Matcha Tiramisu Recipe
If traditional tiramisu allures you with rum and coffee flavor, limoncello tiramisu highlights citrus aroma of limoncello, matcha tiramisu becomes unique thanks to the special flavor of Japanese matcha. It has a distinct taste that is often described as earthy and slightly bitter, with a hint of natural sweetness. From my experience, I’m sure matcha is a perfect match with tiramisu cream. Let’s do it.
Table of Contents
What is Matcha Tiramisu
Matcha tiramisu is a creative and delightful twist on the classic Italian dessert, tiramisu. With traditional tiramisu, it’s several layers of rum and coffee-soaked ladyfingers and a rich, creamy mixture of mascarpone cheese, eggs, and sugar. For matcha tiramisu, you’ll substitute matcha mixture for rum and coffee, as well as add matcha powder to the cream mixture.
Matcha gives the tiramisu a vibrant green hue and a unique flavor, which is more balanced because of the pleasant bitterness in matcha. This fusion of Italian and Japanese flavors creates a dessert that is not only visually attractive but also super delicious.
Tips to Choose the Best Matcha Powder
Matcha is a wonderful ingredient, but also quite complicated to learn all about it. Here’s my tips to choose the best matcha powder from supermarkets or Asian food stores:
- Grade of Matcha: Matcha comes in mainly two grades – ceremonial and culinary. Ceremonial Grade is the highest quality, intended for traditional tea ceremonies, made from the youngest tea leaves. It has a fine texture, vibrant green color, and a delicate, sweet flavor. On the other hands, culinary grade matcha, which is made from older tea leaves, is used for cooking and baking. It has a stronger, more bitter flavor than ceremonial matcha. To make matcha tiramisu, culinary grade matcha is the best option in term of price and flavor.
- Color: High-quality matcha should have a vibrant, bright green color. You should always buy green to bright green matcha because it indicates that the tea leaves are still young, which is sweeter and more aromatic.
- Origin: I was hesitated many times to pick a pack of matcha because of the origin. Usually, matcha powder produced by Taiwan or China is cheaper but not as high quality as Japanese matcha. If possible, I recommend buying Japanese matcha.
Ingredients
The list of ingredients for matcha tiramisu is similar to the classic version, except you replace rum, coffee and cocoa powder with matcha powder. Prepare:
- Matcha powder: The amount of matcha powder required for this matcha tiramisu recipe is just a bit, around 6-8g (1 tbsp). You’ll divide it into 2 halves, one for the cream and one for dipping the ladyfingers. Besides, do prepare around 1 tsp of matcha powder to garnish the cake when serving.
- Ladyfinger: This is the base of tiramisu. I used 18 ladyfingers in total.
- Cream cheese or mascarpone (100g, nearly ½ cup): This is the creamy base that gives your dessert its rich and velvety texture. You can choose between cream cheese or mascarpone, both of which have a slightly tangy and indulgent flavor. I chose a box of mascarpone cheese from Galbani.
- Whipping cream (125g, ~½ cup): The airiness of whipped cream helps to create a creamy but fluffy and light texture for the cream mix.
- Egg yolks (2): Egg yolks provide richness and help bind the creamy mixture together. They also contribute to the dessert’s smoothness and color.
- Sugar (30g or 2 tbsp): Sure, sugar adds sweetness to our cream mix. I always reduce the amount of sugar in my recipe, so you can taste and add more sugar if you like a sweeter flavor.
Now that everything is prepped and ready, we can move on to creating this creamy dessert.
How to Make Matcha Tiramisu
Here’s a simplified step-by-step guide on how to make Matcha Tiramisu using the listed ingredients:
Step 1. Making Matcha Tea
- Mix ½ tbsp of matcha powder with boiling water and use a bamboo whisk (if any) or a small spoon to whisk until dissolved. Let it cool down then keep in fridge until you come to step 3.
Step 2. Prepare Creamy Mixture
- Pasteurize the eggs: Use a double boiler (or place a bowl on top of the pot, making sure that the bottom of the bowl does not touch the bottom of the pot) to heat a mixture of egg yolks and sugar, beat it gently using a whisk to dissolve completely and reach a temperature of 140-160°F (60-70°C) for pasteurization. Make sure to whisk the mixture continuously and evenly so the egg yolks are not cooked.
- Mash mascarpone: Once the mascarpone comes to room temperature, in a mixing bowl, start to mash the cheese. Mash it until smooth and creamy. You can use a spatula or a whisker. Then, mix mascarpone cheese with ½ tbsp of matcha powder until it turns into a beautiful green color.
- Whisk whipping cream: In a separate bowl, whip the whipping cream by hand or with a hand mixer until it forms stiff peaks. To learn more about whisking whipping cream, refer to this article.
- Mix altogether: Carefully fold the whipped cream into the mascarpone mixture until fully incorporated. Be gentle to keep the fluffy form of whipped cream.
Step 3: Assemble Matcha Tiramisu
- Take a serving glass box or small glass to assemble the tiramisu in. I used a big glass box.
- Begin by placing a layer of ladyfingers at the bottom. Dip ladyfingers into the matcha tea mix you prepared at step 1, then place at the bottom of the glass box. Spread a portion of the cream mixture over the ladyfingers. Repeat the layering process until all ingredients run out.
- Gently tap the box several times over a soft tissue (don’t make it broken please) to achieve an even, flat surface.
Step 4. Chilling
- Chilling is compulsory for matcha tiramisu. It’s an important step. Cover your Matcha Tiramisu with plastic wrap or a lid. Then refrigerate it for at least 4 hours or ideally overnight. This allows the flavors to meld and the dessert to set.
Serving and Preserving
Before serving, sprinkle a thin layer of matcha powder on the surface to garnish your tiramisu. Don’t make that layer too thick because this fine powder can easily make you choke. To avoid choking, you should let the cake rest in 10 minutes for matcha powder to absorb water a bit.
Matcha Tiramisu can last maximum 5 days in fridge; however, it’s better to consume it as soon as possible. Always use clean spoon and knife to take a portion of tiramisu out, it will help to keep your remaining matcha tiramisu safe.
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Matcha Tiramisu Recipe
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 1/3 tbsp matcha powder
- 1/2 cup water
- 18 ladyfingers savoiardi
- 2 egg yolks
- 100g (1/2 cup) mascarpone cheese
- 125g (1/2 cup) whipping cream
- 30g (2 tbsp) sugar
Instructions
Step 1. Making Matcha Tea
- Mix ½ tbsp of matcha powder with boiling water and use a bamboo whisk (if any) or a small spoon to whisk until dissolved. Let it cool down then keep in fridge until you come to step 3.
Step 2. Prepare Creamy Mixture
- Pasteurize the eggs: Use a double boiler (or place a bowl on top of the pot, making sure that the bottom of the bowl does not touch the bottom of the pot) to heat a mixture of egg yolks and sugar, beat it gently using a whisk to dissolve completely and reach a temperature of 140-160°F (60-70°C) for pasteurization. Make sure to whisk the mixture continuously and evenly so the egg yolks are not cooked.
- Mash mascarpone: Once the mascarpone comes to room temperature, in a mixing bowl, start to mash the cheese. Mash it until smooth and creamy. You can use a spatula or a whisker. Then, mix mascarpone cheese with ½ tbsp of matcha powder until it turns into a beautiful green color.
- Whisk whipping cream in a separate bowl by hand or with a hand mixer until it forms stiff peaks.
- Mix altogether: Carefully fold the whipped cream into the mascarpone & egg mixture until fully incorporated. Be gentle to keep the fluffy form of whipped cream.
Step 3: Assemble Matcha Tiramisu
- Begin by placing a layer of ladyfingers at the bottom. Dip ladyfingers into the matcha tea mix you prepared at step 1, then place at the bottom of the glass box. Spread a portion of the cream mixture over the ladyfingers. Repeat the layering process until all ingredients run out.
Step 4. Chilling & Serving
- Chilling is compulsory for matcha tiramisu. It’s an important step. Cover your Matcha Tiramisu with plastic wrap or a lid. Then refrigerate it for at least 4 hours or ideally overnight. This allows the flavors to meld and the dessert to set. When serving, sprinkle a thin layer of matcha powder on the surface to garnish.
