Matcha Mousse Cake with Azuki Filling

Remember Matcha Bestie - green tea sponge cake with green tea filling? A year has since passed and it's my bestie's birthday again. This time though I came up with something more extravagant: Matcha Super Bestie - green tea mousse cake with azuki filling. ;)

Matcha Super Bestie
Recipe by The Bakeanista

Green tea Sponge:
(A)
5 egg whites
55g sugar
1/4 tsp cream of tartar

(B)
5 egg yolks
55g sugar
40ml green tea + 1 tsp honey
60g vegetable oil
115g self-raising flour
2 tsp green tea powder

1) Mix the yolks and sugar until pale and creamy.
2) Add in green tea mixture and oil, mix well.
3) Fold in the flour and green tea powder till no longer lumpy.

4) In a clean separate bowl, whisk the egg whites until foamy, then add cream of tartar. Gradually add in the sugar until soft peak.

5) Fold in one third of the egg white mixture into (3) until incorporated.

6) Fold in remaining egg white mixture into batter until well combined.

7) Pour batter into an 8-inch round springform pan and bake at 170 deg'C for 45 minutes on the lower third rack of the oven.

Azuki Filling:

200g red bean paste

100g thickened cream

Stir together red bean paste and thickened cream until well combined.

Green Tea Mousse:
10g gelatine powder
50ml water
150g milk
70g castor sugar
2 tsp green tea powder
300ml thickened cream

1) Dissolve gelatine powder in the water.
2) Heat the milk and dissolve the sugar and green tea powder in. Remove from heat, add in the gelatine mixture and leave to cool.
3) With an electric mixer, beat the cream until form whipped cream, then fold into the cooled milk mixture. Set aside.

Green Tea Ganache:
200g white chocolate
200g cream
2 tsp green tea powder

1) Melt the white chocolate over a double boiler. Set aside.
2) Heat the cream in pot and mix in the green tea powder.
3) Pour the hot cream into the chocolate and mix well, ensuring all the chocolate had melted and mixed well with the cream. Freeze ganache for 5-10 minutes until it becomes thick and more easily spreadable.

To assemble the cake:
1) Slice the cake into four even layers.

2) Alternate the sponge layer with mousse and azuki filling. I assembled the cake in this order: sponge - mousse - sponge - azuki - sponge - mousse - sponge.

3) Once all the layers are completed, spread the ganache over the cake until the whole cake is well covered. Decorate as desired.

It is slightly arduous with several fillings to prepare, but trust me, it is SO worth it. I absolutely loved this recipe so much, and I recommend you try too if you're a big fan of the green tea and azuki combo.

For those who do not fancy red bean, you may very well just omit it. The green tea sponge and mousse is yummylicious just by itself too! :D