I hope you had a nice Father's Day weekend! Ours flew by with the usual errands and to-do's. The weather wasn't very cooperative at first but then the sun broke out yesterday, which I thought was very appropriate. We enjoyed a nice, relaxing Father's Day, celebrating with family time and some treats.
I mentioned in my last post that when I asked my husband what type of dessert he'd like for Father's Day that he, surprisingly, picked the matcha-almond sponge layer cake that I attempted last month (after first reassuring me that I didn't have to make him anything but of course, I couldn't have that!). I was a little taken aback by his choice but despite the mishaps I had, the essence of that cake really was very tasty and memorable. I don't think my husband felt like he got enough of a taste last time to satisfy his craving and he'd been thinking about it.
So I went into the kitchen Saturday and had a little re-do of that recipe! Mainly, I baked the matcha-almond sponge cake in a rectangular 9x13 inch pan instead of the larger 12x16 inch type sheet pan. I simplified and streamlined the process a bit and things went according to plan. Baking the cake in the smaller pan gave me the thicker layers I was looking for so that the cake wasn't invisible-thin and I could move and maneuver it a lot easier. I sliced the baked sponge cake into just 3-pieces and stacked them with 2 layers of cocoa whipped cream in between. This time we have 5 very-manageable layers instead of 15!
With the little changes and tweaks, these layer cakes were really easy and quick to put together (dishes and cleanup are a different story). I literally made the batter and baked the cake in between cooking breakfast and prepping other things. So I call it a success, and I wanted to share this little re-do and my revamped version of this recipe. Now that I've got it figured out - in a way that works for me - I'm glad I'll be able to whip this dessert up any time someone has a craving for it.
The cake layers are so moist and feather-light. The mild and delicate flavor of the soft cake layers meld really well with the creamy filling, which adds some sweetness and a lot of flavor. I'd say my husband has pretty good taste, and he heartily enjoyed his Father's Day treat. And I'm so glad I did this re-make. With the essence of this recipe worked out, I feel like there are opportunities to play with the filling. Sprinkle Bakes' suggestion of a creamy red bean filling sounds very enticing to me since the combination of green tea and azuki or red beans is a classic one in Asian desserts; however, my husband insists this is perfect just as it is!
