Mini matcha cupcakes with honey matcha frosting easy to make and loaded with antioxidant-rich matcha for a delicious, adorable spring treat! The green color is perfect for St. Patrick's Day!
This post was originally published March of 2016 and has been updated.
Spring is in the air, and I have just the dessert to help you celebrate the warmer weather and all things green - these cute mini matcha cupcakes! They're perfect for when you just need a little something sweet, and the green color is so pretty for spring.
Why You'll Love These Mini Matcha Cupcakes
Matcha lovers will adore these cute little cupcakes. The batter is infused with a heaping 3 tablespoons of matcha. Then they get topped with more matcha in the form of honey matcha frosting, that contains both honey and powdered sugar - just a touch of honey for a delicate taste that's not overpowering, with the structure of powdered sugar for stability. These cupcakes are so easy to make, and are a little bit better for you with a couple of pantry swaps and their tiny size.
Why Is Matcha Healthy?
You may already know that green tea contains antioxidants. It's got tons of free-radical fighting polyphenols to help keep your cells from getting damaged. Matcha is a powdered form of green tea in which the whole leaf is consumed, so it is super concentrated, meaning you get more of those powerful antioxidants.
Does That Mean Matcha Cupcakes Are Healthy?
Not saying these cupcakes are healthy, per se, but they do have the antioxidant power of matcha, and they're made with whole wheat flour and heart healthy vegetable oil. Plus they're adorably bite-sized! So you could do worse in a dessert!
How To Make Mini Matcha Cupcakes
Bake the Cupcakes
- Sift together the dry ingredients.
- Whisk the wet ingredients and mix them into the dry.
- Scoop the batter into mini muffin liners and bake!
- Cool them completely before covering with matcha honey frosting.
Make the Frosting
- Cream the butter, honey and almond extract.
- Beat in the powdered sugar and matcha, adding milk as needed to thin to a pipe-able consistency.
- Pipe the frosting onto cooled cupcakes and top with sprinkles or any other decorations you like!
Tips for the most delicious cupcakes
- Careful not to over-mix the batter, or cupcakes will be more dense and tough.
- Try not to over-bake the cupcakes, or they will be dry. A toothpick inserted into the center should yield moist crumbs and the tops should spring back lightly when pressed once they are done.
- Every oven is different. If you have a convection oven, they may take less time. If your oven tends to run a little cool, they may take more time. Adjust the bake time accordingly.
- Make sure the cupcakes are completely cooled before frosting.
Can I make full-sized cupcakes?
Yes! If you're making full-sized cupcakes, increase the baking time to 12-18 minutes. You may also need to use 1.5 times the icing recipe.
Did you make this recipe? Please leave a star rating in the comments!
PrintMini Matcha Cupcakes
Mini matcha cupcakes with honey matcha frosting easy to make and loaded with antioxidant-rich matcha for a delicious, adorable spring treat!
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 10 minutes
- Total Time: 45 minutes
- Yield: About 36 mini cupcakes 1x
- Category: dessert
- Method: baked
- Cuisine: American
Ingredients
For the Cupcakes:
- 2 ½ cups whole wheat pastry flour, sifted (or all-purpose flour)
- 1 ¼ cups sugar
- 3 tbsp matcha powder
- 3 tsp baking powder
- ¼ tsp salt
- 1 cup milk of choice
- 2 large eggs
- ½ cup oil, such as avocado or canola oil
- 2 tsp almond extract
For the Matcha Honey Frosting:
- 1 stick butter, softened (I like salted butter)
- 2 tbsp honey
- 1 tsp almond extract
- 2 cups powdered sugar
- 2 tsp matcha powder
- 1-2 tablespoon milk of choice
Instructions
- Heat oven to 350°F . Line a mini cupcake tin with liners.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer, or in a large bowl with a hand mixer, sift together dry ingredients (flour, sugar, matcha, baking powder, salt).
- In another bowl, whisk the the wet ingredients (milk, eggs, oil, almond extract) until combined. Add to the large bowl with the dry ingredients and beat on medium speed until combined.
- Pour batter into cupcake liners, about ¾ of the way full. I like to use a small cookie scoop for the mini cupcakes.
- Bake cupcakes 8-12 minutes. Cupcakes should lightly spring back on when the top is pressed once they are done. Remove from pan and let cool before frosting.
For the Frosting:
- Cream together the butter, honey and almond extract.
- Add the matcha and powdered sugar. Beat until smooth and well blended, adding milk as needed to thin.
- Scoop frosting into piping bag (or a plastic zip-top bag with the corner cut out) and pipe onto cooled cupcakes.
Notes
- Store cupcakes in an airtight container at room temperature up to 4 days.
- For regular sized cupcakes, increase the baking time to 12-18 minutes.
- Every oven is different. If you have a convection oven, they may take less time. If your oven tends to run a little cool, they may take more time. Adjust the bake time accordingly.
- Careful not to over-mix the batter, or cupcakes will be more dense and tough.
- Try not to over-bake the cupcakes, or they will be dry. A toothpick inserted into the center should yield moist crumbs and the tops should spring back lightly when pressed once they are done.
- Make sure the cupcakes are completely cooled before frosting.
Keywords: mini matcha cupcakes, matcha cupcakes with honey frosting, green tea cupcakes
Enza Palmer says
can you freeze the cupcakes then ice them when you go to eat them?
Summer says
I have no idea what I did wrong or what but when I made them they completely bubbled up out of the pan like the batter was trying to escape pretty much none was left in the liners. Then just to see if it was the pan or not I put the left over batter into 2 small mini cake pans same thing happened
Stephanie says
I don't have almond extract, what can I substitute with, or can I remove it from the recipe?
Kaleigh says
Hi Stephanie, you can replace it with vanilla, or just leave it out!
Phyllis Berry says
HI; Can you use 1 stick of butter in place of vegetable oil?
Kaleigh says
Hi Phyllis,
I don't see why not. I'd cream together the butter and sugar first, then add the remaining wet ingredients, then the dry ingredients.
Marie says
Cutest cupcakes ever! I don’t have whole wheat flour, how would the recipe be adjusted if I use all purpose white flour?
Kaleigh says
Hi Marie,
You can substitute all purpose flour just fine in this recipe! Thanks for stopping by!
Carissa McCutchen says
I have another question! I'm having a hard time finding Matcha Powder. I found it on Amazon online, but only 1 ounce was $10! Do you have any suggestions? Thanks again!
Kaleigh says
1 oz is much more than it sounds like, it is more than enough! You could also try the bulk spice and tea section at your grocery store or health food store!
Carissa McCutchen says
I'd like to make these for an upcoming 'Cupcake Wars' I hold with my girlfriends each Spring. I need to make them full size however. If I doubled the recipe, how many full size cupcakes do you think I would get? Thank you!
Kaleigh says
That sounds so fun! I think if you doubled the recipe, you'd get 18-24 full size cupcakes. Enjoy!
Carissa McCutchen says
Thank you, Kaleigh!
Lucy @ Globe Scoffers says
These cakes look like perfection. Great photos, I can't wait to try making them.
Kaleigh M says
Thank you Lucy, I hope you love them!
Amy @ Happy Healthy RD says
Those are the cutest cupcakes! I love the idea of making them for St. Patrick's Day.
Kaleigh M says
Thanks Amy, isn't the green just perfect for Spring? Happy RDN day!
thalia says
Love anything matcha related, and i bet these cupcakes are so delicious. They do look perfect!
Kaleigh M says
Thank you so much! They are pretty tasty! 🙂