What’s New
Today’s Green Recipe
As temperatures rise, my afternoon green tea routine gradually (or abruptly) evolves from a warming cinnamon matcha latte to a refreshing lemon matcha on ice.
This iced beverage not only tastes delicious, it also has outstanding health supportive properties.
Matcha Tea
– matcha is made from green tea leaves that have been finely milled into a silky, radiant green powder. When you drink matcha you are benefiting from the entire green tea leaf, not just the brewed water from the leaf. Matcha is considered amongst the highest quality green teas with one of most concentrated antioxidant contents.Even better news, a recent study out of Purdue University reveals that adding lemon to green tea can boost the bioavailability of catechins (the antioxidant compounds found in green tea) which have been linked to lowered cancer risk as well as improved heart and brain health by roughly four-fold.
Matcha Lemonade
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16 ounces boiling water
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4 tsp of matcha, or according to preference
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Juice of one lemon
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Zest of one lemon, I used chunky zest for this one
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1 or 2 tsp raw honey, optional
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A few fresh mint leaves, optional
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2 cups of ice
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Notes:
I generally like to use 1 tsp of matcha powder per 4-6 ounces of water. If you are new to matcha you may wish to begin with a smaller amount or add more water to suit your taste until you habituate.
Dressing matcha is a very particular thing. Some matcha drinkers have a strong preference to drink the beverage straight up – no milk, no cream, no sweetener, no funny business. My husband likens the taste of this hard-core approach to mud (I think he finds it a bit strong) and prefers a touch of cream and a bit of honey or agave – which takes the edge off.
The lemon and ice in this version act as a nice balance, reducing the potency somewhat, but you may well find that you prefer it with a touch of honey so you can make adjustments and see what works best for your taste preference.
Serves 2
Bring 16 ounces of water to boil (ideally, just to before the boiling point).
Place the 4 teaspoons of matcha powder in a large bowl or jug and add boiling water. Using a matcha whisk as pictured above (or an ordinary whisk) whisk to integrate powder and water.
Add lemon juice, lemon zest, honey or agave if using and mint if desired, stirring to combine with matcha.
At this point, you can either place the matcha mixture in a pitcher in the fridge to cool for a few hours before enjoying over ice or you can pour it directly over ice (the ice will cool the drink down considerably even without it being refrigerated).
Place one cup of ice in each serving glass (I used mason jars). Give the matcha mixture a thorough stirring before pouring the mixture by divided portions over each glass.
No matter how well you mix your matcha, you may find that some of it inevitably sinks to the bottom of the glass. I like to use a spoon while I drink my matcha to give it an occasional stir and make sure I’m benefiting from all those wonderful antioxidants!
This looks like a perfect recipe for summer, thanks for sharing this Kelly. I’m always looking for a way to drink my matcha. :)
Aww, thank you so much for this thoughtful and lovely note Sissi… you always make me smile with your kindness! I’ve never thought of adding alcohol to matcha – lol – but do share if you succeed. If anyone can, it’s you with your delightful cocktails! :)
Awesome! I didn’t know about the caffeine releasing so quickly – I have a ton of green tea laying around and I don’t drink it. Will try your tip for sure this afternoon…
thanks so much!
Thank you Magic… I find it pretty too :)
Fantastic recipe especially when headed for warmer months ahead! And love the color, I feel better just looking at it :)
Fantastic recipe especially when headed for warmer months ahead! And love the color, I feel better just looking at it :)
During the humid Summer days, I could definitely see me sucking back 1 (or 3) of these gorgeous green refreshers!
I find it so much easier to be fit and healthy this time of year because I love spring and summer produce so much and am much more active. It’s like a win-win!
Kelly – your photos are just beautiful and this drink sound like the perfect summer refreshment!
Kelly … You have been nominated for my NEW Food Stories Award for Excellence in Storytelling. Check out my site for the details (foodstoriesblog dot com).
I’ve still yet to try matcha – sounds interesting… that’s sure a very brilliant green colour :D
I love all the new functionality that you added. It looks great and it’s easy to use. Thanks for adding another healthy drink to the repertoire. I’m always on the lookout for new thirst quenching ideas.
Ooh, I love matcha but haven’t gotten my hands on any yet to use in recipes. Where do you buy yours? I bet this would be great blended into a frozen drink! And it would solve the prob of the matcha sinking to the bottom :)
Love reading all the health benefits you included in this post. I haven’t seen matcha in our local markets but will keep an eye out.
Kelly, I’m enchanted by this post. New functionalities, very useful and practical nutrition information and, most of all, my beloved matcha featured on these gorgeous spring photos! I think I will try fiddling with your recipe, trying to add a splash of alcohol (but it will not be easy because matcha is not easy to pair with alcohol: I have made several awful experiments). The bitterness and the beautiful colours of matcha are addictive.
Cheers to spring to you too, Kelly. I have not tried matcha yet, but I have to say that I do find the colour rather unappealing. The sprigs of mint are just gorgeous, what type of mint is it?
What a wonderful, colorful and wholesome ingredient you made into something even better here, Kelly. Thanks for sharing!
What a fantastic way to dress up plain ol’ matcha. I must say I’m one of those who like the hard-core “mud” version. This one sounds totally refreshing, esp after a hard-hitting 3 hour game of tennis … I want this so badly right now! If I could sip it straight from the screen ….
Great Recipe…
I have to make this soon, I am trying to start my day with fresh drinks…
This looks great!!
Ahhhhhhhhhhh, this is so utterly beautifully SPRING. <3 Xxxx
L O V E L Y
This looks great!
Looks beautiful! Lovely recipe.
Crazy- I just made a sort of ‘lemonade-green tea’ drink, and I’m sipping on it right now. Great thinking Kelly!! What a refreshing and healthy summer drink.
I still have yet to try matcha! I need to try it soon! Looks very refreshing and I love the health benefits!
That looks very refreshing, and indeed, packed with anti-oxidants! Makes me yearn for summer (it’s getting cold down here)…
Interesting note about lemons and their role in bioavailability of antioxidants. Looks good :-)
I have some matcha at home which I bought a while ago and never had a chance to use. I am wondering about the caffeine content as compared to a regular cup of green tea. I am very sensitive to caffeine, and try to keep it to my morning capuccino only, but your post is tempting me to give it a try…. do you know how it would compare to regular green tea?
GREAT recipe! And you have the good quality matcha too. I have seen dull green/light green matcha (probably low grade) these days and I aws happy to see your radiant green color matcha! This looks wonderful! I just made Matcha ice cream last night too. :-)
What a great recipe, this looks absolutely delicious and so beautiful! :)