Blueberry Matcha Smoothie

In the past week, Mother Nature has made it pretty clear that summer is here. The weather in Toronto has been spectacular. Hot, humid, and sunny. My favourite kind of weather! Although I love the heat, the heavy and humid air causes my appetite to decrease. During these heat wave like days,  I skip bigger meals and snack on cold foods and drinks throughout the day. Smoothies are one way I satiate my craving for a refreshing snack, and they usually do the trick to cool me down. Smoothies are also a great way to get me eating something filling and healthy when my appetite is low.

This smoothie recipe was inspired by Booster Juice's smoothie called "Mind Over Matcha". This blueberry matcha smoothie is delicious but high in calories and full of sugar, consisting of 495 calories and 50 grams of sugar for a 24 ounce serving size. No healthy snack should be over 250 calories or that high in sugar, or it just turns into a dessert. So here's a re-creation of this delicious blueberry matcha smoothie, under 200 calories and only 13 grams of sugar for a 20 ounce serving size.

Blueberry Matcha Smoothie

• 1 cup of blueberries 
• 1 cup of ice
• 1 1/2 cup of unsweetened almond milk 
• 3 teaspoons of matcha
• 1 tablespoon of vanilla extract 

Before you start, boil the kettle and let it cool for 5-10 minutes. You will be using this water to whisk the matcha and cannot use freshly boiled water or it will burn the tea and make it bitter. Once the boiling water has cooled, whisk the matcha in a bowl with 1/4 cup of water from the kettle. Add the bluberries, almond milk, whisked matcha, ice, and vanilla extract to the blender. Blend until smooth. I also sometimes add protein powder to my smoothies, which can add anywhere between 100-150 calories. If you don't find the smoothie sweet enough, add banana or another sweet fruit, but keep in mind the more ingredients you add to a smoothie the higher in calories it becomes.

What is Matcha? 

Matcha is a high grade powdered Japanese green tea that has a slightly sweet yet vegetal flavour and earthy aroma. It is much more concentrated than loose leaf green tea, making a cup of matcha exceedingly higher in vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, and amino acids. Due to its richness in nutritional value, matcha has numerous health benefits. Matcha has been found to be an energy booster, fat buster, cancer fighter, calorie burner and detoxifier. Because matcha is high quality grade tea, it may not be found in a grocery store. To ensure that you find a good quality matcha, visit a tea shop such as David's Tea. Not only do they have great tea, they also have very knowledgeable staff that can teach you a thing or two on how to brew a perfect cup of matcha. You may also find that the the matcha you find at shops are a little expensive because it is specially crafted high quality tea, and because matcha production in Japan is limited. But I would say it's totally worth the splurge, even if you buy a small quantity to start!