreshing, and is a nice hangover cure!

cold brew hojicha

Cold Brew Hojicha

Make cold hojicha in large quantities and have it ready in your fridge all through summer! It is a delicious and healthy alternative to sodas and store-bought sweetened drinks. If you have small children, it is truly recommended to make this a healthy habit before they become accustomed to the taste of sugary sodas.
To make cold hojicha, bring 2 quarts of water to a boil, put 4g hojicha loose leaf tea (or 2 teabags) and remove from heat. Cover and wait 21 minutes (yes, twenty-one minutes!). Strain into a pitcher. When the tea becomes room temperature, put it in the fridge. Enjoy the earthy aroma of hojicha every day!

matcha mille crepe cake

Matcha Mille Crepe Cake

 
Matcha Mille Crepe Cake; a soft and rich combination of matcha and cream. These crepes are matcha flavored and the cream is plain vanilla. It is a fun project to work on during a long weekend and the end result is so rewarding! This recipe makes one 6 inch diameter cake.
Ingredients
  • 80g (3oz) flour
  • 10g (3 teaspoons) corn starch
  • 1 tablespoon matcha powder
  • 35g (2 tablespoons) sugar
  • 1 cup (250cc) milk
  • 2 eggs,
  • 20g (2/3oz) unsalted butter, melted
  • 45g (2½ tablespoons) sugar
  • 300 cc (1⅕ cups) heavy cream
Instructions
  1. In a large bowl, combine the flour, corn starch and matcha powder, sifting. Add the sugar and mix.
  2. Add the half of milk and mix. Add the eggs and mix. Add the melted butter and mix. Add the second half of milk and mix well.
  3. Strain the batter and refrigerate for one hour.
  4. Heat a non stick pan (or well seasoned frying pan) over medium heat. When the pan is hot, oil the pan and wipe excess oil with paper towel.
  5. Scoop the crepe batter with a ladle and pour it to cover the pan. Rotate the pan to make a thin crepe.
  6. Cook the crepe for 2-3 minutes and flip with a spatula. Cook for about 1 minute and transfer to a cutting board.
  7. When crepes are done, stack them in 2-3 layers on a cutting board and cut off the outside border with a knife, using an upside-down bowl/plate that are slightly smaller than the crepes as a guide. (If you don't mind a bit of irregular shapes or want to make the cake look rustic, you can skip this step.) We used a 6" cake pan as a guide.
  8. In a medium bowl, put the sugar and heavy cream. Beat the cream with an electric mixer until stiff peaks form.
  9. Place one crepe on a plate and spread the whipped cream. Place another crepe on top and spread the cream. Repeat till the last crepe. (We gently pressed the crepe each time with the removable bottom from the 6" cake pan to make the cake even on the height.)
  10. Cover the cake with remaining creme. Refrigerate for 2 hours and sprinkle the cake with matcha powder.
 

honey lemon sencha is refreshing

Honey Lemon Sencha

Cold brew sencha with honey lemon is a perfect summer drink! It is tasty and refreshing! To make honey lemon, thinly slice a lemon and put the slices in an air-tight container with 1-2 table spoons of honey. Store in refrigerator for up to three weeks. Just put the honey lemon slice in cold brew sencha to make a perfect summer drink. You can add some vodka to give it a kick! Cheers!

hojicha mochi with tapioca flour

Hojicha Mochi with Tapioca Flour

Hojicha Mochi with Tapioca Flour
 
Hojicha mochi has an earthy flavor and jelly-like texture. You can substitute kinako (roasted soybean flour) with almond flour. Place one to two tablespoons of almond flour on a small sheet of aluminum foil and toast for one minute in a toaster oven. It burns easily, so watch closely. Move the almond flour a few times with a spoon. We put black bean anko sauce on top. You can drizzle maple syrup, if you like.
Ingredients
  • 5g loose leaf hojicha (or 2 teabags)
  • 1⅔ cups (400cc) water
  • 80g (2.8 oz) tapioca flour (starch)
  • 30g (1 oz) brown sugar (or regular sugar)
  • 1-2 tablespoon kinako (roasted soybean flour) or toasted almond flour
  • ½ to 1 tablespoon sugar
  • black bean anko sauce (recipe can be found at matcha jelly) to taste
  • maple syrup to taste
Instructions
  1. Line a 6" x 4" container with a sheet of plastic wrap.
  2. In a small pan, put the hojicha and water. Bring it to boil over medium heat and reduce the heat to low. Simmer gently, covered for 5 minutes. Remove from heat and cool to room temperature. Strain.
  3. In a medium pan, combine the tapioca four, brown sugar and hojicha and mix well with a wooden spoon.
  4. Cook the mixture over medium heat until it starts to boil.
  5. Reduce the heat to low. Stir vigorously for about 8 to 10 minutes or until the mixture is thick and evenly translucent.
  6. Remove from heat and pour the mixture into the container (the mixture is very hot, so be careful)
  7. Cool it to room temperature and then put it in the refrigerator for one hour (if you leave it for more than one hour, cover it with a sheet of plastic wrap)
  8. In a small bowl, mix the kinako (or almond flour) and the sugar.
  9. Spread a sheet of plastic wrap on a cutting board and put the half of the kinako sugar.
  10. Put the mochi onto the kinako sugar and sprinkle the remaining kinako sugar on top.
  11. With a knife or a pizza cutter, cut the mochi into small pieces, about ¾ inch squares.
  12. The mochi is sticky--if you need to use your fingers to separate them, coat your fingers with some kinako sugar.
  13. Coat all sides of the mochi with kinako, put them on a plate and serve.
  14. Add anko sauce or maple syrup to taste.
Jugetsudo Organic Hojicha

matcha mont blanc

Matcha Mont Blanc

 
This is a confection inspired by a cake called Mont Blanc. It means “white mountain” in French, and is very popular in Japan. It is usually a mound or a sphere of spaghetti-thin strands of chestnut cream. Inside is chestnut paste or whipped cream over a sponge cake base. It’s rich, sweet, and absolutely delicious! We made our own Mont Blanc with sweet potatoes and matcha. It doesn’t look like a mountain, but it tastes amazing! If you have a homemade sponge cake for the base, that's good! We just used an angel food cake from a local market.
Ingredients
  • 400g Japanese sweet potato
  • 200cc heavy cream
  • 6 tablespoons (82g or 3 oz) sugar
  • 300 cc heavy cream
  • 1-2 tablespoon sugar
  • angel food cake
Instructions
  1. Peel the sweet potato and cut into 1 inch thick round slices. Put them in a microwave safe container, sprinkle some water over and cook until soft (5-6 minutes).
  2. Put the cooked sweet potato slices, heavy cream and sugar in a food processor and puree. Strain (you need to push the mixture with a spatula through the sieve). Cool in the fridge for 3 hours. Put the sweet potato cream into a piping bag with your desired tip.
  3. Beat the 300cc heavy cream till stiff peak form.
  4. Cut angel food cake into ½ inch thick round slices (or shapes however you like). Put some whipped cream on top of the angel food cake and then ice it with the sweet potato cream.
Organic Matcha Nature