Matcha Therapy Latte

This Matcha green tea drink is both powerful and delicious and is loaded with antioxidants and mood boosting, stress reducing effects.

Well, hello! This year, the infamous year 2020, has been upending in basically every way imaginable. There has been so much to learn about, do, and be that any blog writing has taken a very far back seat for me. I am in the thick of homeschooling my 2nd grader and kindergartner and wrangling my preschooler and toddler. My husband, Blake, is working long hours and I am tired, drained and emotional much of the time. I have used many dietary coping mechanisms this year from cramming down chocolate like I just heard that Willy Wonka's factory is shutting down to breaking every healthful diet habit I have ever created for myself and my family. I know that dairy, processed sugar, and simple carbohydrate loaded foods very quickly send me into an emotional and physical tailspin, but this year has had me in direct rebellion to all I know about how food affects my well being. So, here is to my 97th first-day-back to food mindfulness, may the odds be ever in my favor.

I am trying to get back into the habit of knowing why I choose to eat what I do, and being mindful of what and how I am eating it. I like to try all those "3 week no sugar" challenges which i bomb after the first week and the "this is the last day I will stuff down two quesadillas because tomorrow I will begin AWESOME," but really, the only thing that works for me is attempting to choose some compassion and understanding for my growing waistline and emotional skyrockets and intentionally moving back towards mindfulness. Why am I reaching for chocolate right now? What feeling am I trying to numb out? Can I be present with it instead of running to that cookie? What can I choose to do instead that would truly bring some peace for me right now?

I read this quote recently from The Wisdom of the Enneagram by Riso and Hudson that said, "Real peace has the quality of alive-ness and energy and it is not a flat detachment." Instead of detaching from and stuffing down our emotions with a bag of chips, It might be that it would be better for us in that moment to take a deep breath, take a nap, do some yoga, take a walk, have a conversation, play a game with a fussy toddler, make a choice to be brave or to engage with someone or something that is in front of us. There will, of course, also be the many sometimes when it IS food or drink that we need and we can ask ourselves if what we are craving and choosing is going to bring us that peace that is full of life and energy or if it is it going to bring us something else. Is there is something else we could eat that might actually help us to feel good, alive and full of energy? And I must say, If that nine layer chocolate cake that we are eating with friends or for a niece's birthday will bring us joy and peace, then we get to go for it! The point is mindfulness.

Lately I am loving this delicious and simple Matcha Latte. Matcha tea is a certain type of green tea leaf that is ground up into powder. Rather that being leaves that are steeped and discarded like many teas, the whole, powdered leaf is dissolved in your cup, bringing with it extra antioxidant power. It also boasts studies that have shown improved attention, mood and reaction time, and though it contains caffeine, it also contains L-theanine which helps to prevent that post-caffeine crash as well as helping us to relax and de-stress by increasing the alpha wave activity in our brains. Basically, it is a life and energy boost in a cup.

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Matcha Therapy Latte

Ingredients

1 teaspoon Matcha powder

1/4 cup almond milk

1 tsp (or to taste) honey

1 tbs collagen (optional)

hot water

your favorite mug

1. Boil water on the stove. Fill mug 2/3 full with water. Let sit for a couple minutes.

2. Add Matcha powder, almond milk, honey, and optional collagen. Stir with a spoon or froth with a whisk.

3. Enjoy mindfully!

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