made something really interesting today. a matcha ombre rare cheesecake with a matcha chiffon sponge base. i think this is so pretty seriously. how is it i've never seen such a design made using matcha? i think the zebra/bullseye design is pretty common, especially the rainbow one but not this, so i'm pretty impressed!


recipe is taken from xiachufang, a chinese recipe community. think of it like cookpad, but chinese. in there you can submit your own recipe, post creations that you tried using other people's recipes, subscribe to paid lessons or shop for groceries. its become my frequent haunt these days because the recipes are aplenty and they're all pretty good. i've tried a couple of them such as the lemon earl grey madeleines and earl grey cookies and they were sooo good.


this is very simple to make and yields spectacular results. slightly more work and more bowls to wash but well worth the effort. you can also make different versions of it using coffee, chocolate, raspberry or strawberry. i think a bamboo charcoal version will be pretty awesome as well if you're into that monotonous black grey or marble look.

recipe source : amanda @ xiachufang

(makes one 6 inch cake)

ingredients :

for the matcha chiffon sponge :
3 eggs, separated
60g caster sugar
1 tbsp matcha powder
pinch of salt
25ml salad or neutral tasting oil
60ml milk
60g cake flour

for the cheesecake filling :
125ml milk, heated
100g cream cheese or mascarpone cheese, room temp
175g whipping cream, whipped until soft peaks and chilled for use later
70g sugar
6 gelatine sheets, softened in ice water
1 tbsp matcha powder

method :

1. preheat oven to 180C. to make the matcha chiffon sponge, whisk together egg yolks and half the caster sugar until combined. add in oil and mix well.
2. add the matcha powder into the milk and whisk well. make sure there are no lumps.
3. add the matcha milk mixture into the yolk mixture then sift over cake flour & salt.
4. make meringue with egg whites and the rest of the sugar and beat until stiff peaks. fold whites into the yolk mixture and pour it into a 20x30cm rectangular tray or jelly roll pan.
5. bake for 15 mins, let cool then cut into 6 inch round.
6. to make the cheesecake filling, add the softened gelatine into the hot milk, whisk well to combine.
7. lightly whisk the cream cheese or mascarpone in a bowl then add the above milk & gelatine mixture in. stir in caster sugar and mix well until sugar is fully dissolved. fold in whipped cream.
8. prepare 5 small bowls. in each bowl add in 1 tsp, 3/4 tsp, 1/2 tsp & 1/4 tsp matcha powder respectively then add in a few drops of water to dissolve. the final bowl will be the white mixture hence there is no need to add matcha.
9. in the bowl with the 1 tsp matcha, add in 60g cheesecake mixture, to the 3/4 tsp matcha add in 80g cheesecake mixture, 1/2 tsp matcha to 100g mixture and finally 1/4 tsp to 100g mixture. the final white mixture will be 125g.
10. place the sponge cake into the bottom of a 6 inch cake tin with removable base or a mousse ring. pour the white filling onto the sponge followed by the lightest green mixture directly on top. the sequence is lightest to darkest so keep pouring one filling directly on top of the other to create a zebra or bullseye pattern.
11. chill cake for at least 4 hours in the fridge then use a blowtorch, hairdryer or hot dishcloth to loosen the sides of the cake tin.