It's Not Easy Bein' Green

I watched A Charlie Brown Christmas earlier this evening and its got me all nostalgic for my childhood. Although I haven't watched it for years, I still love it and it seems even more relevant now than when I saw it back in the day.

I have so much respect and admiration for Charles Schulz. What a wonderful man to have created something so timeless and beautiful.

But what does that have to do with anything here you ask? Well, if you noticed the color of the loaf and the batter, you may have detected a hint of green. Green can be a difficult color for a dessert, especially this pistachio green. Some people may look askance at a confection tinged with a color normally associated with a vegetable or a nut.

Being in kid-think mode, I immediately thought of Kermit the Frog's song Bein' Green. When I was a kid, I would play the Sesame Street album over and over and particularly loved this song. I felt so bad for Kermit. Even though I was very young, on some level I understood that "bein' green" was something that I could identify with.

And this loaf tastes delicious even though it is green. I normally bake from scratch, but on occasion I like to try a ready made mix. I was in Trader Joe's a few weeks ago and saw this box of Green Tea Cake & Baking Mix. Green tea!!?? It seemed a rather unlikely flavor for a cake. I was plain curious. How bad could it be? Could it be good? And I wondered if the mix would actually be green.

I ran out of my snacks for work and didn't feel like going to the store after work tonight, so I figured I'd try this Green Tea Cake out. I made the cake according to the directions on the box, except for I added in 1/2 cup of chopped walnuts and a 1/2 cup of chopped dates. I baked it in a loaf pan and may have left it in the oven a bit too long.

Still it is very good and with a very distinct green tea flavor. Who knew? I guess Trader Joe's. If you want to whip up something different very quickly, I'd recommend it.