Cluttered Counter is mainly a beauty blog, but I knew that I would occasionally like to post non-beauty related things such as lifestyle, food, travel, etc. I kept this in mind when choosing my blog name because I didn't want to feel like I was stuck in one specific category. So I hope you don't mind that I will be mixing things up by talking about my latest food/drink obsession: matcha green tea powder.

Anybody who knows me also knows that I am a coffee FIEND. One of my biggest guilty pleasures, besides buying makeup and clothes, is to swing by a local coffee shop or Starbucks during my free time. There have been moments when I (unsuccessfully) tried to ween myself off of coffee and it was during these times that I became obsessed with Starbucks' iced green tea latte (I'm not a huge fan of hot beverages). For the longest time I had no idea how this drink was made so once I figured out that it was just milk, sweetener, and matcha green tea powder, I realized how much money I was wasting on a simple drink that I can make at home.

While researching a green tea latte recipe, I found out that matcha has all sorts of health benefits. The matcha green tea powder from Kiss Me Organics is 100% USDA organic. Matcha is different from your regular cup of green tea because it is a powder version made from ground up green tea leaves that are grown in the shade to create a darker leaf to make it higher in amino acids. Matcha powder produces great health benefits because you are consuming the entire green tea leaf which dramatically increases the nutritional value. Benefits include:

• 137x more of the antioxidant EGCG than brewed green tea. EGCG has been proven effective in the fight against many forms of cancer, heart disease, and other illnesses
• All day energy and focus: although it has less caffeine than coffee, matcha provides a clean energy boost with no caffeine crash
• Calorie burning booster: increases metabolism with unique thermogenic properties that nearly quadruple fat burning
•  Relaxation and mental well-being: matcha contains a much higher amount of L-theanine than regular tea. L-theanine helps to relieve stress by creating a relaxing effect without drowsiness and it may also contain immunologic qualities.

Matcha Green Tea Latte Recipe:

•  1 tsp matcha powder
• 1 and 1/2 cup of soy milk (or whatever milk you prefer)
• 1/4 cup hot water (or just enough to dissolve the matcha)
• Raw sugar or sweetener (use the amount that suits your taste!)