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two squares of cake topped with pistachio and coconut on a white plate.
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Vegan Butter Mochi Cake (with Matcha option!)

This stretchy, chewy, and sweet Matcha Butter Mochi Cake is a vegan and gluten-free take on a beloved Japanese-Hawaiian dessert.
Course: baked goods, Dessert
Cuisine: Japanese
Author: Remy Park

Ingredients

  • 3-5 oz silken tofu
  • 1/4 cup vegan butter or use coconut oil
  • 1 cup organic cane sugar
  • 2 cans full-fat coconut milk or evaporated coconut milk
  • 1 lb glutinous rice flour
  • 2 tsp baking powder
  • 2 tsp vanilla bean paste
  • 1 tbsp ceremonial grade matcha powder
  • 1/4 tsp salt kosher
  • 2 tbsp pistachios finely chopped
  • 1/4 cup unsweetened coconut

Instructions

  • Preheat your oven to 350. 
  • Line and grease a 10x10 square baking pan with parchment paper, then vegan butter or coconut oil.
  • First, we're going to break down the tofu. You can do this in a food processor or simply pass it through a sieve to get a nice, smooth liquid!
  • Next, melt the butter over low heat in a saucepan. Once the butter is mostly melted, remove from heat, add the sugar, coconut milk, tofu, vanilla bean paste, or extract, and whisk until evenly incorporated. Don't whisk too vigorously--avoid creating too many bubbles! Set the wet ingredients aside. 
  • In a large bowl, sift in your dry ingredients--matcha powder, glutinous rice flour, baking powder, and salt. Add your melted butter mixture to the dry ingredients and stir with a rubber spatula until completely smooth.
  • Transfer your mixture to your prepared pan and tap the pan on a hard surface to remove any air bubbles. If desired, cover the surface with your pistachio and coconut mixture.
  • Bake in the oven for 1 hour, until the surface is golden brown. Let cool completely, then cut into small squares. Traditionally, it is cut into 24 pieces!

Notes

Secrets to Success

  • Where to Find Glutinous Rice Flour (Mochiko flour):  You can find mochiko or glutinous rice flour at Japanese grocery stores and even Safeway or Whole Foods in the ethnic/Asian section. I recommend the Koda Farms brand, it's a family-owned Japanese brand my grandma always uses. Traditionally the recipe is made with 1 box of mochiko, which is about a pound. And no, you cannot replace this with regular white rice flour or other rice flour, it must be this sweet, glutinous rice flour to achieve the right texture! You can also order it on Amazon!
  • Alternative Flavors: The great part about mochi is that you can flavor them in dozens of delicious ways. For example, other common flavours include ube, chocolate, and fruit or berry flavors.
  • Recipe Tips: Keep these key tips in mind when making your matcha mochi cake.
    • Don't be shy with the butter or greasing of the pan for easy removal.
    • Make sure the tofu is blended or pushed through a sieve so it's superfine with no lumps.
    • Be patient, and make sure you get all lumps out of the batter before baking. It's worth it, I promise!
    • If you want to add coconut or pistachio on top of the cake, do so before baking, as it helps it stick to the surface.
    • Let cool COMPLETELY before cutting.