Green Tea Cupcakes

It's been about 6 solid years since I studied abroad in Japan. There are certain delicacies that I miss such as Momiji cakes (cakes filled with sweet red bean paste) (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=957g4MjzH9A), korokke ( コロッケ ) (essentially a kind of croquette with a potato base and other meat/vegetables), and of course anything made with matcha 抹茶, the most finely ground green tea available. 

Items made with Matcha include anything that has green tea flavor--green tea drinks, snacks, ice cream, etc. Inevitably, even though cupcakes are super trendy right now, I can't seem to find a shop that specializes (or has even attempted) to produce Matcha cupcakes in Connecticut. 

Being the genki 元気 (lively and energetic) person that I am, I decided that I would make them myself. The biggest challenge was finding matcha. There are plenty of Asian marts that sell "green tea powder", but that's the sort of thing that you add to bubble tea for flavoring. Matcha is different, and you can usually affirm you've found it by its hefty price. The only place I have found that sells a preferable grade is Teavana. A 40 gram tin (approximately 1.4 oz) is $19.95. When cooking, this relates to about 8.2 teaspoons, or about 3 tablespoons (ouch!). 

My gracious friends Nina and Randy gave me the rest of their 40gram tin (approximately 1.5 tablespoons), and I was able to make 12 matcha flavored cupcakes with matcha buttercream frosting. Here is the recipe that I used. Considering the price of matcha, the next time I will probably make them is on my next birthday...in July. 

Recipe for: 12 cupcakes

Ingredients:
1 stick of unsalted butter, room temperature
1 cup sugar
1 large egg
1.5 cups of all purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
A pinch of salt
1 tablespoon matcha tea
1. Beat butter on high, until soft (about 30 seconds)
2. Add sugar. Beat on medium-high until light and fluffy (about 3 minutes)
3. Add eggs/egg yolks one at a time. (I put the egg white in first, then the yolk, beating 30 seconds between each)
4. Whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt in a bowl. Add to batter and mix to combine.
5. Mix matcha in with milk. Add to batter and mix until they combine.

6. Scoop batter into cupcake papers. 7. Bake for 22-25 minutes on 350ºF until a toothpick comes out clean.

Matcha Buttercream Frosting

1/2 stick butter, room temperature
1 tablespoon half and half or light cream
1/2 tablespoon of Matcha powder
1.5 cups powdered sugar, sifted

1. Mix matcha in with the half and half or light cream to make a paste.
2. Beat butter briefly, scrap bowl. 
3. Add the sifted powdered sugar and matcha paste.  Beat until smooth.