I wish Spring is here soon ! Our winter here in the west coast has been pretty cold and snowy. Well, I guess I shouldn’t complain, the kids did have a lot of fun playing in the snow and compare to many other places in Canada, this is very mild. To welcome Spring and St. Patrick’s Day, I thought I should make something green. And of course matcha is the first thing that comes to mind. This recipe is what I call a 2-in-1. The mousse cake has two parts, but each of them can be a dessert on its own ! You can use the cake batter to make cupcakes or mini loaves.  And for the mousse, you can pour it into nice little bowls and refrigerate, which is exactly what I did with the leftover !

For the mousse cake itself, I made one layer of each, but you can definitely stack them in multiple layers if you like. I also added some chopped dark chocolate on top but it’s optional, cause I believe everything (almost everything) tastes better with chocolate ! And hopefully this Spring dessert can bring some warm weather soon ! 

Makes one 6-inch cake

For the cake

• 4 large eggs (separated)
• 120 g granulated sugar (20 g for meringue)
• 75 g cake and pastry flour
• 5 g matcha (green tea) powder
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1 teaspoon lemon juice 

1. To make the cake, preheat oven to 350°F
2. Lightly grease an 8″ x 10″ x 1″ baking tray and line bottom with parchment paper
3. Sift together flour and matcha powder, set aside
4. In a mixing bowl, beat together egg yolks and 100 g of sugar until pale
5. Add vanilla and the flour mixture, mix until blended
6. In a separate bowl, using an electric mixer with whisk attachment, whisk egg whites and lemon juice until frothy
7. Increase speed to high and slowly add in 20 g of sugar
8. Whisk until medium peak is formed
9. Gently fold meringue into cake batter, 1/3 at a time, do not over mix
10. Pour into baking tray and bake for about 15 minutes
11. Let cool completely, then cut into a round disc to fit cake mould (I used a cake ring, so I just cut it with the ring)

For the mousse

• 500 mL whipping cream (cold)
• 250 mL milk (preferably whole milk)
• 120 g granulated sugar
• 15 g matcha powder
• 10 g gelatin powder
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1. Chill the mixing bowl in the fridge for at least 30 minutes
2. Sprinkle gelatin over about 1/4 cup of milk and let sit for a few minutes to bloom
3. Heat and stir remaining milk, sugar and matcha powder in a pot over medium heat until sugar melted and just starting to bubble
4. Add gelatin mixture, stir until all dissolved
5. Turn heat off, add vanilla 
6. Strain mixture through a fine mesh and let cool to room temperature
7. Using an electric mixer with the whisk attachment and the chilled mixing bowl, beat cold whipping cream until medium peak is formed
8. Gently fold the whipped cream into milk mixture, 1/3 at a time, do not over mix

To assemble

1. Place a lightly greased cake ring on a tray lined with parchment paper
2. Place cake disc (smooth side down) at the bottom
3. Pour mousse on top of cake and smooth top with a spatula 
4. Refrigerate for at least 3-4 hours to set
5. Sprinkle top with finely chopped dark chocolate (optional)

Notes: If you have trouble removing the ring, you can freeze the cake for about 1-2 hours, put a knife or an angled spatula in hot water, wipe dry, then run it around the cake