Chocolate Matcha Cupcakes and Japanese Plum Wine Cake, #DixieQuicktakes

NinjaBaker — Wed, 09 Jul 2014 23:12:33 +0000

This post is sponsored by Dixie Quicktakes. All opinions are my own.

Building a bridge of understanding between the East (with an emphasis on Japan) and the West (mainly the US) via the avenue of food brings me great joy. There is wisdom in the adage, “Write about what you love.” I delight in baking and sharing goodies with non-GMO ingredients and imported Japanese products. Quality is key to yummy outcomes. Love is also essential.

As necessary as milk is for growing children,
maybe love is even more important.
What do you think?

Seeing the smiles that appear on friends’ faces as they bite into a Ninja Baking goodie is priceless. As one who likes to add value to someone’s day and as a blogger who fills up a freezer with baked goods made for posts, I happily distribute a variety of yummies every week.

Ballroom dance classmates, Frank, Anna, Colleen and Al
waltz their way to happiness with Japanese Plum Wine Cake
in Dixie Quicktakes®. (Scroll down for the recipe.)

Until I was introduced to Dixie Quicktakes®, recycled (and cleaned!) containers were often used to give away goodies. On many an occasion, I also bid adieu many times to better storage cases….unless my fruitless rummaging resulted in no lid. (Have you ever experienced the strange and frustrating phenomenon of the missing lid?)

With Dixie Quicktakes® in my pantry, I can now say sayonara to digging for lids as a dinner party is winding down and people are walking out the door without the promised leftovers. Lids are attached on Dixie Quicktakes® boxes. Brilliant, right? With looming ginormous to-do lists who has time to go looking for lids?

With my dear friends Takako-san and Akio-san.
Sushi and Chocolate Matcha Cupcakes were on the lunch menu.
And in the Dixie Quicktakes®.
(Scroll down for the cupcake recipe.)

Another win: 25 containers come in every package. The cost per container runs you a whopping 60 some odd cents. So, if the contents contain peanut butter, marshmallow fluff or some other sticky food, the container can be tossed without a twinge of guilt.

Also, if you find yourself immersed in a busy lifestyle (welcome to the New Millennium) and are always on the go, the Dixie Quicktakes® boxes can be discarded or recycled without feeling guilty about throwing away money.

The containers are perfect for traveling, too. My husband has a love-hate relationship with fare offered at airport restaurants. He prefers to bring his own food. But yours truly prefers he not take our best containers on long trips. Cleaning out said containers in hotel sinks is not my idea of fun.

Speaking of traveling, the Dixie Quicktakes® are perfect for packing non-food items, too. The containers are clear and come in small and large sizes.

Dixie Quicktakes® are reusable, recyclable and dishwasher safe...
And the perfect size for on-the-go sushi!

Dixie Quicktakes® containers are also BPA free. BPA (bisphenol A) is a chemical that has been used to make plastics. Apparently BPA leakage into stored food is a problem. Some doctors are very concerned about the damage BPA can do to the brain. The chemical also apparently has adverse effects on behavior and proper maturation in children.

Tuna, albacore and shrimp sushi are lunch-ready in a
BPA free Dixie Quicktakes® container.

In case you needed further convincing on the benefits of Dixie Quicktakes®, here’s a link to product reviews and a video. For your reference, the containers are available only on Amazon.

Japanese Plum Wine Cake

My Japanese plum wine cake is a huge grownup crowd pleaser. (And is super-duper easy!) The rose-colored sponge only requires a dusting of powdered sugar.

Ingredients:

1 package white cake mix
1 cup Japanese plum wine
3 large egg whites
1/4 cup vegetable oil
Drops of pink food coloring

Directions:

Whip together all the ingredients In a stand mixer until smooth for about 2 minutes. Scrape down the bowl.
Beat for another minute.
Pour into a greased bundt pan and sprinkled with Japanese panko bread crumbs.
Bake at 325 degrees for 38 to 40 minutes for dark or coated pans. Or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

Ninja Note: For lighter pans, crank up the heat to 350 and bake for 35 to 36 minutes. Or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

Chocolate Matcha Cupcakes

The low-fat chocolate milk in this cupcake keeps the cake light. Despite the double dosage of chocolate milk into chocolate cake mix, surprisingly the sponge is not tooth aching sweet. Strong green tea matcha cream adds a bitter but pleasant layer of contrast and yumminess!

Ingredients:

For the cupcakes:

1 package Devil's Food chocolate cake mix
1 cup low fat chocolate milk
3 large eggs, room temperature
1/3 cup vegetable oil

For the green tea matcha cream:

1 1/2 cups heavy cream
1 cup powdered sugar
2 1/2 tablespoons matcha powder
1 teaspoon vanilla
Optional: chocolate chips for garnish

Ninja Note: Matcha powder is available at Asian markets and at Amazon.

Directions:

For the cupcakes:

Beat together the cake mix, chocolate milk and vegetable oil. Add the eggs one at a time. Scrape the bowl. Beat again until the batter is smooth.

Divide the batter into 24 cupcake cases in muffin tins.

Bake at 325 for dark or coated muffin tins for 24 to 26 minutes / 350 for metal (or until a toothpick comes out clean from the cupcake centers.)

For the matcha cream:

Beat all ingredients together. Pipe onto cupcake centers and garnish, if desired, with a chocolate chip.

From cakes to crafts, when you need containers, go to Amazon for your Dixie Quicktakes®.

Japanese Plum Wine Cake in a Dixie Quicktakes® container.

Wishing you great company, cakes and DixieQuicktakes®!

The Ninja Baker

The Ninja Baker has guest blogged and contributed recipes to numerous food sites. These additional recipes can be found here.

Tags:

#Dixie Quicktakes

#chocolate cupcakes

#matcha cream

#Japanese plum wine #cake

The Ninja Baker - #Dixie Quicktakes

Chocolate Matcha Cupcakes and Japanese Plum Wine Cake, #DixieQuicktakes