Matcha Chia Pudding

I remember the first time I had matcha. I was a health-nut freshman in college. My dorm room was full of various types of tea, vitamins, and herbal tinctures.  I had sworn off drinking coffee, unlike the rest of my peers, because it made me feel awful. I was craving a cleaner source of caffeine and knew that matcha would be perfect. Being the tea connoisseur that I was, I knew the health benefits of matcha tea, and I wanted the best quality tea I could afford. So I did some research and decided to spend a small fortune for a two ounce tin of ceremonial grade matcha tea straight from Japan. Yeah, I was that college student. Spending her money on matcha from Japan instead of beer at the bar. 

The package arrived from Japan about two weeks after I had ordered it and immediately, I ripped it open. The tin was wrapped in layers of Japanese newspaper that I kept and hung on my wall. The moment I opened the tin and saw the intensely green powder, greener than any food I had ever seen, I was immediately in love. The taste was sweet and grassy, not bitter at all, and the feelings of mental clarity and wellbeing that resulted from that first cup made me a matcha drinker for life. 

Since that first cup of matcha in my dorm room, the powdered green tea has become increasingly popular. Matcha lattes, matcha ice cream, and matcha baked goods are everywhere. And to be honest, I haven't tried any of it because I'm a purist and I like my matcha the traditional way. But since matcha has become trendy (and so have chia seeds) I knew that combining the two in a simple pudding would be a small (and healthy) step towards stepping out of my comfort zone that many people would enjoy. I still prefer my warmup of matcha tea, but this chia pudding is pretty great, too.

Matcha Chia Pudding 

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