Healthy Matcha Cake with Matcha Frosting
This healthy Matcha Cake is so light and fluffy, it only makes sense to top it with a thick, sweet, and rich Matcha Frosting. It doesn’t taste guilt free, sugar free, low fat, high protein, or whole grain at all!
When I was in high school I went vegan for about a year. I loved how it was a challenge. And surprisingly, I loved tofu. Strange, right?
The most memorable moment for me during that year was going to Barnes & Noble to buy some vegan cookbooks. My favorite cookbook at the time was Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World. It was filled with every sinful carby confection imaginable. I probably baked my way through the entire cookbook in a span of 2 months.
I found that with every recipe I baked, I wanted to eat the entire batch! Not just two cupcakes, and not three… the ENTIRE. BATCH.
At the time, I didn’t know why I felt that way. But after learning more about nutrition and doing some research, I finally discovered the reason behind me wanting to eat ALLLL the cupcakes: they were nutritionally unbalanced!
Most recipes call for processed all-purpose flour, lots of sugar, and vegan “butter.” Just a few things your tastebuds love and your abs hate.
My favorite recipe from the book was their Matcha Cupcakes. I decided to remake it. Only this time, healthier. I replaced the:
• white flour with whole wheat flour + protein powder
• canola oil with applesauce
• sugar with granulated erythritol + stevia extract
I also added more vanilla extract and almond extract for flavor, plus some extra matcha powder for a more vibrant green color.
Compared to the original recipe, this healthier Matcha Cake has fewer calories, less fat, less sugar, more fiber, and more protein!
And you know what that means? Unlike the original recipe, THIS Matcha Cake will make you fuller faster, and keep you full for a longer period of time. You’ll actually feel satisfied after one slice of cake, rather than the entire thing!
Don’t you just love the green color of both the cake and frosting?? I find it strangely appetizing… there’s something ’bout that green-on-green action!
This healthy Matcha Cake is light, fluffy, and moist. You’d never know it’s 100% whole wheat, sugar free, low fat, and packs a punch of protein!
And how could I forget the FROSTING?!? The sweet and creamy and deliciously rich FROSTING!
Just like the cake, the frosting is naturally colored a beautiful green from matcha green tea and matcha green tea alone. No artificial food colorings here! It may call for a strange grouping of ingredients, but I promise you, it’s just as smooth and creamy as those prepackaged tubs of Pillsbury frosting.
Of course, you’re free to frost the cake however you please — Vanilla Cream Cheese Frosting (maybe with a tablespoon of matcha added?), Vanilla Protein Frosting, Chocolate Protein Frosting, Strawberry Frosting, etc. 🙂
Healthy Matcha Cake with Matcha Frosting
Ingredients
Cake:
- 240g (2 cups) Whole Wheat Pastry Flour
- 32g (¼ cup) Arrowroot Starch
- 1½ tsp Double-Acting Baking Powder
- ½ tsp Baking Soda
- ¼ tsp Salt
- 112g (½ cup) Plain, Nonfat Greek Yogurt
- 4 Large Eggs
- 185g (¾ cup) Unsweetened Applesauce
- 1 tbs Vanilla Extract
- 2 tsp Liquid Stevia Extract
- 1 tsp Almond Extract
- 96g (½ cup) Granulated Erythritol
- 32g (⅓ cup) Vanilla Whey Protein Powder
- 2 tbs Matcha Powder
Frosting:
- 1½ cups Fat Free Cottage Cheese
- 4 oz Neufchâtel Cream Cheese (softened)
- 1 tsp Vanilla Paste
- 1 tsp Liquid Stevia Extract
- ½ tso Almond Extract
- 96g (1 cup) Vanilla Whey Protein Powder
- 2 tbs Matcha Powder
Instructions
For the Cake:
- Preheat the oven to 325 degrees and spray two 8" cake pans with cooking spray.
- In a small bowl, whisk together the whole wheat flour, starch, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the Greek yogurt, eggs, applesauce, vanilla extract, stevia extract, and almond extract. Whisk until smooth. Then whisk in the erythritol, protein powder, and matcha powder. Whisk until smooth.
- Dump the dry ingredients over the wet ingredients and whisk together until JUST mixed through. Be careful not to overmix!
- Pour the batter evenly between the two pans. Bake for ~24 minutes, or until the surface of the cakes spring back when tapped. Let cool completely.
For the Frosting:
- In a high-speed blender (I used my NutriBullet), add the cottage cheese and cream cheese. Blend until smooth.
- Add the vanilla paste, stevia extract, and almond extract, and blend again.
- Add the protein powder and matcha powder and blend until smooth. If it's too thick to blend, scrape it all into a bowl and whisk by hand, or use a hand mixer. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate until chilled throughout.
- Frost the cake, refrigerate for ~1 hour for the frosting to firm, then slice, serve, and enjoy!
Enjoy the green!
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With love and good eats,
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– Jess
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how pretty can that green be… the cake looks so gorgeous and delicious!
I’d rather have this than a cupcake any day of the week. So beautiful, what with that vivid green hue. Plus, I love the earthy-sweet taste of that lovely tea.
Ooh this looks delicious and so healthy. I’ve never tried matcha-flavored cake… I’ll have to try it out sometime!
YUM, that looks GOOD! Gorgeous pictures too! Now you got me wanting to make a green tea cake…
Love this! And I’ve been inspired to feature your cake in my Friday Food Fetish roundup and on Pinterest. I can’t wait to see what you come up with next and please let me know if you have any objections…
Of course I don’t object 🙂
Thanks for recognizing my cake!
-Jess
I really enjoy Matcha!! I was wondering what substitutions you would recommend to make this gluten-free.
I have not attempted this recipe with GF flours, but I have seen many other bloggers use these following GF flour mixes:
1) http://www.amazon.com/Pamelas-Products-Amazing-Gluten-free-4-Pound/dp/B001L4JH5I/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1331073995&sr=8-1
2) http://www.amazon.com/Bobs-Red-Mill-Gluten-Purpose/dp/B004T2TGSM/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1331074076&sr=8-1
Maybe you can try one of those instead of the whole wheat pastry flour.
If you try it, please let me know it goes! 🙂
-Jess
Hey Jessica,
I am currently a year 12 student studying food technology. I really loved the look of your recipe and it is a perfect fit for the research I am doing. So I am just wondering is it possible for me to ask you a few questions for my research?
Lin-
I’d love to answer a couple questions for your research 🙂
-Jess
Thank you so much Jess!
The theme of my design is Tofu festival and I am to create 5 dishes using tofu as an ingredient, 2 desserts and 3 savoury. so here are my questions:
1. what sort of desserts would you recommend that uses tofu as an ingredient and can incorporate both western and eastern styles?
2. why did you use tofu in your Matcha Green Tea Cake recipe?
3. what other types of tofu products would you recommend?
4. what are 3 tips you would recommend to make successful desserts using tofu?
Again thank you so much jess and hope this does not take too much of your time. Sorry for any inconveniences.
Line-
Sounds interesting! Here are my responses:
1. What sort of desserts would you recommend that uses tofu as an ingredient and can incorporate both western and eastern styles?
Even though I used tofu in this recipe’s cake, I would actually recommend using tofu in no-bake applications like mousse or frosting. It’s flavor is very neutral and can be overpowered with things like peanut butter and chocolate. My favorite recipes using tofu are my Chocolate Mousse, Peanut Butter Mousse and Maple-Cinnamon Frosting.
2. Why did you use tofu in your Matcha Green Tea Cake recipe?
Strangely enough, tofu works as an egg replacer! It adds moisture to the cake, while also adding bulk and some lift.
3. What other types of tofu products would you recommend?
Now that I am educated about genetically modified foods and the negative effects of GM soy, I recommend using organic tofu. For my favorite mousse recipes, I use organic extra firm tofu.
4. What are 3 tips you would recommend to make successful desserts using tofu?
Now that I only use extra firm tofu, I recommend opening the package, draining the liquid, giving it a rinse and then drain it again. Press the tofu block in between a few paper towels to remove the liquid trapped inside the tofu, then get cooking! When it comes to making savory dishes (like fried rice with tofu, always always always drain as much liquid out of the tofu as possible so it can get crispy rather than soggy).
I hope this helps! Good luck on your design! 😀
-Jess
Thank you so much Jess! it was very helpful. I will just have to reference you in my research and take some ideas from your recipes because they look absolutely brilliant, is that okay?
Gosh, I get so hungry just by looking at the photos and I will definitely try to make some at home.
Again, thank you so much for your help!
Lin
Lin-
That’s fine! Thanks for sharing 🙂
-Jess
Hey Jess,
Just wondering if there are any subs I could use in place of the protein powder? And if I would be able to sub in rice malt syrup instead of the honey/agave 🙂
Thanks!
The protein powder in the cake is essential for the texture (it acts somewhat like a flour). It thickens the frosting too. If you feel like doing some recipe testing, you can try replacing the protein powder in the cake with more flour. I don’t think the protein powder can be replaced though.
I’ve never used rice malt syrup before, but if it acts like other liquid sweeteners like honey or agave, then it’ll work just fine 🙂
-Jess
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I diligently followed the recipe for the healthy matcha green tea cake and the result is very disappointing. The batter seemed to lack moisture, it did not flow into the pan, but had to be spooned in. Not having baked with tofu and yogurt, I didn’t make changes. The cake rose some, but was hard and dry. Suggestions for improvement?
Hmmm that’s strange… I made this cake not that long ago and it worked out fine. Did you use a kitchen scale and use the weights stated in the recipe? And did you substitute any ingredients? The batter should be pourable, not scoopable…
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This is looking delicious. I would love to bake this for the coming occasion Thanks for sharing the recipe
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My daughter and I have made this together twice and both times the cake has turned out beautifully. We made it the night before for a breakfast cake for the morning, cutting down on the sugar. Thanks for this wonderful recipe!
Awwww thank you so much for making the cake!! I’m so glad you both liked it 🙂
Have an amazing week!!
Hello Jess! My friends and I attempted to make this cake and it turned out to look and taste like it came out of a swamp 🙁 Where did we go wrong?
Did you make any ingredient substitutions or omit anything?
Help, we are at a loss. The cake batter came out like low quality clearance bread that was rotting on the side of the road. The frosting was clumpy and smelt like vomit.
Excellent torture method 10/10, would make anyone being interrogated openly confess to their crimes. I think we impressed ourselves with our ability to make something so putrid.
Please contact me by replying to this comment if you want a picture of the cake to visually understand the suffering we went through eating it.
Did you make any ingredient substitutions or omit anything?