My brain feels cloudy. I feel like the, everlasting, overcast winter skies have made their way into my brain. Perhaps it happened when I took a deep breath whilst on a quick walk to the market. Yes, the clouds went in through my nostrils. I knew I shouldn’t have left my winter cave.
As the clouds made their way to my brain they left a few stragglers in my nose. I think I inhaled way too many grey clouds. They make themselves at home while I imagine my head exploding like a piñata from the pressure overload. I bet that would feel good. I may look like a chicken with its head cut off but the pressure would be gone.
This grey overcast feeling has left my creativity very limited… Okay non-existing. Decisions like what to wear today, what to eat for breakfast, what to write about, cannot be made today. You want me to cook dinner? Ha! That’s a good one. All of that requires too much imagination for these overcast brain days. Imaginative daily activities are canceled today… maybe the whole week. Hey, don’t blame me its those pesky brain clouds.
This day is dragging by so ssssllllloooowwwlllyyy. It’s only 6 PM? I just want to go to bed. I was sick all last week, so faking an illness so I can veg, would be too much. That would just be mean to have hubby baby me and take care of me when I’m no longer ill. Sometimes I hate you conscious.
Well, there is only one cure for you brain clouds. Caffeine. Drug of choice for many. What would we caffeine junkies do without it? No, let’s not even imagine that. Today’s caffeine choice will be Matcha, Japanese green tea. Oh how I love a cuppa Matcha. You’ve seen it make some appearances here now and then, not enough though.
I like milk in my tea and really wanted a Matcha Latte. Also I wanted it sweet but not with sugar but with dates. Dates are my current dried fruit addiction and they taste great in just about everything. The brain clouds told me that I had to find a quick solution and I should skip the traditional Japanese way of frothing and preparing the Matcha. Blender to the rescue, don’t you love the invention of kitchen gadgets? Below is how I like my Matcha Latte. Maybe you like less milk, more Matcha, less or more dates? Experiment and find what you like best.
Matcha Latte Sweetened with Dates
3-4 dates, seeded and minced*
1 tsp. Matcha* (Japanese ground green tea)
1/2 cup lukewarm water
2/3 cup whole milk
*Depending on your preference adjust the amount of dates and Matcha.
1. Seed the dates and chop into very small pieces, place inside blender and pour the 1/2 cup of water. Blend for 1 minute, to breakdown the dates as much as possible. Next, add the teaspoon of Matcha to the blender, and blend for another minute. Pour the milk into the blender and blend for 2 minutes. Don’t stop until all ingredients are well combined and the milk is frothy.
Serve over ice in the summer time or use lukewarm milk for a warm version, you can even microwave the tea to warm up further.
Tea time! Grab a good book, a warm blanket and sit in your favorite reading spot. Nice and comfortable? Take a sip of your Matcha Lattte…Sigh. Enjoy your tea break as you wait for the brain clouds to clear. Hopefully.
Happy Monday everyone, have a great week!
Check out this Matcha recipes:
– Iced Yuzu Matcha au lait, by Aromas y Sabores
– Fantastic Matcha collection on Pinterest
– MATCHA chocolate chips! In delicious Chewy Matcha Chip Cookies, by Une-deux senses
– Homemade Matcha noodles served with basil cream, by The Winter Guest
– Home-made green tea/matcha ice cream by Manu’s Menu
– Matcha extraordinaire, Foodiva’s Kitchen has so many
This looks great! Love dates in anything but wow great latte!
Thank you Claudia :)
I think I might have a cloudy brain this morning because when I read the post title I thought, cloudy brains in a latte, ew! I’m going to make some coffee now…
Lol!! That sounds like a cloudy brain Jen :)
Mmm, I love matcha! Looks glorious, though I haven’t had it with dried dates yet. Dried, stuffed dates have always been a treat at my parents’ house, so I love them.
I hope you feel better!
Yay, another Matcha and date lover :) Thanks Kiri!
I love the idea of sweetening your matcha with dates! I hate adding sugar to somethings so heavy so this is a great alternative. I’m going to have to give this a try. Loved the book you’re reading! In fact, the whole trilogy was fabulous.
Thank you! Me too, I do not like sugar in my coffee or tea. So when I do crave a sweetener it has to be something like this. I just finished the book and need to get the last one. I really love them :)
Sweetened with dates?!?!?!?! AWEsome! :D
Yep :)
That sounds amazing! I love matcha and the idea of sweetening it with dates is perfect!
Thank you :)!
Wow! What a great idea, to sweeten with dates. Thanks.
Thank you Vicki!
This recipe looks great and very healthy, I love using dates as a sweetener.
Thank you :)
I’m also obssess with using dates (especially fresh dates if possible) to sweeten my bakes, never thought to use it on drinks. What a great combination. thanks for sharing!
Ooh, fresh dates. I’ve never seen them but they sound even better. Thanks Shannon!
I have never tried matcha ever. The more I see on the fellow blogger’s posts, I more I am intrigued! The addition of dates as sweetener is very clever.
Oh you simply must try Matcah soon :) Thanks!
Dates don’t receive the love that they should. This is a must try recipe, pinning it!
I agree Sandra, dates seem to be overlooked often. Thank you :)
Dates are my current obsession too, I have a HUGE tub of them on my counter right now… I can’t wait to try them to sweeten a latte, I never woulda thought of that!
I hope you find a new joint obsession in date sweetened lattes :)
I love it…so zen! AND i’m a date addict ;D
Gracias Cristina! Zen is what I was looking for that day :)
I watched a documentary not too long ago about Matcha. It was so interesting. They went into great detail on the history, how it is harvested and its possibly health benefits. I have never tried it out. Your mugful looks very comforting. I love hot beverages.
That sounds like a great documentary to watch. I once saw one about the tea traders in that still make the journey across Asian on horseback. You should give Matcha a try, maybe you’ll love it :)
dates are my absolute favorite dried fruit too! something about them is so addictive. this looks so good, and warm, too. good luck with your overcast brain! :)
Thank you Anna !
Oh girl, I know ALL about the brain clouds!!! Have them far more often than I care to admit. This seems like a good counter measure!! Feel better. xoxo
Haha, kinda comforting to know I’m not the only one :) Thanks sweetie xoxo
This looks amazing!!! Love making date-sweetened yummies.
And ugh, don’t you just hate those days when you want to sleep so early??
Thank you Alex. Yes, those days are such a waste :)
This looks delicious! We’ve been trying to switch from coffee to tea. The addition of dates sounds wonderful! I absolutely love them. Especially when wrapped in bacon. ;)
Thank you Julie. I made the switch a couple of years ago. It was hard at first because tea has less caffeine. But I have always loved tea and I prefer it now over coffee. Oooh bacon wrapped dates sound yummy :)
Hi Nancy! I haven’t stopped by here quite a while but I spotted Match recipe so I had to rush here. Dates and matcha – are something I would never have thought of. Thanks for the idea and great photos! I crave for good matcha latte now!
Hi Tanantha :) I also haven’t stopped by your blog in a while. Yes I remember you were fellow Matcha lover. Thank you! Hope you are well and I’ll stop for a visit soon:)
Sweetened with dates, how lovely is that! I will need to be able to sip all day long, as my fog is deep ;) These photos are ultra amazing!
Hehe, I admit that there are days when even 3 of these don’t clear the clouds. But at least its a tasty treat to enjoy on those days :) Thanks sweetie!
j’adore ce blog!
Merci!
Just made this because I wanted to drink something warm to fix my sore throat and I had some matcha lying on the kitchen since a while ago.. LOVED IT!! I think this is the recipe I will be making whenever I’m craving a matcha tea.. As soon as I recover I will try it iced for sure!! Thanks for sharing!! :D
Thank you Ily, I’m so glad you liked the matcha recipe. Feel better soon! :)