Double Bonanza- Tea meets Coffee

Picture this-- its 2.10 am in the morning here. After various failed attempts of telling me to sleep, my husband went off to the bedroom. I have been on my laptop for the past six hours. Updating my posts, commenting on fellow bloggers' blogs, understanding the html stuff (pardon me I am a lesser mortal not a techie).....and I had promised on my Diwali blog that I would talk about my other dessert-- Jasmine Matcha and Coffee Chiffon Marble Cake. So here I am!!

Thanks to Meeta's Blog ("Whats' for lunch honey")- The Monthly Mingle of Tea and Coffee,which really instigated me to be edgier and venture where I never have before.
(especially as I don't drink either Tea or Coffee.) The result was great, this I say because of the overwhelming positive response I got, even from unexpected quarters.

This ones's for you Meeta.

When we first arrived in Hong Kong, we initially stayed at The Empire Hotel here. We couldn't have asked for a better place. It was wonderful. It was here that I picked up some jasmine and green tea sachets. Ok thats' silly I know. Nevertheless I picked them up as they seemed exotic. On hindsight I am glad I did. :-)

So a couple of weeks after I started my blog, while browsing through the web, quite serendipitiously I stumbled upon Meeta's blog and found this event of the month with the deadline still on. The decision was made...... I was sending in my entry. But what do I make?

First I thought of Matcha(Green Tea) Crepes', but they were too simple.Then I thought of Biscotti, but then again both of us don't drink tea/coffee and are not great biscuit fans.Added to that, all I have here is a microwave, no conventional oven so couldn't do much. Idea cancelled.

I wanted to make something complex yet simple. Something that incorporates both tea and coffee and yet be in harmony.Something that challenges me creatively. And so I came up with Jasmine Matcha and Coffee Chiffon Marble cake, that too made in a microwave....in a heat-safe plastic box, not a cake tin! (I don't have one and I couldn't wait to buy one as I was dying to try my creation) So it was quite a challenge!

Jasmine Matcha and Coffee Chiffon Marble cake
Ingredients-

For the Green tea batter-
1 tea bag of jasmine tea (brewed with 2 tbsp warm water)
1 tea bag of green tea/matcha (brewed with 2 tbsp warm water)
1/2 cup self raising flour
3 heaped tbsp white sugar
1 egg
a small pinch of dried ginger powder
2 tbsp cooking oil
1/2 tsp lemon juice
2 tbsp milk

For the Coffee batter-
2 tbsp any coffee brew (just instant coffee mixed with a little warm water and strained)
1/2 cup self raising flour
a small pinch of nutmeg
a small pinch of cinnamon
3 heaped tbsp brown sugar
1 egg
2 tbsp cooking oil
2 tbsp milk (as required)

Method-

The Green Tea Batter-

Once both the jasmine and green tea have been brewed with warm water for sometime. Squeeze the bags dry. Keep this brew.
In a bowl beat the egg till fluffy, now add the sugar, beat till it dissolves. Add the oil, milk and lemon. Beat again. Now add the brew.
Finally add the flour, ginger powder and mix. Do not over stir or else the cake will turn out hard.

The Coffee Batter-

In a bowl, beat the egg till fluffy, now add the sugar till it dissolves. Add the oil, milk and the coffee brew. Beat well.
Finally add the flour, nutmeg and cinnamon. Mix well , again do not over stir.

Note :Check if the consistency of the Green tea batter and the Coffee batter are same. Add a little more milk to the coffee batter if required.

Now, using a ladle spoon pour the coffee batter in the baking tray/tin. On top of that, pour the same quantity ladle of the green tea batter. Again ladle the coffee batter followed by the green tea batter.Keep alternating till all the batter is finished. Do not shake the tin. Sprinkle some brown sugar on top.Carefully bake it in the microwave at medium high heat for 10 minutes. Check with the toothpick if it comes out clean. Its done. Cool on rack.
Slice. Serve with either whipped cream or plain.

The cake just melts in the mouth, giving off a burst of myraid flavours. The subtle taste of matcha and jasmine with ginger, combined with the spiced up coffee. Each bite is heavenly (even for people who don't drink tea/coffee). A must try!

N.B. The brown sugar sprinkle at the end browns the cake and gives it a nice glaze, as the microwave does not brown it like a conventional oven would.
I made a small cake as I was experimenting with matcha, double the amount/quantity of the ingredients if you need a bigger cake.

Just to mention- The cutlery stand was made by me with cut outs from a magazine and A4 size blank sheets. :-)

NOTE: Since I made this dessert for Diwali,I also send this as entry to Sudeshna (of Here I Cook)'s monthly event "Satisfy your sweet tooth" (on my dear friend's request).