These matcha cupcakes are bright, flavorful, and perfectly balanced. I love a good matcha latte and I almost always add cinnamon to my matcha because I find that matcha and cinnamon pair beautifully together. If cinnamon isn't your thing, check out my "variations" section for alternative ideas.
Matcha cupcakes are delicious any time of year, but are extra fun during the spring and summertime! The bright green color would also serve well during St. Patrick's Day.
If you are a matcha lover like me, you need to try my matcha green tea overnight oats.
Ingredients
I tried to keep this recipe as simple as possible when it comes to ingredients while still resulting in a moist, balanced, and flavorful cupcake. I love the combination of matcha and cinnamon, which is why I went with a cinnamon buttercream. You can easily add more matcha to the mix by adding it to the buttercream too! Check out my "variations" section for more info.
- Matcha Cupcakes
- Cake flour (or all-purpose)
- Matcha green tea powder
- Baking powder
- Salt
- Unsalted butter
- Granulated sugar
- Sour cream
- Vanilla extract
- Milk
- Egg whites
- Vanilla Cinnamon Buttercream
- Unsalted butter
- Powdered sugar
- Vanilla extract
- Milk (or heavy cream)
- Cinnamon
- Salt
See the recipe card for quantities.
Instructions
Make The Cupcakes:
Step 1: Preheat oven to 350F and prepare a 12-cupcake pan with cupcake liners.
Step 2: Combine flour, baking powder, matcha powder, and salt in a medium-sized bowl. Set aside.
Step 3: In a large mixing bowl, cream butter and sugar until light in color and fluffy, about 2-3 minutes.
Step 4: Add sour cream and vanilla extract and mix until well combined.
Step 5: Add half of the dry ingredients to the batter and mix until well combined. Add the milk and mix until well combined. Add remaining dry ingredients and mix until well combined. Be sure to scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed to make sure all ingredients are well incorporated. Set aside.
Step 6: Add the egg whites to another mixing bowl and whip at a high speed until stiff peaks form. Use either the stand mixer or a handheld mixer for this step.
Step 7: Gently fold about half of the whipped egg whites into the rest of the cake batter until mostly combined, then add the remaining egg whites and gently fold until well combined and no white streaks are visible.
Step 8: Fill the cupcake liners about ¾ of the way full using a 3-tablespoon cookie scoop (or a regular spoon). Bake for 15-17 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted comes out with a few crumbs.
Make The Buttercream:
Step 1: Add the butter to a large mixing bowl and mix until smooth.
Step 2: Add about half of the powdered sugar and mix until well combined and smooth.
Step 3: Add the vanilla extract, salt, and 1 tablespoon of cream and mix until well combined and smooth.
Step 4: Add the remaining powdered sugar and mix until well combined and smooth.
Step 5: Add the remaining milk as needed and mix until smooth.
Decorate:
Pipe the buttercream onto the cooled cupcakes and top with extra matcha powder right before serving (optional).
Hint: If you are sprinkling matcha on top of the frosting, make sure you do it with a sifter and wait until just before serving! The matcha powder absorbs liquid in the frosting which will make it turn quite dark after a little while.
Substitutions
- Milk: Use high-fat non-dairy milk if you don't want to use dairy! I highly recommend Oatly oat milk (full-fat or regular would be ideal).
- Butter: Use a non-dairy butter like Country Crock's plant butter. A neutral oil (like coconut oil) would work well here too! I've also had great luck using that brand in frosting.
- Sour cream: I love Tofutti's vegan sour cream for cakes.
- Cake flour: All-purpose flour will work great here too (use 1 ¼ cups instead of 1 ½)
Variations
- More matcha: add 2 teaspoons of matcha powder to the buttercream frosting and either keep or leave out the cinnamon.
- More cinnamon: Add 2 teaspoons of cinnamon to the cupcakes.
Equipment
- Stand Mixer (optional, can use a hand mixer)
- Hand mixer (optional, can use a stand mixer)
- Wisk attachment
- Paddle attachment
- Kitchen Scale
- 12-Cupcake pan
- Cupcake liners
- 3 Tablespoon cookie scoop (optional)
- Icing bag and tip (optional)
Storage
Store at room temperature for 3-5 days.
Freeze for up to 4 months (just be sure to thaw them in the fridge).
Top tip
Don't overbake your cupcakes or they will end up dry! Take them out as soon as the tops are rounded and you can lightly tap the tops without them falling.
FAQ
Yes! Check out my "substitutions" section above for my favorite dairy alternatives for baking.
Egg whites produce a finer crumb and don't alter the final color as much while baking (I really wanted the green to shine here!). I also love adding whipped egg whites to cakes because it creates a very fine, fluffy crumb.
Related
Looking for other sweet recipes like this? Try these:
Matcha Cupcakes With Cinnamon Buttercream
Equipment
- Stand Mixer (optional, can use a hand mixer)
- Hand mixer (optional, can use a stand mixer)
- Wisk attachment
- Paddle attachment
- Kitchen Scale
- 12-Cupcake pan
- Cupcake liners
- 3 Tablespoon cookie scoop (optional)
- Icing bag and tip (optional)
Ingredients
Matcha Cupcakes
- 1 ½ cups cake flour 177g
- 2 teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 2 tablespoon matcha green tea powder
- 2 teaspoon cinnamon** optional
- 6 tablespoon unsalted butter 84g, room temperature
- ¾ cup sugar 155g
- ½ cup sour cream 115g
- 2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ½ cup milk
- 3 large egg whites room temperature
Cinnamon Vanilla Buttercream
- 1 cup unsalted butter 224g, room temperature
- 4 cups powdered sugar 460g
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon*
- 2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- Pinch of salt
- 2–3 tablespoon milk or heavy cream
Instructions
Matcha Cupcake Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350F and prepare a 12-cupcake pan with cupcake liners.
- Combine flour, baking powder, matcha powder, and salt in a medium-sized bowl. Set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl, cream butter and sugar until light in color and fluffy, about 2-3 minutes.
- Add sour cream and vanilla extract and mix until well combined.
- Add half of the dry ingredients to the batter and mix until well combined. Add the milk and mix until well combined. Add remaining dry ingredients and mix until well combined. Be sure to scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed to make sure all ingredients are well incorporated. Set aside.
- Add the egg whites to another mixing bowl and whip on high speed until stiff peaks form and you can tip the bowl upside down without spilling. Use either the stand mixer or a handheld mixer for this step.
- Gently fold about half of the whipped egg whites into the rest of the cake batter until mostly combined, then add the remaining egg whites and gently fold until well combined and no white streaks are visible.
- Fill the cupcake liners about ¾ of the way full using a 3-tablespoon cookie scoop (or a regular spoon). Bake for 15-17 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted comes out with a few crumbs.
- Remove cupcakes from the oven and allow to cool for 5 minutes and then move to a cooling rack. Do not add the buttercream until they are completely cool.
Cinnamon Vanilla Buttercream Instructions
- Add the butter to a large mixing bowl and mix until smooth.
- Add about half of the powdered sugar and mix until well combined and smooth.
- Add the vanilla extract, salt, and 1 tablespoon of milk and mix until well combined and smooth.
- Add the remaining powdered sugar and mix until well combined and smooth.
- Add the remaining milk as needed and mix until smooth.
Decorate
- Pipe the buttercream onto the cooled cupcakes and top with extra matcha powder right before serving (optional).
Notes
- *You can add 2 teaspoon of matcha powder to the buttercream if you'd like even more green tea goodness! I recommend keeping the cinnamon, but would still be delish without it!
- **The pictures used don't include cinnamon in the cakes, so if you want a pure and bright green cupcake, I'd recommend leaving it out!
- Store at room temperature for 3-5 days. Can freeze for up to 4 months, just be sure to let them thaw in the refrigerator (they could get soggy if thawed at room temp).
Food safety
- Wash hands after touching raw eggs, flour, or batter.
- Never leave baking food unattended.
- Always have good ventilation when using a gas stove or oven.
