Matcha Brown Sugar Latte Buttercream
My Matcha Brown Sugar Latte Buttercream is a loving tribute to matcha, meticulously designed for enthusiasts. As a custom Sugarologie buttercream, it’s built to prioritize flavor, texture, and stability. The deep, earthy notes of matcha blend seamlessly with a luscious base of condensed milk and brown sugar syrup. This buttercream offers a silky-smooth texture and fantastic stability, making it ideal for intricate piping and large layer cakes.
What is Matcha Brown Sugar Latte Buttercream?
My Matcha Brown Sugar Latte Buttercream is one of my Sugarologie Buttercreams, which means it requires heating a sugar syrup, which is then emulsified into butter.
Sugarologie Buttercreams:
- use emulsion chemistry to create the creamiest, melt-in-your-mouth textures;
- are built for stability and can pipe highly intricate designs and hold up large layer cakes;
- are uniquely flavored (or colored); and
- are less sweet.
So what makes Matcha Brown Sugar Latte Buttercream special?
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What is the texture of Matcha Brown Sugar Latte Buttercream?
My matcha brown sugar latte buttercream has a creamy, dreamy texture, much like my other Sugarologie Buttercreams. It’s made with heated brown sugar syrup, producing a smooth consistency with no hint of graininess.
I measure the aeration in my frostings, which refers to the percentage of air within the frosting. Sugarologie Buttercreams have have low aeration—around 12%. This means that in any given volume, 12% is air, while the rest consists of butter, sugar, and water. For comparison, highly aerated frostings like whipped cream can contain up to 50% air.
Aeration plays a key role in texture, impacting mouthfeel, greasiness, and spreadability. While my emulsion-based frostings have low aeration, don’t be deterred—air is just one factor in texture. In these frostings, the high ratio of silky, creamy syrups combined with butterfat creates a luxurious, melt-in-your-mouth creaminess.
What ingredients do you need for Matcha Brown Sugar Latte Buttercream?
1 | MATCHA POWDER
Matcha powder is finely ground green tea made from shade-grown leaves traditionally used in Japanese tea ceremonies. It has a slightly sweet, earthy flavor and comes in various grades. I recommend using culinary-grade matcha for this recipe, which is more affordable and perfect for cooking. When incorporated into this buttercream, matcha powder adds a beautiful green color and a rich, earthy flavor.
2 | WATER
When making the syrup, water is used to disperse and slightly hydrate the matcha. Since the matcha brown sugar syrup contains a high sugar content, primarily from the condensed milk, adding the matcha directly without dispersing it in water would cause clumping. This step ensures even distribution of the matcha throughout the syrup.
3 | SWEETENED CONDENSED MILK
Sweetened condensed milk is a thick, rich dairy product made by removing most of the water from cow's milk and adding sugar, creating a concentrated, sweet liquid. This is the milk component of the matcha "latte" and provides milk proteins, fats, sugars, and some water. It serves as the primary source of sweetness in the buttercream while also adding a rich dairy flavor from the milk fats and proteins.
4 | BROWN SUGAR
Brown sugar is added to the matcha syrup to add sweetness and a depth of flavor from the slightly molasses flavors. Feel free to use either light or dark brown sugar. You will get a more vibrant green using light brown sugar.
5 | UNSALTED BUTTER
Butter provides fat, stability, flavor, and emulsifiers for this frosting. The unique combination of milkfats (around 80-84%) gives butter its wonderful creamy and spreadable texture. Butter is integral for True Buttercreams because it also contains various emulsifiers, which hold water-based and fat-based ingredients together. I always use unsalted butter in all my frostings and add salt based on taste.
6 | POWDERED SUGAR
This recipe's second type of sugar is powdered (or confectioners or icing) sugar, which helps aerate and sweeten the butter. This is done prior to the larger emulsification step with the meringue mixture and ensures a silky smooth texture that is not overly buttery.
7 | VANILLA EXTRACT
Vanilla extract is a general flavor enhancer for baked goods, and here it is the primary flavoring element for this frosting. Extracts are generally interchangeable to make easy flavor modifications, but be sure to google it. (For instance, almond extract is very strong and you’d likely want to start with 25% the amount of vanilla.) You can use vanilla bean paste if you like.
Real vanilla extract tends to be dark brown, which can make the final frosting a bit cream-colored, so if you’re trying to minimize this, consider a clear vanilla extract. These extracts are artificially flavored, but I really like them in cakes and frostings.
8 | SALT
A pinch of salt will enhance the flavor and also balances the overall sweetness of this frosting. I typically use a coarser grind of kosher salt in my baking, but crispy salt bits are not appealing in frostings, so I use finely granulated salt. This allows the salt to dissolve more readily within the frosting.
Step by step:
How do you make Matcha Brown Sugar Latte Buttercream?
STEP 1 | PREPARE MATCHA BROWN SUGAR LATTE SYRUP
WHY:
This frosting uses the Sugarologie method, where a sugar syrup is emulsified into butter. The first step is to make the matcha brown sugar latte syrup by whisking together water, matcha powder, condensed milk, and brown sugar. I used a syrup made with sugar, water, matcha powder, and milk powder in earlier versions of this recipe. However, I’ve updated the recipe to use condensed milk, which simplifies the process since it already has a high ratio of dissolved sugar. This eliminates the need for a thermometer, and the combination of sugars from the condensed milk and brown sugar prevents crystallization, avoiding any grainy or sandy texture in the syrup..
BTW, I’m pretty sure you can use this syrup for other purposes, such as making boba drinks or other beverages, as it’s essentially a syrup that can be diluted into something else (water, milk).
HOW:
Add water (1a) and sifted matcha powder (1b) to a pan and whisk until you no longer see any lumps (1c). If I haven't sifted well enough, sometimes I have to use a spatula to smash the lumps out.
Add the sweetened condensed milk to the matcha paste (1d) and whisk until fully combined (1e).
Add the brown sugar (1f) and whisk until everything is combined (1g). It may look a bit granular from the sugar but that’s ok.
Turn your heat to medium/medium-low and whisk and cook until the syrup starts to bubble (1h). The brown sugar should dissolve and the syrup should no longer be grainy or granular. You can use a spatula to scrape the bottom of the pan to check, and if you still see brown sugar, cook until you no longer can. Scrape the syrup into a heatproof container to cool completely (1i).
STEP 2 | PREPARE FROSTING BUTTER
WHY:
A common complaint about True Buttercreams is their overly buttery taste and feel. To address this, I've developed a pre-conditioning method for the butter called "Frosting Butter." This technique aerates, pre-sweetens, and flavors the butterfat, ensuring an optimal creamy texture and temperature for emulsification, which is crucial for all True Buttercreams. The final buttercream is silky smooth and doesn't taste overly buttery. Additionally, frostings made with Frosting Butter are easier to re-whip without curdling after refrigeration or freezing.
HOW:
For proper aeration, ensure the butter temperature is around 60-70 °F (15-21 °C) (2a). You don’t need a thermometer, but when the butter is at this temperature, you should be able to slide the whisk attachment into it with moderate pressure (2a, inset).
Add the butter to your mixing bowl and whisk on high speed for about 3-5 minutes, scraping down the sides at least once (2b,c). Aerated butter will still be paler, more voluminous, and ball up inside the whisk (2d).
Add the first amount of powdered sugar in the recipe, along with the vanilla extract and a small pinch of salt (2e, f). These are just the initial amounts, so don’t worry about the final flavor now, as you can add more at the very end. Mix on high speed for another 2-3 minutes. You’ll notice that the butter is slightly glossier (that’s the sugar) but still has a good fluffy, voluminous texture that balls inside the whisk (2g).
STEP 3 | INCREMENTALLY ADD MATCHA SYRUP TO BUTTER
WHY:
In True Buttercreams, such as this one, emulsification is the core underlying process, primarily in this step. It allows us to create stable mixtures with an ideal thick and creamy buttercream texture that will not separate. It’s awesome because it allows us to combine ingredients that usually don’t go together, such as oil (or fat) and water. In this step, we’re emulsifying the aerated butter and matcha syrup. It’s stabilized with emulsifiers contained in the butter, which are components that link fat and water-based ingredients. Adding the matcha syrup incrementally allows us to build the emulsion a little at a time, which yields a creamy final texture.
HOW:
Ensure that your matcha syrup is at room temperature (3a) and add it to the Frosting Butter in 2 to 3 additions, whipping for about 1 minute after every addition (3b).
STEP 4 | ADJUST BUTTERCREAM FOR TEXTURE AND FLAVOR
WHY:
The whisk with all its wires, is much more efficient at emulsifying than a paddle. During the mixing process with a whisk attachment, however, we’ll inevitably be also mixing in air, which can collect into larger air pockets. Switch the paddle attachment (one with a silicone edge, if you can) to smooth the frosting against the bowl. You can repeat the smooth step as much as possible as it’s great to do this for any frosting applications.
HOW:
Give the frosting a taste. Add more vanilla and salt if needed. Switch to the paddle attachment (4a). Mix for about a few minutes and check the consistency (4b).
The final frosting should be super smooth and creamy with a melt-in-your-mouth texture from the dissolved sugar syrup (4c). That’s the emulsion working!
Make Ahead and Storage Tips
Leftover buttercream stores well in the fridge or freezer. It can also be made ahead of time for larger cake projects.
For a detailed tutorial, check out my How to Store Buttercream Guide.
Video
Read this before you begin
Measure by weight, if possible.
Measuring by weight is the best way for you to replicate my recipes. I develop recipes using ingredients (even liquids) measured in grams, which is why you see them listed first in the recipe cards. For measurements under 5 grams, I will typically only list the volumetric measurements (teaspoons, etc.), as most home scales are not precise for such small weights.
In most cases, I have converted grams to volumetric measurements (aka US customary units) for bakers who prefer this method. However, the measurements are not as precise and may have awkward proportions. The recipes should still work, but for the ultimate precision, try to use weight.
This is the OXO scale I use daily. I also purchased this budget version of a good scale, which I keep at my Mom’s house for baking. If you’re interested in other tools I use for my baking, I’ve compiled a list here.
Use room temperature ingredients.
All my ingredients should be used at room temperature, or 65-75 °F/18-24 °C. I will always indicate if you need something outside this range. If no details are given, room temperature is the default.
Pay attention to the ingredient descriptions.
I try not to be brand-specific, but I will always note an interesting result from a type of ingredient, be it negative or positive.
A specific note regarding salt: I use Diamond Crystal Kosher salt for everything on this site except for frostings. In frostings, you want the salt to dissolve more easily, and kosher salt tends to leave granules behind. If you substitute table salt (more finely granulated) for recipes that list kosher salt, you must use half the volume indicated in my recipes.
Substitutions are hard.
That’s not to say they’re impossible, though. For instance, in many cases, substituting reduced fat for whole milk (and thus reducing fat by less than 2%) will probably be fine. Using applesauce for oil or even Greek yogurt when sour cream is listed will definitely alter the fat content and adversely affect the crumb texture and density of the cake.
I experiment for hours to get these recipes to work for us. First, try to make them as written or use one of my tested substitutions, which I often dedicate a section to. Then, if necessary, you can make modifications afterward. Even then I would be pretty cautious, as substitutions are one of the hardest things to investigate in recipe development.
Read all the recipe instructions before beginning.
I’m in the “Pre-read the Chapter before Class Lecture” club... and I invite you to join! Baking new recipes can be intimidating, so let’s set you up for success. I want you to think about timeframes. Most fillings and frostings can be made ahead of time, and give you an extra day for mental space. Also, as you become a more proficient baker, you can anticipate and recognize steps. (“Oh, this has a meringue step, so I’ll need an extra clean bowl…” etc.) Ensure you go down the ingredient list and have everything at the right temperature.
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Matcha Brown Sugar Latte Buttercream
- 3 g (1 ½ teaspoons) matcha, culinary-grade*, sifted
- 14 g (1 tablespoon) water, warm from the tap
- 34 g (1 tablespoon + 2 teaspoons) sweetened condensed milk
- 36 g (2 tablespoons + 2 teaspoons) brown sugar, light or dark
- 126 g ( 9 tablespoons) unsalted butter
- 15 g (2 tablespoons) powdered sugar, unsifted is ok
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- a pinch fine sea salt
For larger quantities or to pair with a cake recipe, go to my Cakeculator and choose “Matcha Brown Sugar Buttercream.”
- 3 g (1 ½ teaspoons) matcha, culinary-grade*, sifted
- 14 g (1 tablespoon) water, warm from the tap
- 34 g (1 tablespoon + 2 teaspoons) sweetened condensed milk
- 36 g (2 tablespoons + 2 teaspoons) brown sugar, light or dark
- 126 g ( 9 tablespoons) unsalted butter
- 15 g (2 tablespoons) powdered sugar, unsifted is ok
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- a pinch fine sea salt
For larger quantities or to pair with a cake recipe, go to my Cakeculator and choose “Matcha Brown Sugar Buttercream.”
- 9 g (1 ½ tablespoons) matcha, culinary-grade*, sifted
- 42 g (3 tablespoons) water, warm from the tap
- 101 g (⅓ cup) sweetened condensed milk
- 107 g (½ cup) brown sugar, light or dark
- 378 g (1 ⅔ cup) unsalted butter
- 45 g (6 tablespoons) powdered sugar, unsifted is ok
- 1 ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- ⅛ teaspoon fine sea salt
For larger quantities or to pair with a cake recipe, go to my Cakeculator and choose “Matcha Brown Sugar Buttercream.”
- Make matcha brown sugar latte syrup.
Sift matcha powder into a small saucepan. Add water and whisk until all the large lumps are gone. Whisk in condensed milk until fully combined. Then whisk in brown sugar until fully combined.
Heat the syrup on medium-low heat until it starts to bubble, whisking the entire time. Use your spatula to ensure that all the brown sugar should be dissolved. If not, cook a bit more. Pour the syrup into a heatproof container to cool completely. - Prepare the Frosting Butter.
Add the slightly softened butter to the stand mixer bowl. With the whisk attachment, mix on high speed for about 2 minutes, scraping down the sides at least once. After mixing, the butter will be lighter in color, smooth, soft, and ball inside the whisk.
Add the powdered sugar, vanilla extract, and a small pinch of salt to the butter and whisk again at medium-high speed for another 1-2 minutes. - Combine the matcha syrup with the Frosting Butter.
Ensure your syrup is cool to the touch. Add the syrup in 2 to 3 additions, mixing for about 30 seconds or until combined. Once all the syrup has been added, mix on high speed for an additional minute.
- Flavor and smooth the frosting.
The whisk attachment introduced many air pockets, so switch to the paddle attachment and mix on low speed for at least a few minutes to smooth out the frosting. Taste the frosting and adjust for vanilla and salt, if needed.
Recipe Card - Adriana's Notes
*For this recipe, opt for culinary-grade matcha. It's more affordable and ideally suited for cooking, especially when mixed with other ingredients, ensuring great flavor for your buttercream.
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