4 Ways to Dream your Matcha

If you followed my blog for a little while you might know already how I can have matcha tea with everything - or almost everything: from cookies and cakes and various drinks to the simple cup of tea (green tea, of course). I tried green tea noodles too and proud of it. 

However, finding the right, high-end green tea for the many recipes I have in mind is not always easy, especially in Europe, therefore more than once my choices were less than satisfactory. Aiming high, I recently made a partnership with Dream Matcha for testing their 50 g package. Compared to most of the products I used before, especially for cooking, the fine matcha vivid light powder has a strong genuine green tea smell and taste. The precious powder is delivered in a paper pocket, which can be elegantly sealed after opening. It must be stored in a cool dry place.

Included in the category of 'Nootropics', this dream matcha can be used as a cognitive enhancer, without a particular medical recommendation. Consumed moderately, and in addition to a balanced diet and healthy lifestyle, it can help enhancing memory, creativity and motivation. It is recommended to both vegetarians and vegans.

Here are my four particular ways I decided to use the matcha. In all cases, the preparation time is less than 15 minutes. The recommended serving size is of 1.5g, with a maximum consumption of three cups a day, the first half of the day. The product contains coffeine therefore not recommended to small children.

The old good cup of green tea

Coffee in the morning is always welcomed, but once in a while a glass of fresh green tea can be even more refreshing and empowering. I first recipe was a glass of matcha tea, without sugar, that can be drink cold or hot. If you like it cold, you can add 2-3 ice cubes and you have the perfect refreshment for a hot summer morning. 

Preparation time: 10 minutes

Matcha Latte, home style

I love my Matcha Latte decorated with nice shapes, but after all, it is all meant to be destroyed sooner or later while drinking. As I am far from achieving the perfect skills of a matcha latte barista, I saved some time and money by preparing my own matcha latte at home.

Ingredients

1 big cup of warm milk - it can easily go with soy milk, or other substitutes

1 teaspoon of green tea

1 teaspoon of honey - or brown sugar

Directions

Pour the milk slowly while mixing all the ingredients. Served hot, it is always a good start into a cold winter day (especially in my part of the world).

Preparation time: 10 minutes

Serves: 1

Green Tea Banana Smoothie

Especially when I am very tired, I am having at least one banana green tea smoothie, because it help be to reboost and get more strength to go through the never-ending chores. I was very curious to taste my smoothie by using Dream Matcha.
Instead of milk, I used a rice chia substitute, which added even more energy features to the drink.

Ingredients
2 medium-sized banana
300 ml. Rice Chia Drink, cold
1 tablespoon honey - it works well also with brown sugar
1 teaspoon of tea

Directions
Blend all the ingredients for 5 minutes at medium speed. If you want it a bit colder, you can put it in the freezer for around 20 minutes

Preparation time: 5 minutes
Serves: 2

Matcha Cheesecake

I was dreaming of preparing a matcha cheesecake for a long time, but until now I wasn't brave enough to try it. This time, I had the motivation, all the right ingredients, and a bit more, and the best matcha tea I could have dream of.

Ingredients
250 gr. mascarpone cheese
2 medium eggs, lightly beaten
1 tablespoon honey - it helps to counter the sour taste of the green tea better than the usual sugar
1 quiche/tart ready-made dough
1 teaspoon cardamom
1 tablespoon rose water
1 tablespoon green tea
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 cup desiccated coconut

Directions

Warm the oven at 250C. Spread the dough on a 25-cm diameter pan. Add one by one all the ingredients - mixing wellm with the desiccated coconut spread all over the top as decoration. Take the pan in the oven and let it bake for around 45 minutes.

Preparation time: 15 minutes

Cooking time: 45 minutes

Serves: 7

Most probably, as I still have more than half of the package, I would love to try some other recipes as well, and will be only a matter of time until my new 'matcha' post. The overall impression of the product was positive, and I strongly recommend it to any other green tea lovers around here.

To be continued...

Disclaimer: Product offer to test by the company, but the opinions are, as usual, my own

Recipe of the week: Green Tea Poached Pear

I wanted to test this green tea poached pear recipe for a long time, but in a way I was not sure that I am ready to be disappointed in case the recipe is failing. But I gathered all my positive energies and focused on the correct preparation of the ingredients and in less than one hour I was ready. I started by boiling in the 200 ml. of water two bags of Punjana tea, my favourite green tea choice for a year, that I received as the prize for a Twitter competition. (The full review of this beautiful tea coming up later). 

When the water was boiling, I added around 12 leaves of fresh mint and 3 slices of ginger, 200 gr. butter and 1 1/1 tablespoon of white sugar. Maybe adding a bit more sugar would have been fine too, but tried to rely on the pear's natural sweetness. I boiled all together for around 5 minutes. It would have been fine to add some cinnamon  or more ginger too.

After intensively simmering I added the pear. I did not want to peel it as I usually like the peel, only cleaned up properly. Boiled everything together for around 10 minutes. After that, I took the pan out of fire and let to rest for another 5 minutes. There was a pleasant soft smell in the air, the combination between the butter and the green tea. 

Wrapped by those beautiful smells, I cut the pear in two, poured a glass of white wine and started the tasting. It was an easy dessert for the evening, not so sweet, going well as a reward of just another mommy day. 

The costs of all the ingredients are less than 10 EUR. It can be prepared within one hour, without too much effort. 

Green tea noodles! Green tea noodles!!!

I am a huge fan of green tea and of noodles. While living in Asia, I tasted a lot of green tea-based products, most of them completely unusual for the educated tastes of the Europeans. Especially the sweets are very special, without too much sugar, but bringing a certain balance to the taste that you can hardly find at any other products. As for the noodles, maybe I love them because they can be prepared so fast: you boil the water and pour in and that's it! 

But, when I found out one of those days green tea noodles, I could not believe it is for real! How can it be possible to find two of my favourite products in one! I bought them without thinking too much, because, dear readers, we are talking about big love here!

I kept them for a couple of days, before feeling hungry for something special. The preparation is ridiculously easy: boil the water and pour them on the bunch. My big mistake first time was not too calculate correctly how much water I need and not covering the noodles properly by the water.  

Because the preparation is very easy, I had some time to add some fried veggies - mushrooms and small tomatoes, with a delicate touch of olive oil. A smooth combination, that makes you feel full without any guilt feelings. 

The green tea taste is not that predominant as in the case of the cookies or the tea, but enough to give the noodles a special unique taste that I never had before. I avoided to add cheese or sour cream, as I felt that it can match better any other veggie combination.