Have you tried Matcha ? You may have tried it in a smoothie or in green tea ice cream. It's a special stone-ground green tea produced in Japan. It's easy to prepare and so good for you.
What makes Matcha special
Matcha is different from other green teas in that the tea leaves are covered 4 weeks prior to harvesting. This allows the plant to develop more chlorophyll which yields a more intense flavor and color.
After harvesting, stem and veins are removed so that only the fleshy part of the tea leaf is left. This is called 'Tencha'.
The tea is processed and kept frozen. When an order is placed tea is taken out and slowly ground using a granite mill. It takes 1 hour to grind 1 ounce of tea.
Health Benefits:
This tea has many amino acids (many of which are only found in green tea) which help to give focus and energy.
Because this is actually the whole leaf which is ground, it is as if one is 'eating' the tea. Compare this to the usual way of preparing tea where the tea leaves are infused in hot water and then discarded.
There is more antioxidants found in matcha than any other known food or drink.
Because the whole leaf is taken in the body, a cup of brewed matcha is equivalent to 10 cups of regular green or black tea.
How to Prepare:
Hot Matcha: the traditional way
1. Warm a bowl
Add hot water to a bowl. Gently swish until bowl is nicely warmed. Dump out water.
2. Add about 1/2 teaspoon of matcha to bowl.
3. Pour in about 1/2 cup of very nearly boiling water.
4. Used a bamboo whisk to whip up the tea and bring a frothy green foam to the surface. I've found the bamboo whisk works the best--regular metal whisks tend to leave lumps in the bottom of the bowl.
As an alternatiive, a blender can be utilized.
Matcha Smoothies:
1. Measure about 1 cup of your choice of milk, soy milk, rice milk ,or almond milk.
2. Add about 1-1/2 teaspoon of matcha, along with 1/2 cup of fresh strawberries or mango and 1-2 teaspoons off sweetener if desired.
3. Add ice and blend.
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