5 Dessert Ideas to Make With Matcha Right Now
We have gathered a few matcha dessert ideas that will make your taste buds very happy. Join us and start cooking.
What is matcha?
If you don’t already know, matcha is a delicious refined powder that is made from green tea leaves. Matcha is usually enjoyed by itself as a tea, and people often drink it with milk for a sweet treat. Apart from its various benefits, matcha can also be a great addition to your everyday desserts.
Matcha Dessert Ideas
Matcha is a great ingredient to incorporate into your common desserts. The flavor of matcha is not too sweet, but still rich. It’s bold, but still subtle enough where it doesn’t overpower the entire dessert. Here are popular desserts that can be instantly matcha-fied.
1. Ice cream
Matcha ice cream, also commonly called green tea ice cream, is widely popular because of its rich and delicious flavor. Perhaps the most popular form of this ice cream is in a frozen yogurt type swirl inside a taiyaki cone. You can easily make it the same way you would with any ice cream recipe. All it takes is matcha, cream, and some free time on your hands.
2. Crepe cakes
It’s crepe, but in cake form. Crepes are a delicate dessert that originated in Paris, France. Think of it like a very flat pancake with various fruits and whipped cream packed inside. It’s a build your own type of dessert, but common toppings include bananas, strawberries, berries, chocolate syrup, and caramel. Crepes are made with flour, milk, sugar, and water.
Crepe cakes are a bunch of crepes stacked on top of each other with whipped cream between each layer. The cake is topped with sprinkled powdered sugar. It’s quite the tedious process, but totally worth it. Matcha crepe cakes are made the same way, except the individual crepes are matcha flavored. The top of the cake is sprinkled with matcha powder as well.
3. Macarons
Macarons are another unique dessert that can take on many shapes and flavors. They’re in the form of a mini cookie sandwich with a sweet cream filling. The cookie itself is incredibly delicate and light that you get a nice, airy crunch when you bite into one. They’re are hundreds of combos you can have with macarons, especially since you can change the filling flavor as well. Some common and traditional flavors include chocolate, vanilla, and strawberry. However over the years with new cultures adding their own spin to macarons, many new flavors have changed the game such as thai tea, oreo, and of course, matcha.
Matcha can be a great addition to your macaron for both the cookie and the filling because of the rich and earthy flavor matcha has. You should be warned about baking these at home, however. Macarons are infamous for being quite difficult to make because of how tedious and delicate this dessert is.
4. Donuts
This is another dessert that can incorporate matcha in all of its contents. You can use matcha to change the flavor of the actual doughnut, but perhaps the real winner is in the glaze. Donut glaze varies in flavor, but it is typically made using powdered sugar and milk. Add in matcha to your glaze, and you get a donut with an earthy and velvety taste!
5. Mochi
Mochi is a traditional Japanese snack that is made from water and glutinous rice. Its texture is incredibly chewy, and typically takes on the shape of a ball. On its own, mochi is not sweet or full of flavor. It can be enjoyed as both a savory and sweet snack, depending on what you add to it. So, when you turn it into a dessert, it becomes a go-to treat for many because of its different flavors such as chocolate, strawberry, or our favorite: matcha. Oftentimes, mochi is filled with red bean paste or even ice cream, so add more dimension, flavor, texture, and sweetness. They are great compliments to mochi, especially since mochi is so subtle in flavor. Matcha is one of the most popular mochi flavors whether it's in the mochi, the filling, or the ice cream!
Baking Essentials for Cooking With Matcha
Now that you’re inspired, it’s time to get to the kitchen! If you’re gonna bake these matcha treats, you’re going to need to have some baking essentials. Here are some baking tools we recommend to start your dessert journey.
Chasen (Bamboo Whisk)
A chasen (bamboo whisk) is a special whisk made especially for matcha. It has fine bamboo bristles that help the matcha froth with water. There are different types of whisks, depending on the number of bristles the whisk has. Although it is relatively easy to use, the chasen is a delicate instrument that requires care and maintenance.
Here’s how to use a chasen:
- Soak the chasen in boiling water for half a minute. This helps soften the bristles.
- Fill a separate bowl with boiling water and add in your matcha.
- Whisk your matcha quickly in “M” and “W” motions until a froth forms.
- After use, put your chasen back in a bowl of boiling water for 30 seconds to clean.
- Run under hot water for a deeper clean.
- Allow the chasen to air dry thoroughly before storing
So, do you need a matcha bamboo whisk? Not necessarily, but it truly does the job better than anything else. It is made specifically for matcha, afterall.
DoMatcha - Bamboo Whisk, Traditional Japanese Chasen
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Sifter
A sifter can be considered a staple in a baker kitchen. Sifters, or strainers in general, are great because they help remove clumps from dry ingredients such as flour, cocoa powder, sugar, and matcha. Sifting your ingredients allows your them to incorporate better and easier when mixing, and ultimately results in an even batter.
Norpro 5534 Sugar, Spice Sifter Spoon
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Silicone Spatula
In general, silicone spatulas are great for both baking and cooking for various reasons. The material of the spatula itself can withstand high temperatures and doesn’t heat up or retain heat as opposed to metal utensils. Silicone spatulas are also non-stick, which is great for your sticky baking ingredients! Although it’s not necessarily matcha related, it’s still a great tool to keep in the kitchen.
MOACC Silicone Spatulas, 11 inch Large Heat Resistant Non-Stick Flexible Rubber
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