Matcha Chocolate Mini Cakes

I was eager to use the green tea powder I got from H Mart. I made these earthy looking marble cakes. They make me think of spring. The batter was so thick after I mixed in the powder that it was hard to get the marbled effect. Nevertheless they were moist and tasty.

Melt in Your Mouth Shortbread

This is one of my favorite desserts to make when company is coming over. It's quick, easy, and not too sweet. I always have the ingredients available in the pantry.  It is great served with tea in the afternoon. This recipe is inspired by the shortbread at Tartine Bakery in San Francisco. It changed my mind about shortbread. When I was younger I thought shortbread had to be hard enough to break your teeth and as flavorless as cardboard thanks to elementary school lunches. These buttery, crumbly shortbread squares disappear fast in our house.

Vanilla Bean Milk Tartlette

After making the melk tert last month, I thought I would try making it with a crust. This tartlette has a very crumbly shortbread crust. It is filled with a milk custard with vanilla beans from Madagascar. I liked these even better than the melk tert.

Mini Black and White Cheesecakes

Israa brought over ingredients to bake a cheesecake. We baked these mini cheesecakes and swirled melted dark chocolate on the top of them. Half of the crusts are oreo cookie crumbs and the other half are English biscuit crumbs. Rich and creamy but not too sweet, these were a hit.

Melk Tert (African Milk Tart)

The recipe I chose did not mention making a crust but when I looked at pictures on the internet, most of them had a crust. This turned out like a like a firm custard or flan. It was creamy and delicious and held its shape. After baking, I let it sit in the fridge overnight. The cinnamon sprinkled on the top gave it just the right amount of spice. The boys and I made it for our studies of Africa and like starving lions, they devoured it rather quickly.