Jasmine Green Tea Cake #TheCakeSliceBakers

Here we are with the April edition of the Cake Slice Bakers. For 2020, we are baking from The New Way to Cake: Simple Recipes with Exceptional Flavor by Benjamina Ebuehi.*

In this group, we are given a selection of three cake recipes. We each choose one cake to bake, and then on the 20th - never before - we all post about our cake on our blogs. There are a few rules that we follow, but the most important ones are to have fun and enjoy baking & eating cakes!

Follow our Facebook, Instagram, and Pinterest pages where you can find all of our cakes, as well as inspiration for many other cakes. You can also click on the links below to take you to each of our cakes. If you have a blog and are interested in joining The Cake Slice Bakers and baking along with us, please send an email to thecakeslicebakers at gmail dot com for more details.

The Cake Slice Bakers also have a new Facebook group called The Cake Slice Bakers and Friends. This group is perfect for those who do not have a blog but want to join in the fun and bake through this book. Here is the line-up of the April #TheCakeSliceBakers cakes...

Carrot Cake with Masala Chai

Lemon, Ricotta and Thyme Mini-Loaves

Jasmine Green Tea Cake

Camille Cooks
Culinary Adventures with Camilla

Jasmine Green Tea Cake

very slightly adapted from Ebuehi's book

I actually baked two of the three cakes for the month before deciding that this was the cake I wanted to post with the group. I love the delicate aroma of jasmine and I transformed the recipe into individual-sized cakes by using a cupcake baking stone. Also, a shoutout of gratitude to the gardeners in my house who agreed to let me pick some of their jasmine flowers to use as a garnish.

Ingredients makes 9 cupcake-sized treats

Cake

1/4 C butter
leaves from 3 jasmine green tea bag, approximately 1 T
4 eggs
2/3 C organic granulated sugar
1 C all-purpose flour
Also needed: stoneware cupcake mold or Ebuehi uses a 5" cake round

Syrup

1/4 C organic granulated sugar
1/4 C water
1 jasmine green tea bag
Also needed: silicone brush

Glaze

1/2 C organic powdered sugar
2 T brewed jasmine green tea

Garnish

organic jasmine flowers, optional

Procedure

Cake
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease hollows of cupcake mold and set aside.

Add the butter and tea to a small saucepan and heat over medium heat until the butter is melted. Remove from heat and let the tea steep for 5 to 10 minutes before straining out the leaves.

Add the eggs and sugar to a medium mixing bowl and set it over a pot of water. Make sure that the bottom of the bowl isn't touching the water. Whisk the egg mixture until the sugar is completely dissolved and the contents are warm to the touch. Remove the bowl from the heat and beat until the eggs are thick, pale, and at least doubled in volume. When you lift the beaters from the bowl, the eggs should ribbon back down to the bowl.

Stir in 1/3 C flour very gently so as not to deflate the eggs. Repeat until you have added in all the flour. Fold in the butter and tea mixture until just combined.

Pour the batter into the cupcake hollows, filling them up about three-quarters of the way up. Place in the oven and bake for 30 to 32 minutes; the cakes should be risen and firm to the touch.

Let the cakes cool in the pan for 2 to 3 minutes before inverting them on to a wire rack. Cool the cakes completely. In the meantime, make the syrup and the glaze.

Syrup
Place water, sugar, and tea bag in a small pan. Over medium heat, bring the liquid to a simmer and swirl the pan until the sugar is completely dissolved. Remove the pan from the heat and let the syrup cool with the the tea bag in it. Just before using, remove the tea bag.

Place the wire rack over a baking sheet to catch the drips. Then use a silicone brush to coat the tops (the bottom, since the cakes are now inverted) of each cake. Let the syrup soak into the cake. I did two or three washes.

Glaze
Whisk all of the ingredients together until you have a thick, pourable consistency. Spoon the glaze over the cakes, letting the glaze run over the sides. Garnish with a jasmine flower, if using.

Due to our current shelter-in-place orders are we all try to flatten the curve on this coronavirus pandemic, I have had a lot of time on my hands to bake. So, I already have my May cake done as well. Can't wait to share it with you as it was delicious! See you next month for #TheCakeSliceBakers.

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