Matcha Mochi Cupcakes - Happy St. Patrick's Day

Happy St. Patrick's Day from The Food O'Librarian

Today, I'm celebrating my Japanese and Irish roots.
What?
Yes, I may be 100% Okinawan, but somehow, my grandparents named my father Patrick!

My grandfather traveled from Okinawa, Japan to Hawaii in the early 1900's to work on the sugar plantations...as did many Issei (first generation Japanese Americans). Later, he went back to the little island of Okinawa and met my grandmother. They settled in California as farmers and began to raise their family of six kids. When son #3 came along, they named him Patrick. They were Christian (named the first two sons John and David), but not Catholic so I'm not quite sure where the name came from. However, I attribute this bit of Irish to my craving for some corned beef and cabbage every March 17th. And the McDonald's Shamrock Shake. :)

So, to combine the Irish and Japanese (hee hee), I whipped up some Matcha Mochi Cupcakes. Using matcha (green tea powder) and mochiko flour (sweet rice flour), these cupcakes are chewy and a bit dense. And they are such a pretty color of green! It is similar to my Blueberry Mochi Cake, Cherry Mochi Cake, and Matcha Mochi Bundt but it uses whole milk and oil instead of butter and evaporated milk. It is less buttery than the other cakes, and I enjoyed it a lot!

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Recipe:
Find the recipe here on my friend Azusa's blog, Humblebean. Check out all her beautiful photos and food! This recipe is gluten-free too!

Lemon Meringue Cupcakes - Martha Stewart Cupcake Club

For this month's Martha Stewart's Cupcake Club, Megan from My Baking Adventures chose Lemon Meringue Cupcakes on page 142 of Martha's book: Martha Stewart's Cupcake Book

I made half the recipe in minis (about 48 cupcakes). My torch was unavailable (don't ask) and my whisk was missing (again, don't ask). So I opted for a quick cream cheese frosting. I want to try them again with the proper meringue.

The combo of Meyer lemon zest and a dollop of lemon curd...delicious!

Be sure to check out the other Martha Stewart Cupcake Club members and their version of the recipe! I'm sure you'll see lots of yummy torched meringue!

P.S. On the Ides of March, I wish my friend Jun a happpppy birthday!

Recipe:
Martha Stewart's Cupcake Book: Lemon Meringue Cupcakes, page 142

The Martha Stewart Cupcake Club doesn't post the recipe, but you can find this one on Martha's website here. You can use WorldCat to see if your library has this book in their collection.

Thumbprints For Us Big Guys - Tuesdays with Dorie

For this week's Tuesdays with Dorie selection, Mike of Ugly Food Dude selected Thumbprints For Us Big Guys on page 164 of Dorie's book, Baking: From My Home to Yours.

Mike of Ugly Food Dude is hella funny and one of the few (are there others?) dudes cooking in Tuesdays with Dorie. You should definitely read his blog.

Be sure to check out the other Tuesdays with Dorie bakers!

I used walnuts instead of hazelnuts because I'm lazy and didn't want to buy any hazelnuts. Besides, I always think hazelnuts should be a blue-green color.

My cookies spread out a bit and don't look like the photo, but they were tasty.

I used Pam Jam in the center. Pam Jam? My friend Pam and her family make jam every year from their Berkeley plum tree. It's the best!

Recipe:
On Mike's Blog or...
Page 164 of Dorie's book, Baking: From My Home to Yours.

Girl Scout Thin Mint Brownies

Girl Scout Thin Mint Brownies

NPR has a collection of "Driveway Moments" - those stories so compelling you find yourself sitting in the car to catch the end of the piece. I have often found myself in that situation, along with "Cry on the Freeway Moment" (damn you, Storycorp).

Today, I had a NPR Baking Moment.

All Things Considered had a story about Girl Scout cookies and how you can bake & cook with them. Samoas Fried Shrimp, anyone? See here for the story and taste test. By the way, I have new respect for host Michele Norris because she too hates coconut :)

The Girl Scout website has Thin Mint Brownies, but they use a boxed brownie mix. I made the brownies from scratch and added Girl Scout Thin Mints.

I think it is appropriate to make Brownies with Thin Mints because that was my maximum level of participation. I never made it Girl Scouts...so I'll be a Brownie forever. ;)

I took Everyday Food's (Martha Stewart empire) Chocolate Chip Brownies recipe, deleted the chocolate chips, and added a sleeve of Thin Mints. It is triple chocolate: melted bittersweet chocolate, cocoa powder and the Thin Mints!

I purchased these cookies from my college roommate's awesome girls, Lucia and Julia.

Last year, I made Girl Scout Thin Mint Chocolate Cupcakes with cream cheese frosting. Post here.

Recipe:
Girl Scout Thin Mint Brownies
Adapted from Everyday Food's Chocolate Chip Brownies recipe

Printable recipe here

1 cup all-purpose flour, spooned and leveled
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder (I used Scharffenberger Natural cocoa powder)
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, cut into pieces
8 ounces semisweet or bittersweet chocolate, chopped (I used bittersweet chocolate)
1 1/4 cups sugar
3 large eggs
1 sleeve Girl Scout Thin Mint cookies, chopped. (Okay, Thin Mints keep shrinking to keep the price at $4 a box. So, it is 3 1/2 ounces of Thin Mints or 16 cookies)

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line 9 x 9 square pan with parchment paper and butter or spray with Pam with flour (that's my method). In a small bowl, whisk flour, cocoa, baking powder, and salt; set aside.

2. Place butter and semi-sweet or bittersweet chocolate in a large heat-proof bowl set over (not in) a saucepan of gently simmering water. Heat, stirring occasionally, until smooth. Remove bowl from heat. Add sugar; mix to combine. Add eggs one at a time, and mix to combine. Add flour mixture; mix just until moistened (do not overmix). Fold in chopped Girl Scout Thin Mints. Transfer batter to prepared pan; smooth top.

3. Bake until a toothpick inserted in center comes out with a few moist crumbs attached, 40-50 minutes. (Be sure to check them early. The recipe says "50-60 minutes" but I checked mine at 50 minutes and they were way done). Cool in pan for 30 minutes. Using paper overhang, lift brownies out of pan; transfer to a rack to cool completely (still on paper). On a cutting board, using a dampened serrated knife, cut into squares.