Swirls of matcha, almond and chocolate create the perfect loaf
Friday, March 11th, is a big day – it’s THE kittens’ first birthday. Remember, when I first told you about them? Well, they’re still part of the crazy TEB clan. It’s been a wild year filled with first vet appointments, first outdoor trips (yes – they have leashes!) and first encounters with other cats (lots of hateful words shared!)
Each kitten is different and it’s hard to believe they’re siblings. In alphabetical order, here’s a brief overview of each:
Maggie (otherwise known as Margaret, Margarette, Maggot) is the princess of the crew. She drinks water with her paws in the bowl and is not a huge fan of the outdoors.
Millie (formal name- Mildred, teasing name- Mildew) is known for her sweet nature. She’s the most likely to come to you for love.
Pierre (also know as Peter, Pete, Male) is the only boy. Some may say he’s my favorite, but I don’t have one (really! I don’t!) He can be crazy, but he’s also really loving.
Ralphie (Ralphetto) can be moody, but when she has a toy or is outside, she’s a really nice cat.
Zellie (given name: Oiselle, nickname: Zelda) is a wild woman. But when she’s by herself, she’s a cutie (she’s even been known to sneak up and surprise nap takers!)
Top Left: Ralphie, Bottom Left: Maggie, Middle: Pierre, Top Right: Millie, Bottom Right: Zellie
Now on to this week’s treat. With St. Patrick’s Day just over a week away, I had to bring you a green treat. I wanted to make something without food dye and matcha tea powder was the perfect answer!
This loaf actually exceeded my expectations. With a touch of almond, all of these flavors created a perfect loaf. If you’re looking for a green treat this season, be sure to give this one a try!
Ingredients
- 2.5 cups all purpose flour
- 1.5 cups sugar
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1 tbsp matcha powder
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 5 oz soy vanilla yogurt
- 1.33 cups cashew milk
- 3/4 cup canola oil
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 tsp almond extract
- 6 tbsp cocoa powder
- boiling water
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease two 9 x 5 loaf pans. Bring about two cups of water to a boil.
- In a medium bowl, combine, flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, matcha powder and salt.
- In a large bowl, combine yogurt, milk, oil and extracts. Fold dry into wet and mix until most lumps are eliminated. Transfer half of batter to another bowl.
- In a small bowl, combine cocoa powder and 6 tbsp boiling water. Once combined, add to one half of batter. Stir. Add one tbsp boiling water in matcha batter. Stir.
- Alternate dollops of batters in prepared loaf pans. Once batter is equally distributed, take a knife and do a quick zig-zag through batters.
- Bake for 45 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Allow to cool in pan for about 30 minutes. Then carefully remove from pan, transfer to a wire rack and allow to cool completely.
More Green Treats:
Aww your cats are just the cutest! And this loaf is definitely perfect for St. Patrick’s Day, Megan! Such a great idea to use matcha in here! I’m totally craving this for breakfast now. Sounds delicious!
Thanks Gayle! It would be perfect for breakfast 🙂
Happy birthday to your precious kittens! Love the bright green from the matcha in this loaf – looks spectacular!
Thanks Eva! I was worried the green wouldn’t be vibrant enough, but it turned out perfectly!
Wow. That is a bucketful of cuteness. And I’m not even on the bread yet. I’m still on the kittens!
The bread is stunning, Megan. Just…wow!
Aww – thanks so much, Mir 🙂
Well, how gorgeous is this loaf Megan?! Perfect St. Patty’s Day colors! Happy first birthday to the kittens!
Thank you, Mary Ann!
What a gorgeous loaf Megan!!!! You got some serious swirl going here. Looks absolutely delicious. I’ve been learning about matcha, though I’ve never baked with it yet. I loved “meeting” your kittens, they are adorable!
Thanks Allie! It was my first matcha baking experience and I’m happy to say it was a success 🙂
So cute your kittehs have leashes! They are adorable, Megan! Loving this loaf swirled with goodness! SO beautiful! Plus matcha and chocolate IN bread?! Yeah, that’s all sorts of winning! Totally need to try this! Cheers, girl!
Thanks Cheyanne! You should try it – this loaf was so much fun 🙂
Lovely swirls! So neatly sliced and what a nice colour combo! I have to try it out some day when I can get my hands on some matcha powder.
Thanks Rahul – I really appreciate it! & you should definitely get some matcha!
Oh, I loved meeting your kitties!!! Isn’t it funny how many nicknames they have? Our Izzy has a ton, too. Anyway, your loaf is stunning!!! Both inside and out. Well done!
Thanks Liz! I’m not sure how I come up with these nicknames, but I’m always thinking of a new one 🙂
OH MY GOSH this is incredible! Not only does it look so tasty, but it’s like a piece of art!! I must try this recipe – baking with matcha is such a good idea.
Thanks so much, Chrissa! It was really fun to make this loaf, but I was so worried I was going to mess the swirl up!
What a stunning idea of making loaf with matcha and chocolate. All of these ingredients together sound so delish!
Thank you, Anu! It was a great combo 🙂
Happy Birthday kitties! 🙂 I love hearing about cute kitties. <3 Zellie is probably gonna be my favorite. Hehe. Meanwhile, you chocolate matcha loaf looks so moist and delicious. Right on time for St. Paddy's. Love it! Pinning!
Thanks Demeter! I’ll let Zellie know 😉
This post makes me happy for so many reasons! Happy Birthday sweet kittens – you’re so gorgeous and you have a loving Mom! I love that you have so many nicknames for each one. We do the same thing! I think it confuses them… Goblin is always like “Mom, why do you keep calling me Puppy? My name is Goblin!”.
Now about this loaf – beautiful! I love how you swirled in the matcha. It’s lovely!
Ha ha! Thanks so much, Pamela 🙂 I’m sure my pets think I’m crazy (which I kinda am) by the number of names I call them!
Oh my goodness they are all just so cute!!
And this loaf is just the coolest looking thing ever! I am a HUGE sucker for swirls but a matcha swirl??? I’m loving it!!
Thanks so much, Ashley! I was really worried I was going to mess this up – I’m so happy it worked 🙂
It looks so pretty! I love that you came up with a green St. Patrick’s Day treat that was food dye free! I always want to make something green for the holiday but I hate to use food dye. This is so perfect! Pinned it!
Thanks Katie! I loved the idea of making a dye free green treat (although I still rely on food dye sometimes :/ )
Omg Megan, this isn’t a loaf this is edible art!!! Those swirls 😮 I just know if I attempted this I would over swirl and it would turn brown, I always get carried away. But this is so perfect and vibrant! Just imagine the reaction if you brought this to a party, and I love the flavors too. Happy almost b-day to your little furry pack, they are so cute <3
ha ha – thanks Natalie! I thought I might overswirl too, but I literally just did one quick zig zag!
Happy Birthday, Dear Kitty Cats! I love the combination of the chocolate and matcha. It is so pretty to look at!
Thanks Kathy! I thought it would be a tasty combo 🙂
This is the prettiest loaf of bread ever, and I’m sure so good with the matcha and chocolate!! And happy birthday to your cute kitties!!
aww – thanks so much, Aimee 🙂
This loaf looks gorgeous Megan! Pinning to try it!
Thank you, Mira 🙂
Oh my goodness your kitties are so adorable! They names are just the cutest, oh I am so jealous of you! And the marble loaf is so cool! You were able to get such a lovely swirl on top! Definitely saving this for later and I gotta go buy some matcha!
ha ha! Thanks Linda 🙂
I recently became obsessed with matcha lattes, and I’ve been needing to get my hands on some matcha to bake with! This chocolate matcha loaf will definitely be on my list when I get some 😀 it looks beyond delicious, and the swirl is so pretty.
I’ve been experimenting with matcha lattes, but haven’t gotten the right ratio yet, but I’m still trying 😉 This loaf was so fun and I hope you do try it!
Happy birthday to your kittens!! I love the combination of chocolate + matcha ( I think the next green tea frapp I buy I’m going to have to add chocolate chips…) and your swirls are just beautiful!!
Oooh – chocolate chips sound awesome in a frapp! Thank you 🙂
First of all, THE KITTENS. How adorable are they! And second, your chocolate matcha cake looks like a gorgeous piece of modern art – almost too beautiful to eat! Almost. 🙂
Yes – Kate, almost too pretty. I didn’t have any trouble eating this beauty 😉
Matcha and chocolate sounds very intriguing — I’ve never had that combination! I’m loving that gorgeous, green swirl — this bread is so pretty!
It was a great combo! Thanks Marcie 🙂
This chocolate bread looks so pretty and delicious with the matcha swirl!
Thanks Marsha!
Look at that swirl girl! So pretty and I bet it tastes AMAZING!
It was pretty delicious 😉 Thanks Jessica!
What a great St Patrick’s day treat.Those kitties are amazing too
Thanks John! You’re right, they’re pretty cool 🙂
Oh Happy birthday to the kittens!! This bread is just a wonderful idea 🙂
Thanks Zainab! I think they had a good day 😉
This is such a gorgeous loaf! I love the idea of adding matcha and it looks so perfectly with the chocolate too. This would be such a fun St. Patrick’s day treat!
I agree. Thanks Danielle 🙂
This loaf is absolutely stunning! I can’t get over the swirls!
aww – thank you, Amber!
Wow, Megan – this looks amazing! I love that you managed to avoid artificial coloring in creating your St. Patrick’s Day themed treat. Those swirls are mesmerizing!
Thanks so much! I was afraid the color wouldn’t be vibrant enough, but it was perfect 🙂
So gorgeous!! One of these days I’m going to try matcha.
You must try it, Jenn! Thanks so much for visiting 🙂
Aaaaw, so cute! Happy Birthday to your kitties! This loaf is SO pretty! I love the pretty swirls – chocolate and matcha is such a great combo!
I agree! Thanks Kelly 🙂
Your kitties are SO sweet! We have four cats and I love them all. Love all of their different personalities. THIS bread looks heavenly. I’ve never tried matcha. What a gorgeous color combo!
I may or may not have more than 5 cats! & I agree – they’re all different. Thanks Michele 🙂
What a stunning loaf! I wish we could get our cats on leashes – silly things think just because they were born in a barn they can just waltz outside, forgetting the few minor details that they’re geriatric, slightly obese, and coyotes occasionally wander near… Gotta love ’em though!
Oh my goodness, Rebeccah! We were able to introduce our cats to leashes when they were kittens, so it was an easier adjustment. I don’t think our adult cats would like them at all! Thanks for visiting 🙂