Frozen Matcha Slushies

 

 

Green tea is a little like my kryptonite right now.  (I never thought I would say that.)  But it’s true.  Everyday, I lug my huge plastic water jug into work, where (after I’ve downed a giant traveling mug’s worth of black coffee) I’ll promptly sprinkle in some of my matcha green tea powder that I get down the street from a spice shop.

I’ll admit it: at first, I didn’t care for the grassy, earthy taste.  I would much rather have gone for another coffee, but it seems like every coffee drink I consume after 2 pm leaves me awake and tossing/turning until 2 am.  Not fun.  But once I read about many of the health benefits of green tea, especially matcha, I was hooked (and even though it does have caffeine in it, it somehow doesn’t mess with my chemistry as much…or maybe it’s just a placebo effect.  Whatever.  It works for me.). And now when I drink plain water at home, it’s a little bit of a let down.

So, when I saw this recipe in a recent issue of Vegetarian Times, I was intent on making a giant batch of this stuff for myself as a treat.  And it totally has been.  I make giant batches on the weekends, then freeze it in a tightly sealed casserole dish, and when I want a nice slushie, I’ll just let it thaw for about 10 minutes, pop it in the blender with some soy milk, and boom!  a guilt-free icy treat (especially to drink while reading a nice gossip magazine on my balcony on a sunny afternoon…with a girly straw.)

No grassy, earthy taste here.  Well, maybe a little.  But the soy milk and the agave nectar actually sweeten it up quite a bit, which is a nice change from what I am used to.  Adjust your sweetness here to your own tastes, and you can use whatever kind of “milk” you like-a vanilla almond milk would be pretty good.

Bring on the antioxidants, people!

 

 

 

Frozen Matcha Slushies

Servings: about 4 large slushies

 

Ingredients

2 tablespoons matcha tea powder

2 cups soy milk (I used a vanilla flavor), plus ¼ cup more for each slushie

⅓ cup agave nectar

 

Instructions

1. Bring 2 cups of water to a simmer in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat.  (Do not let the water boil.)

2. Whisk the hot water and the matcha in a boil; let cool for about 30 minutes or so at room temperature.

3. Whisk the soy milk and the agave nectar into the matcha/water mixture, mixing until combined.

4. Pour the mixture into a freeze-proof container (alternatively, the original recipe has you pour the mixture into an ice cube tray-brilliant!  Except I don’t have an ice cube tray.  Oooops.), seal, and freeze.

5. For each slushie: Place about 1 cup or so (however much you like or, as the original recipe states: 6 frozen cubes) in  a blender, and add 1/4 cup soy milk. ***If you don’t have an ice cube try, like me, then let your container sit out at room temperature for about 10 minutes or so, then use a warm ice cream scoop to portion out your slushie.  Run your ice cream scoop under hot running water to warm it up.

6. Blend until smooth.  Drink with a girly straw.

 

Source:  Directly from Vegetarian Times.