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With moist and chewy middles, white chocolate matcha brownies are for matcha lovers everywhere! These fudgy green tea brownies disappear quickly and are a total crowd pleaser. Includes a vegan & gluten-free option too!
Matcha isn’t just for tea! Its bittersweet and earthy flavor tastes delicious in brownies and baked goods too. Baking with matcha is one of my favorite ways to use it. It imparts a vibrant green hue and plenty of feel-good, healthy antioxidants!
Since my love for brownies runs deep, it only felt right to combine the two and create this matcha brownies recipe. But not just any brownie would do, I wanted a dense, rich brownie with a super fudgy texture – the kind that’s comforting, so addicting, and leaves you speechless. I’m proud to say these matcha white chocolate brownies are just that!
Matcha fudge brownies are like regular brownies, except the flavor is centered around matcha instead of chocolate.
If you haven’t baked with matcha before, you might wonder how the slight bitter matcha flavor doesn’t overpower the brownie – well that’s where the white chocolate comes in! The sweetness of the chocolate balances the matcha — so you only get a slight hint of green tea flavor in these treats.
These matcha blondies are dangerously good and disappear quickly, so be sure to set one aside before you announce they’re ready!
👩🍳 Why This Recipe Works
- Perfect crackly top
- Vibrant green color
- Moist and chewy texture
- Easy to make
- Earthy flavors
- Vegan & gluten-free option
- Dense and fudgy brownies
- A fun twist on a classic brownie recipe
- Perfect brownies with a green tea flavor
- Best matcha brownie recipe ever!
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🥘 Ingredients
These green tea brownies call for simple ingredients found at your local grocery store! Here’s what you need:
- Unsalted Butter: Fat, in this case melted butter, is what makes a brownie dense and fudge-like.
- White Chocolate Chips: Melted white chocolate make these easy matcha brownies rich without overpowering the flavor of the matcha. It allows the bright green color to come through. White chocolate is made from cocoa butter and sugar without cocoa solids.
- Eggs & Baking Powder: Eggs provide structure and bind the brownies together. Baking powder is essential for the perfect amount of rise!
- Vanilla Extract & Salt: Pure vanilla extract and a small amount of salt enhances all the other ingredients in these matcha tea brownies.
- All Purpose Flour: The ratio of fat to flour is what makes a brownie dense and fudgy. Less flour means a rich brownie which is why this recipe calls for only three fourths of a cup.
- Granulated Sugar: White sugar sweetens these green brownies!
- Matcha Powder: Matcha is a Japanese green tea powder made from ground green tea leaves. You don’t have to buy ceremonial grade matcha, but be sure to choose a high quality culinary grade matcha. The better quality the matcha, the brighter the color and better the taste will be. Lower quality matcha has a dull green color and a bitter flavor.
🍲 Ingredient Substitutions
- Butter: If you don’t have butter, coconut oil is a good swap. You can use salted butter too, but if you do, just omit the salt from this recipe.
- Sugar: I like granulated sugar in this recipe but you can also use coconut sugar, dark brown sugar, or light brown sugar. Your brownies will have a slightly different texture but they will still taste great.
🔪 How To Make Matcha Brownies
Preheat Oven: Preheat your oven to 320 degrees Fahrenheit. Line an 8 by 8 inch baking pan with parchment paper.
Melt Butter & Chocolate: In a microwave-safe large bowl, make your brownie base by melting the butter and white chocolate chips in 30-second increments until melted. Stir the melted chocolate mixture until smooth.
Add Eggs: Whisk in the eggs and vanilla extract. There’s no need to use an electric mixer, but you can if you want to.
Combine Dry Ingredients: In a separate bowl, combine the flour, sugar, matcha, baking powder, and salt.
Combine Dry & Wet Ingredients: Using a spatula, fold the flour mixture into the butter mixture until a wet batter forms.
Bake Brownies: Scoop the matcha batter into the prepared pan and smooth with a spatula.
Cook for 25 to 30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
Slice & Eat: Carefully remove the baking dish from the oven and let them cool before cutting into twelve brownies. I like to serve this sweet treat with green tea ice cream!
💭 Expert Tips
- Let the brownies cool in the pan before you cut them! No need for a cooling rack this time. It’s difficult to slice warm brownies neatly. If you chill the brownies in the fridge overnight and use a sharp knife and they will be very easy to cut!
- Make sure to use the best matcha powder you can find – ceremonial grade tends to have a better taste in sweet treats than culinary grade.
- For best results, sift the flour and matcha powder together in the mixing bowl to avoid clumps.
- This may seem obvious but don’t overbake the brownies! Check the brownies a couple minutes before they’re done and pull them out as soon as a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. If you overbake a brownie, it will be dry and cakey, and these treats will continue to cook slightly in the pan after they’ve come out of the oven.
- Make sure the white chocolate mixture is room temperature and not hot. You don’t want the eggs to cook when you add them.
- For a beautiful presentation, sprinkle the tops of the brownies with powdered sugar or matcha powder.
- If you like chunks of white chocolate, add 1/2 cup of white chocolate chunks to the batter before baking.
- To help your parchment paper stick to your pan, grease your pan with a little bit of oil before placing the parchment paper on top. The oil will help the parchment paper stick to your pan and lay flat.
📖 Recipe Variations
If you like to change things up a bit, try one of these delicious variations.
- Matcha Chocolate Brownies: Swap the white chocolate with dark chocolate chips and swap two tablespoons of flour with two tablespoons of cocoa powder to make matcha brownies without white chocolate!
- Brown Butter Brownie Recipe: Instead of making these green tea brownies with butter, make them with brown butter instead! You’ll just have to brown your butter in a small saucepan and cool it slightly before mixing it with the rest of the ingredients, then you can follow this recipe as is.
- Matcha Cheesecake Brownies: Beat 8 ounces of softened cream cheese with 1/3 cup of sugar, one egg, and a teaspoon of vanilla. Scoop half of the matcha brownie batter into the tray, then evenly swirl the cheesecake mixture into it. Top with remaining batter and bake as directed.
- Healthy Matcha Brownies: Swap the butter with coconut oil, the flour with whole wheat pastry flour, and the sugar with coconut sugar. Use less sugar by reducing the amount of sugar by 1/3 to 1/2 for an even lower sugar and lower calorie option!
🙌 Dietary Adaptations
- Vegan Matcha Brownies: To make these brownies vegan friendly, use vegan butter, vegan white chocolate, and substitute the eggs with ¾ cup apple sauce.
- Gluten Free Matcha Brownies: Swap the flour with a gluten-free all-purpose flour blend. I like Bob’s Red Mill 1:1 All-Purpose Flour for its gluten-like taste and texture.
🫙 Storage And Freezing Directions
- To Store In The Fridge: Store these brownies cut in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to one week, or on the counter for up to 3 days.
- To Freeze: Freezing these fudgy matcha brownies with white chocolate is a great way to extend their shelf life. Let the brownies cool to room temperature first. Place the cut brownies in a freezer-safe container or plastic baggie and freeze for up to 3 months.
- To Reheat: Reheat in the microwave in 10-second increments or let thaw in the fridge overnight and then reheat in the oven at 250-300 degrees F for 5-10 minutes until warmed through.
❓ Recipe FAQs
Matcha is a type of powdered green tea that originated in Japan. It is made from shade-grown green tea leaves, which are carefully ground into a fine powder. The word “matcha” translates to “powdered tea” in Japanese. There are different types of matcha but they can largely be grouped into two categories: ceremonial grade (higher quality, used for making tea) and culinary grade( lower quality, often used in food). Matcha has a really unique and distinct taste that’s earthy, rich, slightly sweet, slightly bitter, and even a little grassy.
I recommend baking with ceremonial grade matcha for its beautiful green color and superior taste, however any kind of good quality matcha powder will taste great! Even though ceremonial grade is made for tea, it has a more delicate and less bitter flavor than culinary grade matcha, so I find the extra cost of ceremonial grade matcha worth the price.
Yes! Matcha has a lot of health benefits, as it’s high in antioxidants (which protect the body from inflammation), contains L-theanine (an amino acid that helps to balance the jittery effects of caffeine), and may help support heart health as well.
Yes! Matcha has more caffeine than regular green tea, but still less caffeine than coffee. The caffeine content in matcha can vary depending the matcha grade and serving size. But, on average, matcha contains approximately 35 milligrams of caffeine per gram.
If you can’t find matcha powder, the best matcha powder substitute I’ve found is green tea powder. It will provide a similar earthy flavor, but won’t have the same vibrant green color. Alternatively, you can use dehydrated spinach powder, which won’t provide much flavor but will have that bright green color that matcha has!
Matcha brownies can be a healthier alternative to traditional brownies, but how healthy they are depends on the ingredients you use! If you make these brownies with less sugar and whole grain flour, and substitute half the butter for applesauce, you’ll end up with a much healthier matcha dessert!
One of these matcha tea flavor brownies has only about 200 calories!
Dry brownies are usually the result of over-mixing, over-baking, or not using enough moisture or fat in your brownie mix.
Over-baking: Brownies should be baked until they are just set in the center. If they are baked for too long, they can become dry and crumbly.
Lack of fat or moisture: Fat is important in keeping brownies moist. If your recipe calls for butter or oil and you either used too little or substituted with a lower-fat option, it can result in dry brownies. Similarly, if you didn’t add enough moist ingredients like eggs or liquid, it can contribute to dryness.
Over-mixing: When mixing the batter, it’s important to avoid over-mixing. Over-mixing can develop too much gluten in the flour, resulting in a denser and drier texture. Mix the ingredients until they are just combined, and no dry flour pockets remain.
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📋 Recipe Card
Matcha Brownies
With moist and chewy middles, these matcha brownies are for matcha lovers everywhere! These fudgy green tea brownies disappear quickly. Vegan & gluten-free option.
Servings: 12 brownies
Calories: 224kcal
- To make these brownies vegan-friendly use vegan butter, vegan white chocolate and substitute the eggs with ¾ cup apple sauce.
- Substitute the flour for gluten-free flour and ensure the baking powder is also gluten-free to make these brownies gluten-free.
- Optional: Lightly sprinkle the top of the brownies with matcha powder or powdered sugar
- ½ cup white chocolate chunks can be added to the batter before cooking if desired.
- Cool completely before cutting.
- For a low sugar option, cut the amount of sugar by half (then each brownie will have only 9 grams of sugar and under 200 calories).
- Store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 1 week.
Serving: 1brownie | Calories: 224kcal | Carbohydrates: 24g | Protein: 5g | Fat: 12g | Saturated Fat: 7g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 3g | Trans Fat: 0.3g | Cholesterol: 63mg | Sodium: 182mg | Potassium: 87mg | Fiber: 0.2g | Sugar: 18g
