Matcha Black Sesame Cheesecake

I am sure by now you’ve already seen way too many green desserts, thanks to the St. Patrick’s Day. And now I had to follow suit. I am sorry!

I prefer going for something with natural green instead of adding food colouring to my green dessert. Not that I don’t use food colouring, in fact, I use it a lot. Just if I have choice, I would prefer something organic, natural and unprocessed.

Matcha would have to be one of the great choices, and I always consider matcha and black sesame best friends. This cheesecake is a light yet very fulfilling way to end a meal. The smooth matcha and black sesame filling melts in your mouth and plays off the crunchy and nutty hazelnut shortbread crust beautifully.

Ingredients (8-inch cake):
Hazelnut Shortbread Crust
2/3 cup hazelnuts, toasted and roughly chopped
6 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, cut into small chunks
3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons all purpose flour
1/3 cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon salt
Cheesecake
2 packages of 8-ounce cream cheese, softened
1 cup sour cream, room temperature
1 cup sugar
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
2 large eggs, room temperature
4 tablespoons matcha powder
1/3 cup black sesame powder

Directions:
Preheat oven at 350F. Grease and line an 8-inch spring form pan.
Make the crust by mixing all the crust ingredients in a food processor, until the mixture resembles coarse meal. Press the mixture onto the bottom of the prepared pan. Bake crust for 15 to 18 minutes. Set aside to cool. Turn down oven temperature to 300F.
In the bowl of a standing mixer with a paddle attachment, mix cream cheese, sour cream, sugar and vanilla extract until combined.
Add eggs, one at a time. Blend for another 2 minutes until well combined.
Divide batter into two equal portions. Add 2 tablespoons matcha powder to one, and black sesame powder to another. Mix until well combined.
Pour the black sesame filling in the prepare pan. Dollop matcha filling on top with a big spoon. Use a knife to swirl the mixture together.
Position rack in the centre of oven and place cheesecake on it. Place a shallow pan full of water on the lower rack in the oven.
Bake for an hour, or until the edge of the cheesecake is puffed but the centre is still wobbly and wet looking.
Turn off the oven with the door slightly opened, let the cheesecake sit in the oven to cool completely, at least an hour.
Remove from the oven. Chill for overnight.
Sprinkle the remaining matcha powder on top of the cake before serving.

23 comments

  1. Excellent recipe with a great balance of flavors. I have made this twice and get rave compliments each time. Thank you.

  2. This had me drooling! I’m planning on making this for a friend’s birthday and I have two questions: How tall is the cake? I don’t have a springform pan so I was planning on using strips of parchment to lift it out. And, what brand of black sesame powder do you use? I’ve never used black sesame powder for baking!

    1. Hi Erica, the cake is about 2-inch tall including the crust. I have never tried to lift out a cheesecake with parchment strips. Not sure how successful it would be. I just used a random brand I got from an Asian grocery store. I think any brands work! :)

      1. Thank you! Just to report, it turned out great! I ended up using foil to make the walls of the cake pan taller and the parchment strips to lift the cake out worked perfectly. Thank you so much for this awesome recipe!

    2. 2 tablespoons for the cheesecake, the other two for the sprinkling on top. There would be a very strong matcha flavor if 4 tablespoons matcha powder is added. But still okay if you like it strong.

  3. How beautiful is this!? I’ve been meaning to experiment a bit more with matcha and your stunning cheesecake is definitely calling my name. And there’s black sesame in here too! Winner! Thanks so much for sharing, Fanny!

    1. Thanks, amaryllis! If you decide to give it a try, please let me know how you like the recipe. :)

    1. Hi Fiona, I think most of the crusts would work. Because both of the green tea and black sesame batters are pretty liquidy, it’s hard to pour them in the cake pan in two layers. I would suggest you to “half-bake” the first layer, before you pour in the second layer and bake again. :)

  4. Thanks on sharing this wonderful recipe. Shall i bake the cake using water bath method ?

    1. HI Meemei, I use a “cheater’s” water bath method – Position rack in the centre of oven and place cheesecake on it, then place a shallow pan full of water on the lower rack in the oven. This way I can keep the moistness of the cake with no leaking problem. :)

  5. Hi Fanny, I just wanted to let you know that I made this cake over the weekend, and IT WAS AWESOME! I think it was the best cheesecake I’ve ever made. Thank you so much for sharing the recipe! :)

    1. Thanks, Lokness. Believe it or not, green tea is already pretty good, but it simply goes wonderfully with black sesames. Gotta try it with both together. :)

    1. Thanks, Heather! I just figured it wouldn’t go well with traditional graham cracker crust and thought something nutty might work. And I am happy that it didn’t disappoint. :)

  6. I’ve been looking for a perfect green tea cheesecake recipe. Yours would be the perfect one! Going with black sesames sounds wonderful!

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *