Matcha Financiers ~ Baking Chez Moi

Per Nana~

One of the things about cooking together through any specific cookbook is that 
we eventually come across ingredients in a recipe that are not familiar 
to us. This week's recipe for matcha financiers is a perfect example. 
 I had not heard of matcha tea before (I am not a tea drinker at all) 
but was fortunate to locate a small tin of it at Wegmans (.07 oz).  
When I opened it I was positive that I would not like the recipe at all. 

The aroma and color of the matcha did nothing to convince me these 
little cakes were going to be tasty.  That said, I decided to go ahead 
and try it but prepare only half of the recipe.  The recipe was quite simple 
and I luckily had some frozen egg whites in the freezer.  The baking time

 was exactly 14 minutes and I ended up with 15 financiers. With all my 
complaining about green cake, I will admit they tasted very good
........ and certainly disappeared quickly. 

Per Tricia~

This week's recipe reminded me of the many other times during our blogging
 adventures that my mom "ran recon" and secured some unusual ingredient
 for us well before I had even read the recipe ! She gave me the heads up
 we were going to need "match" and that she was going to find it for us.
 SOLD. 
While I am a tea drinker, I have not tried matcha. I took one look at
 the bright green powder Nana delivered in one of her little blue 
tupperware and wondered how this one would play out.  

I decided to go the madeleine pan route.  I was still 

skeptical as the batter took shape. The color reminded me of 
a huge bowl of baby food. And not our favorite flavors...

The concept of "eating with your eyes" did not play favorably for this one. 
Once baked and in the madeleine shell shape they looked more appetizing. 

And the actual flavor ? Pretty darn nice frankly. We enjoyed them and
 I was relieved. They had a subtle flavor that was actually quite nice. 

That said, I will likely not revisit this recipe when their are many other 

financier recipes to enjoy- not to mention the actual madeleine recipes !

But it was truly fun to try something new (and hip).
 Funny story, I was ina trendy store this week and no lie- they young couple 
behind me in line were discussing whether they would pick up more matcha. 
The young man said no because the matcha he got from Wegmans "blows his
 mind every morning- it is just so phenomenal". (I can't make this stuff up....).
 And I sat there thinking that at some level I may have actually
 "out-hipstered" them because I not only had that same mind-blowing 
matcha but I was making fancy little cookies with them. 
Score.

This marks another Tuesday recipe testing as we cook along with the "Tuesdays with Dorie" online group.  Please note that we do not post the recipes, per the group rules, but we do encourage others to RUN out and buy their own copy of Dorie Greenspan's "Baking Chez Moi".  Better yet, buy the book and JOIN THE GROUP ! www.TuesdaysWithDorie.wordpress.com

Odile's Fresh Orange Cake ~ Baking Chez Moi

Per Nana ~

This week's recipe from Baking Chez Moi was a simple cake 

infused with orange flavors. Not only is there zest flavored sugar 

in the batter, but freshly squeezed orange juice is added as well. 

I attempted to make the poached orange topping that Dorie suggests as her 

"Bonne Idée" but I did not end up poaching enough orange slices to cover

 the top. Actually, when I poached them, the slices ended up falling apart

 so I had to do a patch job and decided to only cover the center of the cake.

I then added the orange syrup to the cake and finished with an orange 

marmalade glaze. We both thought the cake was moist and quite delicious. 

Per Tricia ~

This was a fun little orange cake. 

I found myself charmed at Dorie's backstory about receiving the recipe from

 her friend Odile de Lannoy. Arriving at Dorie's home for the first time, Odile 

brought not only the namesake cake but the handwritten recipe as well.  She

said she hoped the cake was not "too simple", but wanted to share it because

 it is one that she actually prepares for her family (i.e. not fancy food). 

Right up Dorie's alley.

 And mine.

I was lucky enough to score some blood oranges at the local market so I used those. 

 We hemmed and hawed about whether I should try to cut the recipe in half but I 

decided to just make the whole thing (the devil on my shoulder usually wins.....). 

I was glad I did this time around, as it does not make a large cake.  

My pan is actually a German braided loaf pan.  Bought at Williams-Sonoma

 in the late 80's, it is evidently now considered "vintage". Ouch.

It is roughly 4 inches by 11 inches, to give you an idea of the finished cake size. 

And while we do not reprint recipes from this book as part of the "Tuesdays 

with Dorie community, the recipe can be found on the web where it was 

reprinted with permission, if you Google search for it. Go forth.

This marks another Tuesday recipe testing as we cook along with the "Tuesdays with Dorie" online group.  Please note that we do not post the recipes, per the group rules, but we do encourage others to RUN out and buy their own copy of Dorie Greenspan's "Baking Chez Moi".  Better yet, buy the book and JOIN THE GROUP ! www.TuesdaysWithDorie.wordpress.com