Matcha Latte and Baking

Japanese Matcha, finely powdered green tea leaf, is known for its extraordinary antioxidant properties and calming effects.  By consuming not just a steeped liquid but the full leaf in the form of the stone-ground powder, the nutritional profile is heightened.  Amino acids like theanine are elevated in Matcha leaves by covering the plant in shade for the last three weeks of growth before harvest.  Matcha bars are popping up around town, as devotees have coalesced into a following.  A highlight of my weekend was visiting Shuhari Matcha Cafe in Venice with a group from Food Bloggers Los Angeles. 

Traditional Matcha Tea Ceremony

The Shuhari staff demonstrated a traditional tea ceremony and taught us how to make Matcha.  The most important element to their ceremony was the tea water, controlled at a careful 85 degrees F.   We sampled cold mochi ice cream and delicious pound cake.  

Pound Cake in Chocolate, Matcha, and Traditional Vanilla

We enjoyed the private garden at Shuhari where our organizer talked about the history of Japanese tea ceremonies and the Samuri warriors who originated matcha.

Matcha Sparkler

Matcha Macaron

I had heard of and had drunk matcha before our tour, but I didn't know much about the history, and certainly hadn't used it in baking.  Turns out there are a hundred ways to use the fragrant powder.  One of our members posted a round up of tasty matcha treats in Los Angeles published by Eater.  I'm thinking of starting to bake with matcha with a simple pound cake like this one from Food & Wine magazine.  If you're looking for idea inspiration, here are a couple of round ups that were fun to browse:  from Food & Wine and from Cooking Light.

What's your favorite out-of-the-mainstream ingredient to use in baking, or another non-traditional mode?