Healthy Recipes with Green Tea

Traditionally, the star of this famous Burmese salad, laphet, is made by fermenting just-picked tea leaves for several months underground. While laphet is starting to be imported, it is still hard to find. This version of tea leaf salad, using readily available green tea, offers a quick alternative.

This weight-loss tonic might help you slim down, even though it's not a quick fix for healthy habits. Apple cider vinegar's sour flavor (the acetic acid) may help you eat less and stay more satisfied. Green tea has caffeine and antioxidants that may help boost fat loss. Ginger might help you burn more calories. And maple syrup adds a touch of natural sweetness to this hydrating drink. Add this tonic to your diet in addition to sensible eating and exercise to help boost your weight-loss efforts.

The momentum behind functional foods and wellness elixirs is at an all-time high. Expensive products are touted as having the power to do everything from restoring gut health to boosting immunity and fighting inflammation, but their health claims are often backed by little solid science. So instead of pricy supplements, we're mixing up a more affordable antidote that's both healthy and homemade. A tonic, by definition, is a combination of ingredients that have the potential to enhance or restore health. While this tonic (or any tonic) is not a cure-all remedy, consuming more anti-inflammatory foods—like the ones found in this tonic—over time may only not only ease current symptoms (such as fatigue, joint pain and chronic bloating), but it may also reduce the risk of future diseases and slow aging. The combination of green tea, herbs, honey, apple-cider vinegar and spices also makes for a tasty and refreshing beverage!

Green tea is loaded with antioxidants and has been shown to keep your blood sugar stable. We like it flavored with orange, lemon and honey in this easy recipe.

A touch of honey balances the bitterness of matcha in this healthy latte recipe. For a nondairy latte, swap unsweetened almond, soy or coconut milk for the low-fat milk.

Start your day with a burst of antioxidants in this energizing healthy smoothie recipe.

Crisp and refreshing, you just may find yourself craving this beverage on a hot summer's night.

Blueberries and raspberries top these matcha overnight oats for a quick, meal-prep-friendly breakfast.

This green smoothie is packed with grapes, spinach, green tea and avocado. A touch of honey adds sweetness.

Green tea is loaded with antioxidants and nutrients, and is a great beverage choice when you need a little pick-me-up. In this recipe it's steeped with ginger and flavored with orange juice.

Castella cake is a Japanese confectionary staple based on the Portuguese bolo de Castela (or cake from Castile). Originally brought to Nagasaki by Portuguese merchants in the 16th century, it has changed over time to be uniquely its own type of wagashi (or traditional Japanese sweet). Castella is classified as a sponge cake with just four ingredients: eggs, sugar, mizuame and flour. Mizuame is a malt sweetener that gives the cake its distinctive sheen. The cake is typically baked in rectangular pans and served in thick slices, with its signature color being a deep yellow from the inclusion of egg yolks. The addition of matcha powder adds color and an earthy, sweet nutty flavor. Often, the cake is served with trimmed sides, but you can skip that step if you prefer. There is also a Taiwanese adaption of castella cake that is more fluffy and spongy, versus the firm-yet-moist version from Japan. It typically calls for egg whites to be whipped, then folded into the base, whereas most Japanese castella recipes will call for whole eggs to be whipped before adding the other ingredients.

Taste the rainbow with this whipped, fruity version of a matcha latte. Just blend your preferred nondairy milk with frozen fruit for the base, then top with a whipped matcha foam that uses aquafaba--the liquid from a can of chickpeas--to make the beverage completely vegan. (The drink also works very well with cow's milk if you don't mind it not being vegan.) A pinch of sugar subtly enhances the matcha's bitterness, but feel free to add more to your taste.