Matcha. The ground green tea powder that rhymes with gotcha!

Loaded with antioxidants, vitamins and minerals, matcha is said to boost metabolism and burn calories while lowering cholesterol and blood sugar. Isn’t that good to know as we’re about to whisk it into a creamy dessert?

I’m not sure about matcha’s health benefits when blended into gelato–let’s hope at the very least, it’s a wash. HA HA HA! Ready to take vanilla bean gelato into matcha latte land? Off we go!

MATCHA LATTE GELATO (VANILLA GREEN TEA GELATO)

1 ¼ cups whole milk (I use The Farmer’s Cow)
¼ cup heavy cream
1 14 oz. can sweetened condensed milk
4 large egg yolks
1 vanilla bean, halved the long way and scraped
1 tablespoon matcha
a pinch of Kosher salt

Scrape vanilla bean seeds with a knife–add both seeds and pod to milk, cream and matcha in a saucepan.

The vibrant, grassy color alone makes this a perfect spring gelato!

Over medium-high heat, whisk to blend the matcha. As the milk/cream warms, the powder will blend in nicely. When small bubbles form at the edge of the pan, remove from heat. Cover and let steep for half an hour.

Sort of looks like planet earth, doesn’t it?

In a separate bowl, beat together egg yolks and sweetened condensed milk till smooth. Temper egg mixture by slowly adding to hot milk, whisking constantly.

Cook over medium-high heat and continue to whisk until the mixture reaches 160 degrees F. Do not let it boil!

Strain through fine-mesh sieve into clean bowl, let cool to room temperature. Stir in salt. You can make an ice bath to speed up the process. Chill custard overnight or at least four hours.

Just before turning the chilled custard into your ice cream maker, place the custard and the dasher from your machine into the freezer for up to 10 minutes. Then, it’s time to go for a spin: process according to your ice cream machine’s directions.

What’s not to like about a matcha latte you can enjoy with a spoon? Let’s dig in!

I can dig it, he can dig it, she can dig it, we can dig it, they can dig it, you can dig it…“ And I hope you can dig it, too! >>^..^<<