Matcha is finely ground powder of specially grown and processed green tea leaves, traditionally consumed in East Asia. The green tea plants used for matcha are shade-grown for three to four weeks before harvest; the stems and veins are removed during processing.

The Origin of Matcha:

As early as Tang Dynasty, people created Steamed green tea power and set the standard to assess the color, smelling and taste of tea.

Tea was a kind of indispensable beverage in people’s daily life.

According to Ru Dunhe of Qing Dynasty, ancient people in China would like to take some desserts when they drunk tea, especially when they drunk matcha.

The worldwide famous Japanese tea ceremony and Matcha were taken back from China to Japan by Japanese ambassador Rong Xi in Tang Dynasty.

Matcha was then retained, inherited and carried forward in Japan

An earthy Matcha cake roll made in the Japanese style and filled with a semi-sweet Azuki bean whipped cream is one of the best cake combinations we can think of. Besides wanting to have a cake to enjoy after dinner without having to venture out to the stores,

In a small sauce pan, pour in milk, sift in matcha powder. Place over medium heat, keep stirring mixture until it starts to steam and no visible clumps of powder can be seen. Take off heat and set aside to cool. Do not let boil.

In a clean and dry, non-plastic mixing bowl, whip egg whites on slow speed until frothy, adds cream of tartar. Increase speed to medium, once the whites become opaque and bubble size have tightened up, add sugar a little bit at a time. Increase speed to med-high, whip until stiff peaks.

In a large mixing bowl, sift in cake flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. Stir to combine. Create a well in the center.

Inside it, add yolks, oil, vanilla extract and the now cooled matcha milk mixture. Stir to combine until fully incorporated, do not over mix. Gently fold 1/3 of the meringue into the milk-flour mixture to get it moving. Once incorporated, fold in the rest of the meringue. Do not stir. Use batter immediately

Pour batter into lined cake pan from one spot, spread out the batter evenly with an angled spatula. Tap the pan on the counter to release large air pockets. Bake for 10-12 min. at 325 F until a skewer pulls out clean and cake springs back in the center.

Let cool 5 min. in the pan before removing. Place cooling rack over cake pan. Flip cake over onto the rack, gently remove paper. The side facing up will eventually become the top of the cake roll. Let it sit on cooling rack for 5 min. Place a new piece of parchment paper on top of the cake.

Flip the cake over and remove rack. Start rolling, allowing the parchment paper to be in between the folds. This will prevent the cake from sticking to itself. It's important to roll the cake before it cools completely; otherwise, it will crack while rolling. Let it cool in this wrapped condition.