Banana Matcha Cake

Craving a cake with the aroma of ripe banana, the grassy bitterness of matcha, and a layer of deep dark chocolate? This one is all about contrast: candied orange, intense ganache, coffee syrup, and a yellow-green glaze. It has several components, but each step is simple if you tackle them in order. Slice into it and you’ll find clean, distinct layers, soaked just enough. You’ll find the rest of my gluten-free cakes and entremets in the same category.

What is banana-matcha cake?

In chef Rommel Reyes’s version, it’s an egg-free banana loaf scented with matcha and orange (juice and candied peel), then layered with dark chocolate ganache and coffee syrup. The whole thing is coated in a yellow-green vegan white chocolate mirror glaze and finished with an egg-free vegan meringue.

The standout feature here is that everything is gluten-free, dairy-free, and vegan. The structure comes from an all-purpose gluten-free flour blend, while the richness comes from the ganache and glaze rather than butter or eggs.

A bit of background

Rommel says he made this cake because someone asked him to. On paper, the combination of banana, chocolate, matcha, and candied orange might seem a little unlikely, especially in a vegan, nut-free, and gluten-free version. And yet it works, precisely because each element has a clear role: the fruit for tenderness, the matcha for bitterness, the orange for brightness, and the chocolate for depth.

The main ingredients

The foundation is very ripe bananas: more aromatic, sweeter, and above all easier to blend into a purée (you want a smooth batter, not a lumpy mash). Orange juice and candied orange bring the citrus notes, with a touch of bitterness to balance the banana’s sweetness.

For the gluten-free flour, Rommel simply uses an all-purpose gluten-free blend. For the matcha, he recommends a pastry-grade matcha, though tea-grade matcha works too; it’s just more expensive.

The ganache is made with 70 to 80% dark chocolate (Rommel prefers Guanaja) and a plant-based cream with 25 to 35% fat (such as Silk). The mirror glaze, meanwhile, is based on vegan white chocolate (Felchlin or Pascha), with a natural yellow-green coloring added to the cream.

For the vegan meringue, Rommel’s version uses potato protein, but an aquafaba meringue works well too. And if you don’t have candied orange, you can swap in other candied fruits.

Technical notes and pitfalls to avoid

This cake has several components, so it pays to plan ahead. Rommel recommends watching the video: it saves time and makes the process much easier to follow.

One more practical note: the recipe is written by weight, in metric, for accuracy. If you need to convert it, use a unit converter, but keep the main idea in mind: this is a weighed recipe.

Baking the banana-matcha cake

Preheat the oven to 175°C. Use a 30 x 11 x 9 cm loaf pan lined with parchment paper; otherwise, unmolding will be a hassle.

For the batter, blend the bananas, orange juice, and melted vegan butter until completely smooth. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle, combine all the dry ingredients, then add the banana purée and beat until the batter is smooth and evenly mixed.

Once the batter is smooth, add the chopped candied orange and mix. Pour into the pan and level the surface with a spatula for even baking.

Bake for about 40 to 45 minutes. Check with a toothpick inserted into the center: it should come out clean. Once out of the oven, let the cake cool completely on a rack before handling it, otherwise it may tear when sliced.

Once cold, trim off the top, then cut the cake into four slices about 1 cm thick. If you’re not assembling it right away, keep the slices in the refrigerator.

Chocolate ganache

Heat the plant-based cream in a saucepan just until it starts to boil. As soon as it begins to bubble, remove it from the heat without letting it reduce.

Pour it over the dark chocolate, then blend with an immersion blender until you have a smooth, glossy ganache. Keep it covered and warm while you assemble the cake, ideally with plastic wrap, so it stays supple.

Coffee syrup

For the syrup, bring the water and sugar to a boil. Turn off the heat, then add the instant coffee, in that order. Set aside.

Assembly and freezing

Prepare the pan for assembly: lightly oil it (with spray or a paper towel), then line it with plastic wrap so you can unmold the cake cleanly. Place the first cake slice in the bottom, brush it with coffee syrup, then spread over ⅓ of the ganache.

Add the second slice, brush with syrup, then spread over the second third of the ganache. Repeat with the third slice: syrup first, then the remaining ganache.

Finish with the last slice, brush again with syrup, then press gently to level the surface. Transfer to the freezer for at least 3 hours; otherwise, the glaze won’t set properly.

Yellow-green mirror glaze

Melt the vegan white chocolate over a double boiler until it reaches about 50°C. Meanwhile, heat the plant-based cream to just below a simmer, then add the yellow-green coloring.

Blend the melted chocolate and hot cream with an immersion blender until smooth and glossy. To glaze, the cake must be cold: invert it onto a rack, then remove the plastic wrap.

Warm the glaze to 35°C, then pour it evenly over the entire cake. Use an offset spatula to remove any excess and smooth the surface. Refrigerate for 10 minutes so the glaze can set.

Meringue finish

The finish is a vegan Italian meringue, made without eggs. For piping, Rommel uses a Saint-Honoré tip, and he recommends watching the video for the technique, since the final shape really depends on how you pull the tip.

You’ll find more gluten-free vegan recipes in the same section.

Recipe developed by chef Rommel Reyes. Find his work on Instagram, his Substack newsletter, and his YouTube channel.