One of my biggest guilty pleasures is Starbucks. I know there are better coffeehouses around and that they are overpriced for average tasting coffee… but like all the other Starbucks lovers, I just can't get enough! I've been obsessed with their green tea latte since one of my friends turned me onto it a couple of years ago. I usually order a cold green tea latte with soy, no syrup and no ice. I got tired of dropping so much money each week at Starbucks, so I started making it at home. You can use my recipe as a base and adjust the sweetness to your liking (I prefer mildly sweet).What you need to know:
You will need to purchase green tea in a powder form called matcha. Matcha is green tea, but not all green tea is matcha. Each brand of matcha will taste slightly different depending on quality/grade/purity. The matcha mix from Starbucks already has sugar in it and I don't expect it to be a high quality. The better quality matcha I purchased was from Teavana, but it was too bitter when used in a cold drink and is better served hot. Not to mentioned, it was very expensive (but still comparable to other quality matcha). You get what you pay for, so don't just pick the least expensive one either! I ended up buying this from Amazon: SerendipiTea Matcha Culinary Grade, Organic Green Tea, 4-Ounce Box. It's moderately priced and makes pretty delicious lattes. I haven't tried it in baking yet. A little bit of matcha goes a long way.
You will also need to invest in a chasen, which is a ~3" bamboo whisk that is used specifically for preparing matcha. Matcha gets clumpy and the chasen breaks it up and mixes it nicely (my drinks at Starbucks are always clumpy, but not at home!). I got mine from Amazon here: Chasen (Green Tea Whisk). Teavana sells the same product, but it was slightly cheaper on Amazon if you qualify for free shipping.
This green tea latte takes just seconds with whip up and here's how:
- For every 1 cup of soy milk, you will need 1 tsp matcha and 1 tsp sugar.
- Start with the dry ingredients in a small bowl. Adding a few spoons of soy milk to the mixture and mix with the chasen (act as if you are diluting corn starch). Once the dry ingredients are mixed in, pour it into your glass.
- Add the rest of your soy milk and give it a stir.
Enjoy your latte at home or make it go!
