This Easy Matcha Pound Cake, made with cream cheese, is delicious on its own- no need to fuss with frosting or buttercream! Plus, it's made from 6 simple ingredients that you can find in most supermarkets, saving you a trip to the Asian grocery store. (It's cream-cheese enriched pound cake, so tastes moist, dense and rich, not light and fluffy. No need to faff about with graham crackers or melted butter.)
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⭐ Why This Recipe is a Star
- Simple: Most Matcha cakes require you to make a separate frosting or buttercream filling. This easy green tea flavored cake is made like a pound cake, so you just need to mix and bake. No fussing around with extraneous details, saving you lots of time! (To learn about how matcha differs from green tea, click here.)
- Convenient: You only need 6 ingredients that you can find at a regular grocery store or online. No trek to the Japanese market required!
- Naturally green: matcha gives food a natural, vibrant green color- perfect for Christmas or St. Patricks' Day!
Note: If you enjoyed this Matcha Pound Cake, you'll love other matcha desserts such as these Matcha Nama Chocolates!
🥘 Ingredients
You will need a few simple ingredients for this green tea cheesecake, which is 1 of my favorite fall baking recipes:
- 2 Tablespoons matcha powder: I use culinary matcha powder- and sometimes even green tea powder when I want to save money- instead of the more premium ceremonial matcha powder here. (Culinary grade matcha is slightly more bitter and a little less vibrant a green than ceremonial grade matcha but the heat from baking will affect the matcha anyway, so no need to be extravagant! Save ceremonial grade for other matcha recipes such as matcha cold brew.) You can use up to 3 Tablespoons if you prefer a stronger matcha flavor.
- 2 Cups of cake flour: sift the matcha into the cake flour, then whisk to mix. (Matcha powder clumps easily.) All-purpose flour would make your cake too heavy.
- 226g/ 8 oz salted butter: alternatively, use an equivalent amount of unsalted butter + ¼ teaspoon salt. Make sure it's soft but not melted.
- 150g/ 5.3 oz cream cheese: use full-fat cream cheese to prevent your matcha pound cake from becoming dry. I use Philadelphia brand or whatever brand is on sale. If you're like me and love bulk buying to save money, extra can be made into salsa cream cheese dips (made from scratch, not store-bought salsa)
- 1.5 Cups of white sugar (granulated): Do not use brown sugar, palm sugar, or coconut sugar. The flavor doesn't complement matcha and it would ruin the vibrant green color.
- 4 large eggs, room temperature: this is the only leavening agent we're using
Note: you will also need an electric mixer and loaf pan. Make sure all the ingredients are at room temperature before mixing.
Note: Some people like to add sour cream to ensure the cake is rich and moist. However, you would need to use more sugar- I've left the sour cream out to reduce the amount of sugar we need to add.
I serve as is but you could also serve with whipped cream or ice cream.
📖 Variations & Substitutes
- Regular Cream Cheese Pound Cake: substitute the matcha powder for 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract
- White Chocolate Green Tea Cake: add some white chocolate fevres into the batter (during the last stir of the flour.)
- Hojicha Cake: Substitute the Matcha Powder for Hojicha Powder. I would also use light brown sugar instead of white sugar to complement the roasted flavor of the tea.
🔪 Step-by-Step Instructions
1a. Preheat the oven to 325 F (165 C/ 145C fan). Butter a loaf pan or line it with parchment paper, as shown above.
1b. Whisk the eggs in a small bowl.
Sift the 2 Tablespoons of matcha powder and 2 Cups of cake flour, then stir till well-mixed in a large bowl.
2a. In the bowl of a stand mixer (paddle attachment or whisk attachment), beat the 8 oz salted butter till creamy.
2b. Then beat in the 5.3 oz cream cheese till smooth.
2c. Next, slowly beat in the 1.5 Cups of sugar into the cream cheese mixture, adding ½ Cup at a time (till the cake batter becomes light and fluffy.) Remember to scrape down the sides of the bowl.
3a. Very slowly, add the 4 eggs 1 at a time, mixing on low. (It's done in seconds.)
3b. Slowly mix in the dry ingredients (flour-matcha mixture.) Fold in by hand, to prevent the batter from turning heavy and dense. (Or use the lowest speed on your mixer.)
4a. Pour batter into the loaf pan. Bake in the pre-heated oven for about 80 minutes till a toothpick in the centre comes out clean. (You may need to cover with aluminium foil at the 40 minute mark, if the cake is over-browning.)
4b. Cool for at least 15 minutes before slicing and serving the delicious cake.
🥡 How to Store
Store in an airtight container at room temperature for 3-4 days.
👩🏻🍳 Expert Tips
Tip #1: If you accidentally overmixed the matcha batter, the best way to turn it around is to let the batter relax for 10 minutes. (Cover with plastic wrap whilst resting.)
Tip #2: If the top of the cheesecake looks like it's becoming too brown, cover it with aluminium foil at the 40 minute mark.
Tip #3: Sometimes the cake may take longer than 80 minutes to bake- do not be tempted to increase the oven temperature.
Tip #4: For smaller portions, you can bake it as mini cheesecakes in a muffin pan.
💭 Recipe FAQs
It has an earthy, slightly grassy taste. On its own- such as in cold brew matcha- it's an acquired taste. However, mixed with heavy cream/ dairy and sugar, like in matcha latte, it tastes phenomenal! To find out more about matcha, click here.
It's a type of green tea that is very popular in Asian countries for its unique flavor. Green tea leaves are entirely milled into a fine powder to make matcha, so matcha is more nutritious than the typical green tea.
🥗 Suggested Accompanying Recipes
Enjoyed this easy Matcha Cake Recipe? Please leave a 5-star 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟rating in the recipe card below! If you REALLY liked this Green tea dessert, please consider supporting it by buying me a bottle of soy sauce! 🙂 (No obligation though!) Thank you and have a great day!
Easy Matcha Pound Cake (with Cream Cheese)
Equipment
- 1 sieve
- 1 Stand mixer Whisk/ Paddle attachment
Ingredients
- 2 Tablespoons matcha powder Use culinary grade. You can increase to 3 Tablespoons for more green tea flavor.
- 2 Cup cake flour Sift with the matcha powder
- 8 oz salted butter 226g. Substitute: unsalted butter + ¼ teaspoon of salt
- 5.3 oz cream cheese 150g. Use full-fat
- 1½ Cup white sugar Use granulated. Anything beyond 2 Cups is MUCH too sweet. (I've tested up to 3 Cups.)
- 4 eggs Room temperature.
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 325 F (165 C/ 145C fan).
- Butter a loaf pan or line it with parchment paper, as shown above.
- Sift the matcha powder and flour, then stir till well-mixed in a large bowl.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer (paddle attachment or whisk attachment), beat the butter till creamy.
- Then mix in the cream cheese till smooth.
- Next, slowly beat in the sugar till the cake batter becomes light and fluffy.
- Very slowly, add the eggs 1 at a time, mixing on low. (It's done in seconds.)
- Slowly mix in the dry ingredients (flour-matcha mixture.) Fold in by hand, to prevent the batter from turning heavy and dense. (Or use the lowest speed on your mixer.)
- Pour batter into the loaf pan. Bake in the pre-heated oven for about 80 minutes till a toothpick in the centre comes out clean. (You may need to cover with aluminium foil at the 40 minute mark, if the cake is over-browning.) It sometimes takes longer than 80 minutes- do not increase the temperature even if so!
- Cool for at least 15 minutes before slicing and serving the delicious cake.
Notes
Note: the nutritional information is an estimate automatically calculated using the WPRM recipe maker and I am not responsible for its veracity.
Nutrition
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