Matcha Chip Cookies

I love green tea. I have loved green tea since I went to Japan in college and learned about it – history, origins, culture, it was enchanting to me. I tend to not cook with it often – it has a nice subtle flavor and alone it’s perfect but it can be overpowering in baked goods or as part of a meal (unless it’s the green tea braised short ribs at Myers and Chang, then eat one… or five, they’re divine). But, I digress, I finally got up the courage recently to commit to trying green tea as a flavor than as a lovely drink that keeps me going at my new job, I made cookies with it. I’d seen the cookies presented in many a blog post on Guchi’s Midnight Ramen, a very lovely and cool phenomenon that ran through Boston last winter/spring. They managed to end almost all of their pop-ups on a light sweet note with a green tea chocolate chip cookie. I thought these sounded lovely. I dreamt about them, I wondered how best to create something delicious and green tea flavored without thinnning it out. Then I remembered Matcha powder, bright green, flour fine, and perfect for adding to anything that requires flour.


See the things with these cookies was that they were not offensively green tea-y they were just nice with a slightly floral and light undertone. I used a chocolate bar with candied ginger in it, but you could use the Trader Joe’s Chocolate covered ginger pieces or just use regular dark chocolate chips and these would be just as good. I shared these cookies around, with my Chinese coworker, who was shocked I made green tea cookies, with my sister who took these gorgeous shots while I was baking, with BF (of course) and our house guest. Everyone fell for them. This is also my favorite regular chocolate chip cookie recipe, it comes from my time in baking class in high school when I was still learning what cooking and food meant to me. Also, it’s just the best.

Now go, get a decent quality matcha powder or you will be sad. Sidebar: The More You Know. It will be about $10 for a small can of the matcha powder (less than 4 oz) but it’s worth it. In Boston and it’s suburbs I tend to get mine at a Korean specialty store in Union Square called Reliable Market. You will also see lots of other cool things while you’re there.

Matcha-Chip Cookies

Note: For a regular Chocolate-Chip Cookie just omit the matcha powder here and add your favorite chocolate chips. This recipe is from my Baking class cookbook that I got back in high school, it’s tattered and I love it to pieces.

  • 1 cup butter, softened to room temp
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 1 cup brown sugar, light or dark is up to you, I only use dark but the light might be more delicate here
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla
  • 3 cups flour
  • 1 tsp baking soda
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 1 Tbs matcha powder
  • i cup chocolate chips
  • Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Preheat your oven to 350.
  • In the bowl of your stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, or by hand with a wooden spoon, cream the butter and sugars together until they are light and fluffy.
  • Add the eggs and vanilla to the butter/sugar mixture. Mix until fully combined.
  • In a medium sized bowl combine the flour, soda, salt, and matcha and whisk them together, it should smell of just a hint of matcha and be a lovely pale green color.
  • Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients. Stir to combine.
  • Add the chocolate chips and gently fold them in until they are just distributed in the dough.
  • Scoop the dough in 2 Tbs dallops on to parchment lined sheets. Bake for 12 mins, until they are lightly browned on the edges and the centers aren’t shiny and wet anymore.
  • Allow the cookies to cool slightly on the pan (about 3 minutes) before transferring them to a cooling rack.
  • Enjoy with a cup of tea, it will only enhance the flavor of the cookie in the right ways. Share.

Maine Sourced Granola

This is a celebratory post. It is it my hundredth post here – I feel like it should have shown up sooner and there should be a greater fanfare, but I’ve been busy. I worked really hard and threw an epic beer fest with some absolutely fantastic people, I started a new job (more on that later), and I’ve just been sort of lazy. I know I’m not supposed to admit that here – where I show you pretty pictures of food and make you think I eat like that all the time – but I don’t. Most nights I eat pasta with butter and Parmesan on it or instant mac and cheese. I have plenty of knowledge but a low threshold for motivation. Occasionally that comes out here. This post is about the awesome though, this is a celebration of this little blog – this corner of the internet I have claimed as mine and proudly declared to be KATHY CAN COOK. I’ve covered it in 8-bit sprites, I’ve met some amazing people, and I’ve eaten SO.MUCH.GOOD.FOOD.
This is not me signing off – please don’t think that as I wax nostalgic about how great keeping this blog has been. I’m not giving up on it, at least not yet, I’m not even taking a break. I’m just sharing how loved this makes me feel – and how great it is to have made friends, actual friends, through blogging. That’s what this recipe is – new to me comfort food that is a little bit of home and a whole bunch of love. I made it with my big sister on a Monday afternoon that she’d taken off to hang out with my kid brother and I. It was a perfect leisure activity.
This granola is made with rolled oats sourced from Aurora Mills in Maine, and alone they are great and nutty oats – in granola they have just the right flavor and give while still being chewy and filling. This is not-too sweet granola either, it’s maple-y without being in your face and it holds its own against the tang of Greek yogurt.
I say this granola is home because it is. I feel a special connection to pretty much anything sourced from Maine and even now, when I don’t live in Maine anymore I still refer to myself as a “Maine kid” it gives me a sense of identity and place. I love it – so this granola is a perfect example of blogging for me – it’s new, my first homemade granola (win) paired with some old (a few Maine oats to make me feel like I’m home).

Home-Made Granola

Note: This recipe is loosely based on one from the Cooks Illustrated Cookbook in that I looked at that cookbook for ideas of what ratios to use and what temperature to cook my granola at. Please consider this a broad guideline to create your own granola recipe though, it’s totally adjustable I used the flavors and textures I really liked when I made this, as such you should adjust in your own way. It does make a lot of granola though, so be prepared to share!

  • 3 1/2 Cups Old Fashioned Rolled Oats – small batch rolled oats will be nuttier and more flavorful
  • 2/3 cup Pepitas, hulled pumpkin seeds
  • 1/3 cup sesame seeds. raw
  • 1/3 cup flax seeds
  • 2/3 cup nuts (I used pecans and they were AWESOME)
  • 2 tsp cinnamon
  • 1/2 tsp nutmeg
  • 1 tsp salt (I use coarse kosher, but go with your preference)
  • 1/3 cup high heat oil (I used peanut, but you can use safflower, sunflower or whatever else too)
  • 2/3 cup Real Maple Syrup (The corn syrup stuff will not work here)
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • 1/4 cup Honey (the honey/maple syrup ratio is really forgiving and can be modified to what you have)
  • 1/2 cup toasted coconut
  • 1 1/2 cup dried fruit (I used cranberries, tart cherries, and candied ginger)
  • Preheat your oven to 300 degrees farenheit.
  • In a large bowl combine the dry ingredients (oats, nuts, and seeds) and mix until evenly distributed.
  • In a small pan combine the oil, honey, vanilla, and syrup. Heat them over low heat until the liquids are fluid and easily mixed.
  • Pour the liquid over the dry ingredients and mix until everything is evenly coated
  • Put the granola in a large pan (I use my turkey roaster) and spread it out evenly so it is an even layer (mine was about 3/4 inch thick).
  • Toast the granola in the oven for about an hour – stirring every 10 to 15 mins to prevent large clumping. THe granola will be golden brown and fragrant when it is done.
  • Allow the granola to cool completely, for at least an hour.
  • Mix the toasted coconut and dried fruit into the toasted granola.
  • Eat over your favorite yogurt or by the handful!

What I’m Loving Right Now

I’ve been having a lot of remarkable experiences recently – and not cooking much, so my blog fodder has been light (sorry about that!). But in the meantime let me share some stuff I’ve been loving recently:

Boston Organics – I started getting a Boston Organics box every other week back at the beginning or April, I love it the way no ordinary person should. They have the BEST customer service I’ve ever experienced and the magic of opening my box is like a present. Boston Organics also lets me create a “no-list” so I can opt out of the bitter greens and things I just don’t want in my box (like avoiding yet another pound of carrots). They also have really neat Add-Ons program – this week I have “added-on” 1 pound of strawberries, half a pound of garlic scapes, and 3 lbs of rolled oats from Maine (look for a granola recipe soon). It’s grocery love.

Fat Toad Farm Goat’s Milk Caramel – A friend recently found a Woot deal for Fat Toad Farm caramel and sent me the caramel as a gift (becasue I am super spoiled, thanks Seth!). It is some of the best caramel I’ve eaten in a long time, I want to put it on a wedge of brie with some pears. Decadence.

Hyper Local Brew Fest – This is an amazing event I’ve helped to organize and put together to benefit Sustainable Business Networks of Boston. It’s going to be on Saturday June 16th and I am so looking forward to it. I’ve met and experienced some amazing craft brewers because of it and can’t wait to meet more! Want to come? Grab a ticket here: http://tinyurl.com/hlbrew

The Bloggess – I had barely heard of her before Friday, now I can’t stop. I added her to my Google Reader, have been reading her back posts, and broke down and bought myself a BRAND NEW hardcover copy of her book, something I never do, She is witty, wonderful, and writes about Nathan Fillion (and calls him Nater-Tater, WIN). Go check her out.

Boston Area Beer Enthusiasts Society (BABES) – My friend Kristen runs this great beer group, they meet once a month at Meadhall in Kendall Sq and pair delicious brews and snacks. This month the pairings are a comparison of west coast and east coast beers paired with east/west coast cheeses. It will be FAN-FREAKIN-TASTIC.
Garden Strawberries – There has been a strawberry takeover of my backyard. I love it. A quarter of the yard is covered in strawberries. I will cut them back after the fruit is gone but until then there are perfect strawberries for munching.

Craft Beer Cellar – I went in here Saturday and it is a magical wonderful space full of well curated craft brews. I wonder if they would mind if I just moved in and hunkered down?

Warm Weather and Sun Dresses – I live in sundresses in the summer, it’s how I roll. I don’t like shorts so an arsenal of good comfortable dresses is key. I’ve been loving the Lace Affair for inspiration and fun sales. I totally got a fun pin-up dress from them which I am going to wear to this little event!

So those are a few things I’m totally in love with. Hope everyone’s beginning of summer is going well and I will be back soon with a recipe, I promise!

Update: I’ve also been watching this video on repeat. It makes me ridiculously happy.

Mustard-Cauliflower Tart

I’m getting back to that point in the year where I over-commit myself. That point where I a things like, oh you need a blog post by thus and such a date – of COURSE I CAN DO IT. Then I forget. Or the product I’m reviewing/creating a recipe for arrives in the mail and I’ve totally forgotten what it’s for and the original, magical, wonderful recipe I had planned for said item goes out the window and something entirely new shows up on the table instead. I’m not saying this is uncommon, actually just the opposite – it happens ALL THE TIME. Not because I miss deadlines, though that sometimes happens too, but because I forget to write down my brilliant idea to creatively use whatever I’ve been thinking on. I’ve been getting better, at least a bit – now I email myself or write stuff down on random scraps of paper when I come up with them. I mention this craziness to point out that I am entirely fallible (but don’t tell Kaylee), and because of this last night’s dinner was a cauliflower tart as opposed to the initial goat cheese cheesecake I came up with.

So here we are now. Cauliflower tart and not a goat cheese cheesecake. The cheesecake would have had a pretzel crust and a mustard drizzle. It would have been ultra rich and delicious. But then I did some research – apparently goat cheese cheesecake is bizarre, a little too rich and more like a spreadable warm cheese than anything else. So I came up with something else – this tart. This tart was delicious it was layers of perfect flavor – from the mustard infused tart crust to the maple glazed caramelized onions to the crispy swiss cheese browned and bubbling on the top.

I plotted this tart after a tweet from Stonewall Kitchen saying they were conducting a blogger contest using their mustards. I immediately tweeted them my interest. I asked for the Maine Maple Champagne mustard – as a Maine kid I gravitated to this because it brought me back to my love of Maine, my love of maple, and, of course, my love of mustard.

Mustard and Cauliflower Tart

Note: This tart is my own creation though the idea is a morphing of one from Epicurious.

For the Crust:

For the Tart:

  • 3 Tbs Stonewall Kitchen Maine Maple Champagne Mustard, separated
  • 1 medium onion, sliced into thin half moons
  • 2 Tbs butter
  • 1 Tbs good maple syrup (I like grade be best)
  • 1 half head of cauliflower, cut into 1 inch florets
  • 1 1/2 cup of shredded swiss cheese
  • 2 eggs
  • In the bowl of a food processor combine the flour and butter. Use the pulse feature and blend 3-4 times. You should be able to see the butter bits in the flour.
  • Add the tablespoon of mustard to the butter/flour mixture in the food processor, pulse this for a minute until fully incorporated.
  • Add water, one tablespoon at a time until the dough just starts to come together.
  • Roll the dough out so it will cover the bottom and sides of a removable bottom tart pan and then line the pan.
  • Melt the butter in skillet over medium heat.
  • Gently spread the onions out in as thin a layer as possible over the melted butter in the skillet. Allow the onions to sweat over medium heat until they are translucent (about a minute).
  • Drizzle the syrup over the onions and allow them to caramelize slowly over a 15-20 minute period, stirring every few minutes.
  • While the onions cook preheat your oven to 350 degrees farenheit.
  • spread 2 Tbs of mustard on the bottom of the tart.
  • Once the onions are fully caramelized spread them over the mustard slicked tart evenly.
  • Place the pieces of cauliflower over the tart in a single layer until the onions are covered – this takes about half a head of cauliflower, though you could use more if you liked. Sprinkle the whole thing with the shredded Swiss cheese.
  • In a small bowl combine the eggs and remaining tablespoon of mustard. Blend this with a fork, like making scrambled eggs. Pour the egg/mustard mix over the whole tart as evenly as possible (you should get a good swirl).
  • Bake the tart for 35-40 minutes, until the cheese is brown and bubbly and the crust if golden on the edges.
  • Serve the tart with a light salad and a drizzle of mustard.
  • Enjoy!
I was given this mustard to create a recipe with for Stonewall Kitchen. All opinions listed here are my own.

Barrio is Popping Up

I know, I know it’s a cheesy title.  But it’s true!  Last Thursday I had the privilege of attending a dinner at Barrio.  Barrio is Chef Wheeler del Torro’s vegan-Cuban street food pop-up that is set to soon descend on the Boston area.  I went into this pop-up a little warily, if you read this blog much you know how great my affinity for all things butter and (in general) not vegan.  I found the idea hard to grasp.  I shouldn’t have worried.

The dinner was awesome, though.  From our secret meeting place (shhh, you’ll know if you go!) to the fantastic champagne to the world class dessert (I can’t tell that either, it’ll give too much away) I was in love. Check out my awesome visual recap! If you want to go, you should probably go put your name on the email list!

Getting to chop up a pineapple and play in the kitchen with a chef! #dreamsihavehad

The wild blueberry, goat cheese Ice cream.  Megan would have died for this!

The plantains – how is it I have gone 27 years with eating so few plantains????

The pork taco (made by a chef friend of Wheeler’s), it was juicy and delicious

Perfect champagne. A great end to a great evening.

Discalimer: I attended this pop-up dinner (my first, and definitely not last) for free, but all opinions posted here are my own.