Matcha Cake
I baked with matcha powder for the first time last summer when I made matcha cupcakes and a matcha and chocolate cake. I thought it was high time I made another matcha cake!!
But I wanted this version to be a bit easier to make, and less sweet than my matcha drip cake.
This matcha cake is also a bit smaller! It’s made with cute little 6-inch cake layers, which makes it a bit quicker to make and decorate.
What is Matcha?
Matcha is made from special green tea leaves that are ground down into an incredibly fine consistency.
These leaves are specifically grown and processed to make matcha powder.
The tea leaves are special in a lot of ways, but a big part of it is how they’re grown. They’re grown in the shade for the last 3 to 4 weeks before they’re harvested.
Sounds pretty wild, right?? But there’s a method behind the madness. Growing these tea leaves in the shade increases the amount of caffeine they contain and intensifies their color.
You can buy matcha at most grocery stores in either the tea and coffee section, or the international section. I get mine from Whole Foods, but you can also order matcha powder on Amazon.
I’m not going to lie, matcha powder is not cheap. This tiny little can was $13, and there’s not a ton of powder in there!!
The good news is, a little goes a long way. I used about half of my matcha powder to make this cake.
That includes all the matcha that’s in these cake layers, the matcha white chocolate ganache drip, and the powder used to dust the finished cake.
What Does Matcha Matcha Taste Like?
The first time I tried matcha, it was matcha soft serve! I liked it a lot more than I thought I would. Slowly I progressed to matcha pancakes, matcha croissants, and even matcha lattes.
Matcha has a uniquely earthy flavor. It’s rich and smooth, but sometimes it can have a bitter aftertaste. However, good quality matcha should have almost a sweet finish.
A lot of it comes down to how the matcha is prepared and its quality.
Ceremonial grade matcha is used in tea ceremonies and is the highest quality. However, most matcha used for culinary purposes is a lower grade.
When matcha is being mixed with sweeteners in desserts or with milk in lattes, the sugars can balance out any hint of bitterness.
It leaves a wonderful flavor that pairs well with so many different things!
Choosing The Right Frosting for This Cake
Most people that enjoy matcha flavored desserts don’t like super sweet flavors. With that in mind, I knew that my American buttercream wasn’t the right frosting for this cake.
While I love it, I’m the first to admit it is quite sweet. I wanted a fluffy frosting that wasn’t too sweet for this cake.
I’m not the biggest fan of swiss meringue frosting, but it’s usually a great alternative for people who want a frosting that isn’t too sweet.
I decided to try my friend Minette Rushing’s faux Swiss meringue buttercream recently, and thought it would be the perfect frosting for this cake.
I enjoy the texture and taste of it quite a bit more than normal swiss meringue. It also is so much easier to make!
I found I liked it best with a tiny bit less butter than the original recipe calls for, and that’s exactly what I’ve included in my recipe card below.
The texture of this faux swiss meringue buttercream is incredible. It’s fluffy and light, and wonderful to work with.
It also pipes like a dream 🙂 I used an Ateco 869 frosting tip to add these frosting dollops to the top of my cake.
I still love American buttercream, but it’s so fun to play around with different frosting recipes.
There is one thing to note about this frosting recipe though! It doesn’t have a super strong flavor on its own, so be sure to use a good quality vanilla extract or vanilla bean paste.
Adding the Matcha Drip To This Cake
Whenever I make a drip cake, there are two very important steps I take to ensure I get the look I’m after! I’ve learned the hard way on this, so please learn from my mistakes.
Tip #1: Chill Your Cake
My first tip is to only add drips to a chilled cake! I mean THOROUGHLY chilled. Your buttercream should be firm to the touch.
This can take up to 30 minutes in the fridge or about 10 minutes in the freezer.
Chilling your cake will help your drips stay in place once they’re added, and help prevent them from running down too far.
Tip #2: Make A Test Drip
My second tip? Make a test drip. Take your ganache and make a single drip. Let it flow and sit for a couple minutes. See what it looks like, and how far it runs.
Are you happy with how it looks? This is your time to make changes to get it just right. Is it too thin? Did the drip run too far down the cake? Maybe you need to let your ganache cool more, or melt in a bit more chocolate.
Is your drip too thick or short? You might need to pop it in the microwave for a couple seconds (seriously, don’t heat it for more than 5 seconds). Or maybe you want to add in a tiny bit more heavy cream.
This is the point in the process where my eagerness can get the best of me, and I mess up sometimes. I think I’ve made the necessary adjustments, and dive right into adding all my drips.
But for all you know, you may have overcorrected! You may have actually heated or cooled your ganache too much.
You need to do ANOTHER test drip. I know it seems excessive, but think about it. You’ve already put all this time into making a cake from scratch!
It’s worth taking the extra five minutes of test drips to make sure your ganache is the perfect temperature.
Tips for Making This Matcha Cake Recipe
- Chill your cake layers in the freezer for about 20 minutes before assembling the cake, to make it easier to stack and frost.
- Mix your cake batter just until the ingredients are incorporated; this will ensure your cake layers are tender and fluffy.
- Be sure to properly measure your flour (spoon into the cup measure then level) or use a kitchen scale to measure your dry ingredients.
- Use a serrated knife to level your cake layers once they’re fully cooled, to make it easier to assemble and frost your cake.
- I do NOT recommend using this recipe to make cupcakes! Instead, I highly recommend trying my matcha cupcake recipe (I like the texture better for cupcakes).
Making These Cake Layers in Advance and Storage Tips
Make your cake layers in advance and freeze them. It breaks the process up and makes it more approachable.
Make your frosting ahead of time too, or save any leftover frosting! It can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for up to a month, or in the freezer for up to 3 months. Be sure to give it a good stir once it thaws to get the consistency nice and smooth again.
A frosted cake can last in the fridge for up to a week, or in the freezer for up to a month. The buttercream locks in all the moisture, keeping the cake fresh and delicious!
If you cut into the cake and have leftovers, use any remaining frosting to cover the cut section to keep it moist and store in the fridge for up to a week.
Let Me Know What You Think!
If you try my matcha cake recipe, I’d love to hear what you think of it! Please leave a rating and comment below.
Don’t forget to tag me @chelsweets and use #chelsweets on social media so that I can see your amazing creations!
Other Recipes You Might Like:
Matcha Cake
Ingredients
Matcha Cake
- 2/3 cup unsalted butter, room temperature 150g – 1 1/3 sticks
- 2 cups granulated sugar 400g
- 2/3 cup carton egg whites or 4 large egg whites, room temperature 160ml
- 2 1/2 cups cake flour 300g
- 1 3/4 tsp baking powder 7g
- 1 Tbsp matcha powder 6g
- 1/2 tsp fine salt 3g
- 1 cup full-fat sour cream, room temperature 255g
- 2 Tbsp vegetable or canola oil 30ml
- 1 tsp vanilla extract or vanilla bean paste 4ml
- neon green gel food coloring (optional)
Faux Swiss Meringue Buttercream Frosting (adapted from Minette Rushing’s Faux Swiss Meringue Frosting)
- 1/2 cup pasteurized egg whites, room temperature from a carton, room temperature (120ml)
- 3 1/2 cups powdered sugar 440g
- 1 1/2 cups unsalted butter, room temperature 339g
- 1 Tbsp vanilla extract or vanilla bean paste 12ml
- 1/2 tsp fine salt 3g
Matcha White Chocolate Drip
- 1 cup white chocolate chips 175g
- 1/3 cup heavy whipping cream, room temperature 80ml
- 1/2 tsp matcha powder 2g
Instructions
Matcha Cake Layers:
- Preheat the oven to 325°F. Line and grease three 6-inch cake pans with parchment rounds.
- Add the unsalted butter and granulated sugar into the bowl of a stand mixer. Beat on a high speed with a whisk attachment for a few minutes, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed with a rubber spatula. The mixture will become lighter in color as air is whipped into it.
- Add the egg whites, and mix at a medium speed until they're incorporated.
- Sift the dry ingredients (cake flour, baking powder, matcha powder, and salt) into a separate bowl.
- Add half of the dry ingredients into the butter mixture, and mix on a low speed until just incorporated.
- Add the sour cream, oil, and vanilla extract. If you want the layers to have a more vibrant green color, you can add a bit of neon green gel food coloring too. Mix at a low speed until combined, scraping the sides and bottom of the bowl as needed!
- Mix in the remaining dry ingredients on a low speed.
- Divide batter evenly between the prepared cake pans. I like to use a digital kitchen scale to weigh my pans, to make sure my layers will be the same height.
- Bake for 34-37 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out with a few moist crumbs. Rotate pans halfway through to help them bake evenly.
- Allow the pans to cool for 10 minutes, then run an offset spatula around the perimeter of the pan to separate the cake from the pan.
- Place cake layers into the freezer for 45 minutes, to accelerate the cooling process. Once the layers are fully cooled, carefully flip the pans and remove the layers from the pans.
- Use a serrated knife to level the tops, and trim the sides to remove any caramelization.
Faux Swiss Meringue Buttercream Frosting:
- While the cake layers bake and cool, make the fluffy buttercream frosting.
- Place the room temperature pasteurized egg whites and powdered sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer (or a large bowl if you plan to make it with a hand mixer).
- Mix on a low speed to combine.
- Once incorporated, mix on medium high with a whisk attachment for 5 minutes until medium peaks have formed (stiffer than soft peaks, but not quite stiff peaks).
- Swap the whisk attachment for a paddle attachment. This will help make your buttercream be smooth once it's fully made.
- Mix in pieces of room temperature butter on a low speed in 2 additions.
- Once the butter is incorporated, mix on medium speed for an additional 5 minutes.
- Add in 1 Tbsp of vanilla extract and 1/2 tsp of salt. Mix until the buttercream is fluffy and smooth.
- If your frosting breaks in the beginning when you add the butter, don't worry! Just keep mixing it, and it should come together in a few minutes.
- Stir for an additional few minutes by hand with a rubber spatula to get it silky smooth. Set aside.
Matcha White Chocolate Drip:
- While the cake chills with its second coat of frosting, make the matcha white chocolate ganache.
- Heat heavy cream in a heat proof bowl in the microwave for 45 seconds, until it's just beginning to bubble.
- Gently pour white chocolate chips into the heavy cream, making sure they are fully covered with cream. Allow the mixture to sit for 1 minute.
- Stir slowly until the cream and white chocolate are combined. Some bits of chocolate may not be fully melted yet. Heat the mixture again for 20 seconds, and stir.
- Repeat as necessary until all the white chocolate bits are fully melted and incorporated.
- Mix in the matcha powder. Let the mixture cool until desired viscosity is reached (barely warm to the touch).
- If it seems too thin or thick, you can add a touch more chocolate chips or heavy cream! The type of cream and white chocolate that you use can affect the consistency, so feel free to adjust as needed.
How To Assemble This Matcha Cake:
- Stack and frost cake layers on a greaseproof cake board, using a dab of frosting to help stick the first cake layer to the board.
- Add an even layer of buttercream on top of the first cake layer. Stack and frost remaining cake layers.
- Spread a thin coat of frosting around the cake, to fully cover the cake layers.
- Smooth using a bench scraper, then chill the cake in the fridge (30 minutes) or freezer (10 minutes) until the frosting is firm to the touch.
- Add a second, thicker layer of buttercream frosting to the cake, and chill the cake again in the fridge (20 minutes) or freezer (5 minutes) until the frosting is firm to the touch.
- Use a spoon to add the ganache drips around the cake with the white chocolate matcha ganache.
- Place the remaining frosting into a small piping bag fit with an Ateco 869 frosting tip. Pipe dollops around the top of the cake, and dust with an extra bit of matcha powder.
Video
Notes
Making This Matcha Cake in Advance and Storage Tips:
- Make your cake layers in advance and freeze them. It breaks the process up and makes it more approachable.
- You can make your frosting ahead of time, too, or save any leftover frosting! It can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for up to a month, or in the freezer for up to 3 months. Be sure to give it a good stir once it thaws to get the consistency nice and smooth again.
- Make this ganache drip recipe ahead of time or save leftovers. Once it’s made, wrap the bowl with plastic wrap or cover the top of the plastic bottle and store it in the fridge for up to 3 weeks.
- To use the chilled matcha ganache, heat the bottle or bowl in the microwave for 10-second intervals until it reaches the right consistency
- A frosted cake can last in the fridge for up to a week, or in the freezer for up to a month. The buttercream locks in all the moisture, keeping the cake fresh and delicious!
- If you cut into the cake and have leftovers, use any remaining frosting to cover the cut section to keep it moist and store it in the fridge for up to a week.
do the egg whites have to be from a carton or can I gather my own egg whites?
Hi Reem,
You can definitely use regular egg whites that you separate by hand in this recipe, I just like using egg whites from a carton because I think it’s easier 🙂
Can the Faux Swiss Meringue Buttercream Frosting be frozen?
Hi Wanda,
it can be frozen! Just be sure to transfer it to the fridge the day before you plan to thaw it to room temp, and give it a really good stir to get the consistency smooth again once it’s thawed. Hope that helps, happy baking!
Can I covered it with fondant ? Thanks
Hi Nilda,
You totally can <3 Happy baking!
For some reason the top is getting very crusty. Any idea why this is? Also is the batter supposed to be very thick? Mine needed to be spread in the pan instead of being poured.
Hi Mimi,
The batter shouldn’t be that thick! Were all you ingredients at room temp? If some of them were cold it can cause the batter to be thicker <3
Same. I did the recipe again, this time doubling the egg whites and instead of adding them to the recipe when it says, I whisked them with a tiny bit of cream of tartar and folded them in at the end. This did make the batter a little bit less dense, and the cake was not as thick and heavy after baking.
What is this ‘heavy cream’ you mentioned in the white chocolate drip recipe?
Hi Agwa,
You can also use heavy whipping cream! My cream is about 36% fat, and anything with a very high fat % will work. I think it’s sometimes called double cream in different places!
Hi it’s already 35mins but inside is not yet cooked. I add 5more mins
Hi Bianca,
Definitely adjust the bake time as needed! It can vary based on the temperature of your ingredient, your pans, and even your oven <3
Hello! I just wanted to know how would I make this cake if I wanted to make it for a 3- 8inch layered cake?
Hi Tulsi,
I’d recommend making 1.5 batches of batter to make 3, 8″ cake layers!
Hi – the frosting recipe says 1.5 ‘cups’ of butter. Is that right? Cos 339g is not 1.5 cups. Did you mean 1.5 tbsp of butter
Hi Anna
One cup of butter is 226g, so 1.5 cups of butter (or 3 sticks) is 339 grams. The amount listed in the recipe is correct, you need a lot of butter to make enough frosting to fill and decorate the cake <3
Thanks so much! After I had posted the comment, I realized I had calculated incorrectly. Sorry about that. I just finished baking it – will let you know how it turns out tomorrow! Thanks !!
Hi!
How do you make just one layer for an 8 inch pan?
The cake turned out EXCELLENT!! Great recipe and instructions. Thank you!!!
Can this recipe be made into cupcakes? Also, I am looking for a frosting that is not overly sweet, any recommendations to cut so.e of the sugar from this one or another one you have made?
Hi Lina,
I actually have a wonderful matcha cupcake recipe I suggest using instead 🙂 here’s the link: https://chelsweets.com/2019/05/20/matcha-cupcakes/
When do you incorporate vanilla extract and salt to the frosting?
Have you ever made this as a 9inch cake? Wondering if you have a batter amount and cooking time for 9inch round cakes.
Thanks!!
HI CHELSWEETS I WAS WONDERING IF THERE IS A SUBSTITUTE FOR MATCHA POWDER LIKE CAN I USE MATCHA TEA OR SOMETHING ELSE MATCHA?????
(sorry i didnt notice i had my caps lock on. oops) thanks alicia
Can I used buttermilk as a substitute for the sour cream?
If I only have two 6″ pans, is it ok to bake the first two, then bake the third one afterwards, or does the batter get messed up while sitting counter? Thanks!
Matcha powder is the only kind of matcha there is. Look around on eBay and Amazon for powders, some are fairly cheap.
I don’t see an issue with that 🙂
How long can this cake last without being refrigerated? I would like to take it on a 3-4 ross trip. Thanks!
Thank you! This recipe was amazing and so well detailed! You’re awesome!
May we use while eggs instead of egg whites in the batter? What’s the reason behind using only egg whites?
@Mary, I looked up other matcha cake recipes, and they all used the whole egg. I think it helps make the cake a bit more moist and rich if you use the whole egg!
Did you ever get an answer for this? I have the same question
Can I use two 9in cake pans?
This was my first time making a cake from scratch and it was a huge hit with my family! ? I couldn’t get the egg whites to form stiff peaks but it was delicious regardless!
My cake did not turn out green using 1 Tablespoon of matcha powder. Why?
This recipe doesn’t work. Tried it twice. The butter and sugar doesn’t whip up as there’s so much sugar compared to butter. Two batches in the bin and wasted money
@Hannah, I had the same experience. Something is missing from this recipe that is not reflected here.
Hey! when i put my cakes in the oven a bunch of oil seemed to rise to the top. Do you know why this might happen? Thanks
How would I convert the baking to using a 13×9 inch pan please?
Hi!! will this work for high altitude?
Would this work as 2 x 9 inch cake layers? Or would it not rise properly and be too dense?
I made your cake for my son’s 14th birthday on Halloween. He had to have a Matcha cake and yours looked the easiest to bake! By all means I am NO baker! My 5 boys love burnt food if that paints a picture! As they say; ” Mom burns cereal!”. This cake was made by me and my 14 yo. Ugliest cake you’ve ever seen! But this cake was THEEE MOST DELICIOUS CAKE IVE EVER HAD THE PLEASURE OF TASTING!!!! I dunno how to describe it! It was dense, yet Fluffy all at the same time! The taste was incredible and it wasn’t too sweet! Everybody, including my youngest whom hates matcha loved it! Huge hit! CONGRATS ON SUCH AN AWESOME RECIPE! KEEPING THIS ONE AROUND! AND YOU TOO!!! THANK YOU!
This was the best cake! The instructions were simple to follow and I really appreciate the response to your subscriber about increasing the measurements by 1.5x to fit 8” pans. I did this and it worked PERFECT!
I wasn’t able to find three small spring form pans so I actually used normal cake pans and put parchment discs on the bottom of the pans and strips of parchment around the edges. Once cooled the cakes popped out without any issues.
So good that I am actually freezing a piece for my mother-in-law when she visits in January. If that doesn’t scream success I don’t know what does!
Thanks for the recipe!
Hi Chelsea!
I made your matcha cupcakes and they were AMAZING so I’m making a 3 layer, 6-in matcha cake for my friend’s bday this weekend. What are the differences between this cake recipe vs your matcha cupcake recipe? How would the texture/stability be if I used the matcha cupcake recipe? Thanks!
I had trouble with the “frosting”; it was really difficult to get any peaks at all when I added all of the powdered sugar at the same time: before whipping the egg whites. I had to start over again and whip the whites with a little cream of tartar for a few minutes, and then add the sugar a little at a time. Still not stiff peaks but definitely better. It was a weird consistency and there wasn’t enough of it to have extra to make the dollops on top. I love your recipes, though!! Thanks!
I made this cake last year for my daughter and it was delicious! She’s requesting it again this year for her birthday.
hi chels!
I tried this recipe twice and both failed. I’m very dishearted and I know I did something wrong. could you help me?
both batches turned out to be like jelly. it was cooked and the skewer came out dry but it jiggled like Japanese cheesecake. then once I took it out of the oven it sunk by 80%. so it was a cake-tastrophy.
please help 🙁
@madi, I hope this doesn’t happen to mine. I’m no baker. And I attempted a Japanese matcha cake recipe this morning which one batch batter I threw out the other I may have rescued. Now I’m baking this one in the oven! Fingers crossed ?
Can I use regular all purpose flour instead of cake flour?
I’m making the butter cream and realized I needed more. The first batch was great! This second batch though. I don’t now what I did wrong. Everything was fine. I incorporated the butter and put it on a medium speed and it looks curdled? Do you know how to fix this? I don’t have any more butter or eggs to spare and I’m not sure how to fix it since this isn’t a traditional swiss buttercream. Please help!
Did you use food coloring to get your cake so green? Mine turned out less bright green. Also, how did you get your icing to be so white? Mine ended up being more off-white.
Hi Bella,
The coloring can vary based on the brand of matcha you use. You can add a bit of gel food coloring if you want! The butter I use is pretty white so it naturally creates a pretty white frosting. If you’re have trouble getting your buttercream white, I share some tips on that in this post: https://chelsweets.com/how-to-make-white-buttercream/
Hope that helps, happy baking!
This recipe comes out super moist! However, it is way too sweet for me with a simple syrup brushed onto it, so I actually remade it and cut the sugar by half. I might take it down even more.
Hi Heather,
My cake recipes are definitely on the sweet side, so I rarely brush simple syrup on them or include that in the recipe card. You can definitely reduce the sugar in the layers a bit if you want, it’s all about figuring out what works best for your palette. Happy baking!
Hello there, I made this recipe today and it did not turn out great. The dough was very thick. If I were to make this recipe again I would not use the sour cream as it made the cake very heavy and doughy. I cooked the cake for about 45 min, the top was burned and the bottom of the cake did not cook through properly. I would not recommend this recipe.
Hi Rachel,
So sorry to hear that! What size of cake layers did you bake? What type of cake pans were you using? Did you make any other substitutions? Have you tested your oven with an oven thermometer?
Those may have had an impact on how the layers baked. If the sour cream is at room temperature, it shouldn’t negatively impact how the layers bake up. In fact, sour cream gives them a soft and tender texture, so that shouldn’t be the problem. Hopefully we’ll be able to figure out what went wrong together!
How many cups of batter does this recipe make? I only have 9 inch cake pans and would like to adjust the recipe to use them.
Hey Xtina,
This recipe makes about 6 cups of batter. I’d recommend doubling the recipe to make 3, 9-inch cake layers. Hope that helps, happy baking!
Frosting recipe says to mix eggs and powdered sugar until stiff peaks form. I made it once, stiff peaks never formed, so I threw it all out and started over with a freshly well-washed grease-free bowl, measured out the 440 g of sugar, made sure the eggs were room temperature…and still no peaks. I am wondering if the sugar measurement listed is too much? Frosting wasn’t as fluffy as I had hoped and didn’t make as much as I needed.
Hi Allison,
I’m so sorry to hear that :/ That is super frustrating! Sometimes my peaks are closer to medium than stiff when I make this frosting and the frosting still turns out! I’ve updated the recipe card to reflect this.
You can add a 1/2 cup less powdered sugar if you want, but I think the ratio of powdered sugar to egg whites is just right in terms of taste and texture.
This recipe makes about 4 cups of frosting, which for me was the right amount to frost this 6-inch cake. Did you make a larger cake, or decorate it in a different style?
Hope that helps for the future, happy baking!
Would this be enough for a two 9×13 inch sheet cake layers? Or should I make more?
Hello!
I love your cake recipe, but could I use a cream cheese icing instead? Do you think it would stick properly?
This cake had the loveliest matcha flavor which was very nicely complemented by the tanginess from the sour cream, but unfortunately it was a total bust. I am trying to figure out what went wrong. I weighed all the ingredients and everything was at room temp, but like another commenter said, my batter was also unnaturally thick so I had to manually spread it in the pan. Do you know what went wrong? Is the cake just supposed to be super dense? The only thing I can think is that I didn’t whip the sugar and butter enough. Did anyone else have this experience? If not, what tips for success do you have?
Hi Lila,
This cake does have a dense yet tender crumb, so as long as you didn’t overmix it once you added in the flour, it sounds like it turned out! Was the texture still really soft and tender? The batter is quite thick because of the sour cream, which doesn’t really loosen the batter much. Hopefully we’ll be able to figure it out together!
how thick is the cake batter supposed to be? i had to spread it out into the pans and it held it’s shape pretty sturdily
Hi, what substitute can I use for cake flour?
Hi Tasha,
Great question—if you don’t have cake flour on hand, you can totally use all-purpose flour instead. The texture will be a little less soft and tender, but the cake will still bake up beautifully!
If you want to get closer to the texture of cake flour, you can make a quick substitute: for every 1 cup (120g) of all-purpose flour, remove 2 tablespoons (about 15g) and replace it with 2 tablespoons of cornstarch (15g). Sift it all together to keep things nice and fluffy.
Let me know how your matcha cake turns out—I’d love to hear!