I keep much smaller quantities of white chocolate on hand compared to milk and dark chocolate (I usually buy white chocolate by the single pound or kilo, but I typically purchase milk and dark chocolate in either 5-pound or 5-kilo quantities), so I can be a little hesitant about trying recipes that require significant quantities of white chocolate.
When I decided to try recipe for Matcha and White Chocolate Blondies from BBC Good Food, 200 grams of white chocolate seemed like a lot for a pan of bars baked in an 8-inch square pan -- but the bars looked so good that I couldn't resist.
The recipe is super easy. You melt butter and half of the white chocolate in a double boiler; add sugar (it's supposed to be golden caster sugar, but I used regular granulated) and let the mixture cool; incorporate eggs; fold in flour and matcha powder; and stir in toasted hazelnuts and the remaining white chocolate (I used Cacao Barry Zéphyr 34%).
The recipe says that the bars should be a bit gooey, but I generally think an under-cooked bar is a greater sin than a slightly over-cooked one, so I erred on the side of making sure that my bars were set before pulling them out of the oven. The tops of the bars had browned nicely during baking, so the crust only had a hint of green color. But slicing the bars revealed an intense green interior; there was no mistaking that they were made with matcha.
Even though I wasn't aiming for "gooey" bars, my bars still had a very fudgy texture. I really liked the crunch from the toasted hazelnuts and the extra chewy texture of the bars from the edges of the pan. I loved these bars. The flavors were very well balanced -- the grassy notes of matcha, the rich and smooth milk flavor of the white chocolate, and just the right level of sweetness. These bars are pretty simple, but in my mind, they're a standout. I would absolutely make them again -- they're worth the investment in some good white chocolate!
Recipe: "Matcha and white chocolate blondies" from BBC Good Food.
Previous Posts:
When I decided to try recipe for Matcha and White Chocolate Blondies from BBC Good Food, 200 grams of white chocolate seemed like a lot for a pan of bars baked in an 8-inch square pan -- but the bars looked so good that I couldn't resist.
The recipe is super easy. You melt butter and half of the white chocolate in a double boiler; add sugar (it's supposed to be golden caster sugar, but I used regular granulated) and let the mixture cool; incorporate eggs; fold in flour and matcha powder; and stir in toasted hazelnuts and the remaining white chocolate (I used Cacao Barry Zéphyr 34%).
Even though I wasn't aiming for "gooey" bars, my bars still had a very fudgy texture. I really liked the crunch from the toasted hazelnuts and the extra chewy texture of the bars from the edges of the pan. I loved these bars. The flavors were very well balanced -- the grassy notes of matcha, the rich and smooth milk flavor of the white chocolate, and just the right level of sweetness. These bars are pretty simple, but in my mind, they're a standout. I would absolutely make them again -- they're worth the investment in some good white chocolate!
Recipe: "Matcha and white chocolate blondies" from BBC Good Food.
Previous Posts:
- "Baked Sunday Mornings: Almond Green Tea Cupcakes," October 21, 2018.
- "Happy Chinese New Year!: Green Tea Fortune Cookies," January 27, 2012.
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