Matcha Muffins With White Chocolate Chips
These white chocolate matcha muffins are light, fluffy, and just sweet enough. The matcha adds a gentle grassy flavor, the white chocolate chips melt into creamy, gooey goodness, and the pistachio and maple sugar topping adds an amazing crunchy finish.
Kid Friendly Matcha Muffins
My wife loves matcha tea. Recently, she’s made it her mission to master baking using culinary matcha too- and well, there’s something magical about baking with matcha. One minute your batter looks normal, and the next it’s the color of spring moss and smells like a tiny tea ceremony is happening in your mixing bowl. It’s whimsical, it’s fun, and it’s delicious.
Her matcha muffins have instantly became one of our family favorites. They’re soft, slightly sweet, a little crunchy on top….everything you could possibly want in a muffin. Our daughter loves them so much that they’ve featured in “what was the best part of your day” during class multiple times.
Baking With Matcha
Matcha adds a nice light, grassy sweetness that pairs beautifully with the pistachios, maple, and white chocolate chips. The maple sugar and white chocolate also help balance any natural bitterness in the matcha, so the final muffin is mellow, warm, happy, and kid-approved.
Culinary Grade vs. Ceremonial Grade Matcha
For baking you’ll want to use a culinary grade matcha. Not only is culinary grade much more affordable than ceremonial grade matcha, it’s specifically blended for cooking and baking, which means the flavor is stronger and hold up better in the oven. It also gives you that fun, vibrant green color without overpowering the muffin.
Ingredients for Matcha Muffins
- 1 cup + 2 tbsp all‑purpose flour
- 1½ tbsp matcha powder
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- 1 tsp baking powder
- ¼ tsp baking soda
- ¼ tsp salt
- 1 large egg
- ¼ cup neutral oil
- ½ cup milk
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- ⅓ cup white chocolate chips
- 3 tbsp chopped pistachios –plus a little extra for topping
- 1–2 tbsp maple sugar –for the crust
How to Make White Chocolate Match Muffins
You’ll want to start by preheating your oven to 425°F.
Then, whisk together your flour, matcha, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a medium sized bowl until evenly green. In a separate bowl, whisk your egg, oil, milk, and vanilla until smooth.
Pour your wet ingredients into your dry ingredients and stir gently until just combined — stop as soon as it stops looking powdery.
Fold in the white chocolate chips and chopped pistachios. Let the batter rest for 10 minutes to thicken and help the muffins dome.
Divide into 6 muffin cups– fill them to the top– then, sprinkle each muffin with maple sugar and a few pistachio bits.
Bake for 5 minutes at 425°F, then without opening the oven, reduce heat to 350°F and bake for another 10–12 minutes. Your muffins are done when the tops spring back and a toothpick shows moist crumbs (not wet batter) when inserted into the middle of the muffin. Add another 2-4 minutes if muffins are still underbaked.
Cool them in the pan for 5 minutes, then transfer to a cooling rack.
Tips
-Use fresh, vibrant matcha and make sure you’re storing it in an air tight container between uses– you want your muffins to come out a nice, pretty green color.
-Wisk the dry ingredients well to avoid clumps, but avoid over mixing the ingredients once you add your wet ingredients in. This will keep the muffins light and fluffy.
-Add your topping right before baking so it doesn’t get soggy. You want your maple sugar and pecans to be crunchy.
-When you put your batter into your muffin tin make sure you alternate cups- that will keep your muffins from baking into each other when they fluff up.
Storing Your Match Muffins
Store in an air-tight container on the counter for 2-3 days.
FAQ
Can I use ceremonial grade match instead of culinary grade?
You can, but ceremonial grade has a more delicate flavor and is much more expensive. When baking the subtle notes of the matcha get lost in the heat– culinary grade gives you a better color and stronger matcha flavor. Save your ceremonial grade matcha for drinking.
Can I make these muffins dairy-free?
Absolutely! Swap out the white chocolate chips for a dairy-free version and use your favorite plant-based milk and butter.
Can I leave out the pistachios?
Yup. The pistachios add crunch, nuttiness, and a little salt, but the muffins are still delicious without them.
How strong is the match flavor?
These matcha muffins have a light, kid-friendly matcha flavor. It’s grassy, slightly sweet, and balanced by the white chocolate and maple sugar.
White Chocolate Matcha Muffins
Ingredients
Equipment
Method
- Preheat oven to 425°F.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, matcha, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt until evenly green.
- In a separate bowl, whisk egg, oil, milk, and vanilla until smooth.
- Pour wet into dry and stir gently until just combined — stop as soon as the flour disappears.
- Fold in ⅓ cup white chocolate chips and pistachios.
- Let the batter rest for 10 minutes to thicken and help the muffins dome.
- Divide into 6 muffin cups, filling them to the top.
- Sprinkle each muffin with maple sugar and a few pistachio bits.
- Bake 5 minutes at 425°F, then without opening the oven, reduce heat to 350°F and bake 10–12 minutes more. Add 2-4 additional minutes if muffins are still underbaked.
- Cool in the pan for 5 minutes, then transfer to a rack.
Notes
-Wisk the dry ingredients well to avoid clumps, but avoid over mixing the ingredients once you add your wet ingredients in. This will keep the muffins light and fluffy.
-Add your topping right before baking so it doesn’t get soggy. You want your maple sugar and pecans to be crunchy.
-When you put your batter into your muffin tin make sure you alternate cups- that will keep your muffins from baking into each other when they fluff up.
