What’s the easiest way to make a Matcha Iced Latte? Shaken, of course! Just grab some matcha, ice, milk, and a mason jar and your days will be filled with glorious green Iced Matcha Latte goodness. Guaranteed. This refreshing and easy matcha iced latte is creamy, a little sweet, and soooo delicious!
Holy moly, May was a doozy. Not, like, in a super serious way, and I am grateful for that, but still a doozy.
Toward the end of April, our kindergartener came down with an illness that had her temperature spiking to 106! She went from perfectly fine, munching on dinner, to a super high temp within an hour. We’d never seen anything like that with her and we were terrified. It went on for several days (and many doctor visits) but we finally confirmed that it was a flu-like virus that just needed to run its course. And run its course it did – through our entire family.
Now that we’re at the end of the jerk virus, we’re looking around our yard and home and feeling overwhelmed with all of the half-completed projects we’ve gotten ourselves into. I can’t decide if I just want to run away and hide or go all ninja minimalist and get rid of 90% of everything.
No matter what I decide, I’m gonna need some energy. And what’s a great way to get energy? You guessed it: Caffeine!
And that’s why I decided it was immediately time to perfect this Matcha Iced Latte.
I quickly learned there are a few key things you need for a great matcha iced latte.
Matcha is a form of green tea, but instead of steeping the leaves, they’re ground up superfine and dissolved right in to your drink. That’s why it’s that glorious, glorious green color (also, the leaves for matcha are shade-grown which contributes to the vibrant hue).
The fact that it’s ground-up leaves is also why matcha has more caffeine than green tea, and also why matcha contains so many more nutrients.
Matcha tastes somewhat grassy and vegetal no matter what kind of matcha you get, but there are huge differences in grades of matcha.
For the best matcha iced latte, make sure you do not buy culinary grade matcha. It’s more of an olive green in color and it tastes bitter. Instead, get yourself what some companies call “latte grade.” Or you can also buy yourself the more expensive (but highest quality) ceremonial grade matcha.
I’ve had a hard time finding good-quality matcha in grocery stores around here, so I order it online. I really like this brand. (Not sponsored! I just like it.)
The boost you get from matcha is potent, no question. Harvard states that matcha can contain up to 175 mg of caffeine per cup, compared to coffee which has more like 95 mg. So … be careful with the caffeine content and know your personal limits.
In my experience, the caffeine “buzz” you get from matcha is totally different than that of coffee. It’s sort of smooth, and jitters – like you get from coffee – are minimal. It’s just a nice solid boost of energy.
One problem with iced matcha lattes is that the matcha can be lumpy. I’ve solved this problem by first dissolving the matcha – I mix it with with warm water right in the mason jar.
Then, add the ice to cool down the matcha. After that, add the milk and ice, put a lid on it, and shake shake shake until it’s ice cold, gloriously creamy and frothy. Add sweetener and vanilla to taste and stir. Then sip.
I hope you love this Matcha Iced Latte as much as I do! It’s a mean, green, delicious machine! Uh, of deliciousness.
You know what I’m trying to say.