I am someone who loves drinking matcha tea in the morning instead of coffee. As much as I love matcha, some days I wish there was more I could do with the matcha powder . I created a delicious smoothie using my strawberry flavored matcha powder and some frozen fruit I had in the freezer!
Nutritious and Delicious
For those of you who may not know what matcha is, it is a different form of green tea. Green tea usually comes in the form of tea leaves, most commonly in tea bags, that are steeped in hot water to extract the flavor. Matcha is green tea leaves that are finely ground up into a powder. Matcha is the only tea where the leaves are consumed as part of the drink, not being steeped and later thrown out.
Now you may be thinking, why should I be drinking the ground up tea leaves when I can just steep my tea bag in water? Seeing as matcha is the ground up tea leaves you are able to consume the whole leaf, therefore getting more nutritional value from the higher antioxidant level found in matcha. Matcha, like other green teas, contains a class of antioxidants called catechins. Matcha is high in a catechin called EGCG (epigallocatechin gallate), which is believed to have cancer-fighting effects on the body. Studies have linked green tea to a variety of health benefits, like helping to prevent heart disease, type 2 diabetes and cancer. It was also looked at that EGCG may increase the rate of burning stored fat as energy with its strong thermogenic properties. Although there are many health benefits mentioned relating to matcha, the evidence in existing research is not enough to prove these benefits. Even though the research is not clear, that doesn't mean to avoid the food. If you are interested in having matcha and trying it, go for it!
If you have never had matcha and want to try it, I would highly recommend Touch Organic matcha powder packets. I have the mixed flavor packets that contain the original matcha powder, sweet green, mint, and strawberry flavors; giving you a variety of flavors to choose from!
Check out and try the NEW! Strawberry Matcha Smoothie recipe under the "Recipe" tab!