MATCHA CAKE WITH DOUBLE SESAME BUTTERCREAM

As of today, I've been off trail for the same number of days that I was on trail. 167 days on the Appalachian Trail. 167 days since Katahdin. Soon enough it'll be the anniversary of the day I started my thru-hike... March 16th. 

I miss the trail like crazy. So much so that I often feel homesick for the trail. At least I can't say that I have what thru-hikers refer to as "Post-Trail Blues" though. Sure, there's always going to be a part of me that sees the world differently after thru-hiking and there will always be a part of me planning my next adventure, but life off the trail is about as good as it gets. I do wish Chicago was closer to some mountains though! 

One thing I've been trying to do since returning from the trail is to rediscover all the things I love and didn't get to do while on trail. For one, getting back into running has been amazing. Having another goal to work towards (Chicago Marathon 2017!) has been really helpful in staving off the PTBs. 

Another thing I've been trying to get back into is baking. I baked every single weekend in college, but haven't too much since then. Besides having tasty treats for the week, I love having a Sunday afternoon project in between all the fun of the weekend and all the *fun* of the work week to come haha. This weekend I baked a matcha cake with sesame frosting from My Name is Yeh. I maybe sampled too much frosting trying to get the sesame taste nailed down, so only had half a slice of cake once it was good and done, but I'm looking forward to eating more of it throughout the week when I'm hungry and can really appreciate it. 

Cake:
1 3/4 cup sugar
2 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
2 tbsp matcha
1 1/2 tsp each: baking soda, baking powder, salt
2 large eggs
1 cup buttermilk (I used unsweetened soymilk)
1/2 cup canola oil
1 1/2 tbsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp almond extract
3/4 c boiling water

Frosting:
1 cup unsalted butter, softened
2 1/3 cup powdered sugar
3 tb toasted black sesame seeds, ground in a blender + more for decoration
2 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp almond extract

1/2 tsp sesame oil (I added this one on my own for a more distinct sesame taste)
a pinch of salt (+ more to taste)

To make the cake, preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a large bowl, whisk together all the dry ingredients. In a medium bowl, whisk together all the wet ingredients except the boiling water. Whisk the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and then stir in the boiling water. Pour into cake pans and bake until a toothpick comes out clean. (I used two 9-inch pans which were a bit too big, but they took about 25 minutes to fully bake). Once baked, let them cool and remove from the pans.

To make the frosting, combine all ingredients using an electric mixer until smooth.

Once the cakes are fully cooled, frost away and enjoy!

Recipe adapted from My Name Is Yeh