GREEN TEA CHOCOLATE CAKE WITH MATCHA MARSHMALLOW FROSTING
For my daughter Natalie’s birthday, I combined two of her favorite things—the color green and marshmallows—in this tall cake. Matcha, Japanese green tea powder, tints the marshmallowy meringue frosting and delivers a smoky flavor that balances its sugary fluff. It also deepens the chocolatey richness of the moist cake layers.
TIPS:
• You can buy matcha in many supermarkets now, but if it’s not in your local store, you can find it online or in Asian or tea shops.
• If you’re baking for a dairy-free crowd, try the soy milk variation that follows—pick up unsweetened soy milk while you’re at the Asian market.
makes one 8-inch layer cake
no nuts
GREEN TEA CHOCOLATE CAKE
- 1 teaspoon matcha (Japanese green tea powder)
- 1½ cups (201 g) whole wheat pastry flour
- ¾ cup (72 g) unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1½ cups (312 g) sugar
- 1½ teaspoons baking soda
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 2 large eggs, at room temperature
- ¾ cup (184 g) buttermilk, at room temperature
- ¼ cup (56 g) grapeseed or other neutral oil
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
MATCHA MARSHMALLOW FROSTING
- 4 large egg whites
- ¾ cup plus 2 tablespoons (182 g) sugar
- ¼ teaspoon cream of tartar
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1½ teaspoons matcha (Japanese green tea powder)
1. To make the cake: Position a rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 350°F. Coat three 8-inch round cake pans with nonstick cooking spray. Line the bottoms with parchment paper and spray again.
2. Stir the matcha into ¾ cup hot water until it dissolves; cool to lukewarm or room temperature.
3. Sift the flour, cocoa powder, sugar, baking soda, baking powder, and salt into a large bowl. With an electric mixer on low speed, beat in the eggs, buttermilk, oil, vanilla, and matcha water. Scrape the bowl. Turn the mixer speed to medium. Whisk, scraping the bowl occasionally, until the batter is smooth. Divide evenly among the prepared pans.
4. Bake the cakes until a toothpick inserted in the centers comes out clean, 15 to 20 minutes.
5. Cool in the pans on wire racks for 10 minutes, then run a thin-bladed knife between the edges of the cakes and the pans and turn the cakes out onto the racks. Discard the parchment paper and carefully turn the best-looking layer right side up. (The other two layers should cool upside down.) Cool completely on the racks.
6. To make the frosting: Place the egg whites, sugar, and cream of tartar in a heatproof bowl, set over a saucepan of barely simmering water (don’t let the bottom of the bowl touch the water), and whisk constantly until the sugar is dissolved and the mixture is warm to the touch, 4 to 5 minutes. A candy thermometer should register 140°F.
7. Immediately remove the bowl from the heat and whisk with an electric mixer, starting on low speed and gradually increasing the speed to high, until stiff, glossy (not dry) peaks form and the outside of the bowl is completely cooled. The meringue should hold a peak if you lift the whisk out of it. Add the vanilla and matcha and mix until evenly green. Transfer the frosting to a pastry bag fitted with a plain tip, or to a resealable plastic bag, and snip a hole in one corner. You may have to work in batches.
8. If the upside-down cake layers were domed, the domes should have flattened slightly as the cakes cooled. If not, and you’re going for a professional-looking finish, flip the cakes right side up and carefully trim the domes by running a long serrated knife in a sawing motion across the tops to create flat, even layers. (Go ahead and snack on the trimmings.) Place one of these cake layers, bottom side up, on a cake plate. Pipe one third of the frosting on top, starting ¼ inch from the edges and spiraling in concentric circles to the center. Top with the second layer, bottom side up, and press down gently so the frosting reaches the edges of the cakes. Pipe on half of the remaining frosting in the same manner, then top with the last layer, rounded side up. Press down gently to squeeze the frosting to the edges. Pipe the remaining frosting on top in the same way and smooth the spiral, swooping the frosting into peaks, if you’d like.
9. You can serve the cake right away, but it’ll be hard to make clean cuts. It’s better to refrigerate it until the frosting sets, at least 2 hours. Bring to cool room temperature before slicing.
MAKE AHEAD
The cake layers will keep at room temperature for up to 3 days or in the freezer for up to 1 month. The frosted cake will keep for up to 1 day in the refrigerator.
GREEN TEA SOY MILK CHOCOLATE CAKE
Omit the baking soda; increase the baking powder to 2 teaspoons. Substitute ¾ cup (204 g) unsweetened soy milk for the buttermilk.