Delicious Matcha Pancakes with Kuromitsu & Vanilla Bean Cream

If you’re the kind of person who enjoys matcha (Japanese powdered green tea), then you may have already had them in pancakes. But you might not’ve tried them with this unique combination of flavors. Rather than using a traditional maple syrup (for pancakes), we’re using kuromitsu and serving with sweet vanilla bean whipped cream topped with dehydrated strawberry sprinkles. Another tasty way to make good use of that matcha powder you bought!

Matcha for breakfast?

Yes it’s possible.

Not the tea, though, I mean eating it.

Though you could have the matcha tea too, you might get a stomach ache if it’s too early in the morning.

At least I do, I thought it was the weirdest thing until I looked into it more.

I can drink tea anytime after breakfast.

But if it’s the first thing in the morning I almost always get a stomach ache.

If this happens to you, and you don’t know why… it’s because of the tannins.

Do you have this issue?

If not, lucky you! 🙂

Though it upsets my stomach in drinks, adding tea to food isn’t much of an issue.

And that’s a really good thing!

Otherwise I wouldn’t have been able to enjoy tea in my breakfast baked goods like waffles, muffins and especially these matcha pancakes!

Though pancakes are associated with breakfast, you could also have these for brunch, lunch or dinner and dessert!

Depends on how much you’re craving pancakes I guess.

What makes these special is their delicate matcha (green tea) flavor.

Got any favorite matcha desserts ?

Some of mine include matcha purin, matcha cookies, matcha ice cream, matcha cupcakes

But before you try any of those, let’s finish talking about these matcha pancakes!

Matcha pancake toppings 

what do you like to top your pancakes with?

Butter, whipped cream, and maple syrup are my go-to pancake toppings. Which I also enjoy on my waffles.

Those three things work well on these matcha pancakes too.

But that’s so boring these days.

**Problem

– I eat that stuff all the time, like I’ve been the past few weeks.

**Solution

– Using kuromitsu (with Okinawan black sugar)

Homemade of course!

The same kuromitsu I use in my Kinako ice cream, matcha purin, and many other sweets!

Aside from that, I was in the mood to change up my usual vanilla or almond whipped cream to vanilla bean.

Same sugar to cream ratio (2 Tbsp to 1/2 cup cream), but with vanilla bean paste!

And to take that to the next level, some sprinkles of freeze dried strawberries.

Just like the ones that are in that Special K cereal.

I used to eat that stuff all the time when I was growing up.

If you’re wondering where you can get freeze dried strawberries, I’ve seen them at both Trader Joes and Whole Foods.

So we already know that matcha paired with kuromitsu (Okinawan black sugar) is a winning combo.

And we also know vanilla, cream, and strawberries go well together too.

But do you know that – all of this combined together is an even better way to mix and match?

They might be your new favorite way to eat pancakes, Japanese style! 

Have you had anything like these before?

A few tips to make your matcha pancakes and pancakes in general a success-

• Use whole milk so you get a rich flavorful pancake
• Don’t overmix your batter, just enough until you see a few lumps leftover. overmixing might make your pancakes more firm in texture.
• Avoid pressing down or squishing your pancakes, if you do, it may again result in more firm rather than fluffy texture
• You can make your pancakes as big or small as you want, but I like mine about 3-4in. wide and 1/2in.  thick , which means about 1/4 cup ~ 6 Tbsp of batter.
• Use butter for the pan so that you get a nice buttery flavor which pairs extremely well with matcha. Reapply as needed so your pancakes don’t stick/tear.
• Use medium-low heat so that you don’t burn your pancakes. You can use a spatula to check underneath, when light tan in color it’s ready to flip. Another way you can know if it’s time to flip is if there are small bubbles that are forming on the top side.
• If you’re going to use maple syrup, I’d highly recommend you get the real thing – 100% maple syrup, not the stuff that’s made with maple flavor and fructose syrup!!
• if you don’t have vanilla bean paste, just use vanilla extract or almond extract (just as good!)
• Double or triple the batch and freeze the leftovers so you can enjoy them in the next days or weeks to come!
• Got any other tips I missed? Leave them below!

Here’s a video of me putting these matcha pancakes together-Matcha Pancakes with Kuromitsu and Vanilla bean cream

How do you like to enjoy your matcha powder?

lmk in the comments! 

       

Matcha Pancakes with Kuromitsu and Vanilla bean cream

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If you’re the kind of person who enjoys matcha (Japanese powdered green tea), then you may have already had them in pancakes. But you might not’ve tried them yet, with this unique combination of flavors. Rather than using a traditional maple syrup (for pancakes), we’re using kuromitsu and serving with sweet vanilla bean whipped cream topped with dehydrated strawberry sprinkles. Another tasty way to make good use of that matcha powder you bought!

• Prep Time: 10 minutes
• Cook Time: 20 minutes
• Total Time: 30 minutes
• Yield: 6 people 1x
• Category: Breakfast
• Cuisine: Japanese

Ingredients

Scale 1x2x3x

Matcha Pancakes

• 3 Cups hakurikiko (cake flour)
• 2 Tbsp matcha powder
• 2 Tbsp corn starch
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1 1/4 cup whole milk
• 2 whole eggs
• butter (for the pan)

Vanilla bean whipped cream

• 1/2 cup heavy cream
• 2 Tbsp sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla bean paste (or extract, almond extract ok too!)
• freeze dried strawberries (ground into small pieces in a spice grinder)

Kuromitsu syrup 黒蜜

• 100 grams Black sugar (kurosatou 黒砂糖 , Okinawan black sugar)
• 1/4 cup water
• 1 tablespoon boiling water

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Instructions

Matcha Pancakes

1. First use a whisk to combine all the dry ingredients.
2. In a separate container, whisk the eggs with the milk.
3. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients until just incorporated.
4. Preheat one or two skillets on medium low heat.
5. Melt butter and add batter in 1/4 cup portions to form a small pancake.
6. Cook until the bottom is lightly tanned in color or you see bubbles forming through the surface and flip.
7. Remove from the pan once both sides are lightly tanned.
8. Repeat until all the batter is used.
9. Serve with vanilla bean whipped cream, freeze dried strawberry sprinkles and kuromitsu!

Vanilla bean whipped cream

1. Combine all ingredients in a bowl and whisk until whipped (stiff peaks form)
2. Set aside

Kuromitsu syrup 黒蜜

1. In a microwave safe bowl, mix the sugar and water together and try to break down the clumps as small as possible.
2. Microwave the bowl for about 2-3 minutes to melt the sugar.
3. If not completely melted, mix and microwave more in 15 second increments until most of the sugar is melted.
4. Add the remaining tablespoon of hot water to help dissolve any remaining pieces. Set aside and allow to cool.
5. Serve matcha pancakes with whipped cream, kuromitsu and top with freeze dried strawberries