Iced Matcha Latte

I love matcha. It’s my favourite part of my morning routine.

I sip on my matcha latte while I get a little morning sunshine or red light therapy in. And with the hot summer weather starting here in Ontario, I’ll be switching from my hot version to this Iced Matcha Latte version.

Matcha vs. Green Tea

Matcha and green tea come from the same plant. The difference is how it’s produced and prepared. Conventional green tea is made with loose leaves steeped in hot water. The tea bag is discarded after steeping which takes a lot of the nutrients with it.

On the other hand, matcha uses the entire leaf. It’s made by grinding the leaves into a fine powder allowing all of the nutrients to stay in your cup.

Fun fact? One cup of matcha is equal to ten cups of green tea when it comes to the health benefits.

Matcha vs. Coffee

For our clients in The Clear Skin Solution, we recommend they temporarily avoid coffee while we’re working on their acne. Coffee can have a negative effect on the adrenals, increase anxiety, trigger insomnia and irritate the digestive system – which all tend to be big issues for our clients.

In place of coffee, we always recommend matcha. While it still contains about half the amount of caffeine as a cup of black coffee, it doesn’t give you the jitters, anxiety and heart palpitations coffee can cause.

Matcha has a slow release of caffeine that provides sustained energy thanks to the l-theanine found in the leaves. A rare amino acid, l-theanine helps provide an “alert calm” and promotes a state of relaxation.

Finding a Quality Matcha

There are different grades of matcha available on the market. The highest grade is grown and harvested in Japan under very specific conditions. You’ll know you have a higher grade of matcha by its bright green colour and non-bitter taste. Matcha tea is considered a luxury item in Japan and will have a higher price tag than a culinary matcha powder you buy from a big box store.

One of my favourite brands is Matcha Kari. Their tea comes from the Uji region near Kyoto, Japan which is prized for its matcha. They use small-scale farms where the tea leaves are hand-picked allowing for each leaf to be individually harvested at precisely the best time.

The growers then steam the leaves to destroy enzymes that would degrade the flavour and quickly air cool them to stabilize colour and aroma. The leaves are then dried, cut and sorted before being ground by rotating grooved stones. The grinding process alone takes two hours to ensure the end result is a very fine powder.

Matcha Kari’s tea is then graded and sealed in dark tins to preserve the nutrients and prevent oxidization.

Pro Tip: Store your matcha in the freezer to keep it fresh.

Benefits of Matcha

There are a number of health benefits to matcha. For today’s blog I’m going to focus on how it benefits acne sufferers and the common issues they struggle with (I am an Acne Nutritionist after all).

• Skin: Protects the skin from free radicals that promote aging and damage cells.
• Detoxification: Matcha gets its bright green colour from chlorophyll which increases phase II biotransformation enzymes in the liver. This allows for better filtration of toxins and hormones through the liver.
• Mood: L-theanine and EGCG are two compounds found in matcha that positively impact the happy hormones serotonin and dopamine.
• Energy: Provides a sustained release of caffeine without the hard and fast crash found in a cup of Joe.

Iced Matcha Latte

Simple, refreshing and delicious iced matcha latte perfect for sipping on hot summer days. Best part? It's great for your skin health, too.

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Prep Time: 5 minutes minutes

Total Time: 5 minutes minutes

Author: Katie Stewart

Ingredients

• 1 ½ cups non-dairy milk of choice I used organic almond milk
• 1 tsp Matcha Kari
• 2 tsp raw honey
• ¼ tsp pure vanilla extract

Instructions

• Fill a 16 oz cup with ice.
• Add milk, matcha, honey and vanilla to the blender. Blend on high for 30 seconds.
• Pour matcha mixture over the ice.
• Serve immediately.