Tea Infusiast
This recipe for a Hojicha Banana Smoothie is sweet and delicious without any added sugar. And, you can make it with only four ingredients! It’s a perfect summer treat–the frozen bananas give a luxurious texture and make it icy cold and refreshing.
The hojicha adds a delicious toastiness and complexity that compliments the natural sweetness from the ripe, frozen banana. Additionally, it provides that calm, steady energy from the caffeine and other compounds in tea.
When I say I love tea, I emphatically mean the magical elixir you can get from steeping leaves from the Camellia sinensis plant. I don’t mean herbal teas or tisanes. I actually have a harder time finding tisanes that I love than teas that I love. Despite my preference for tea, I have been impelled to go looking for delicious tisanes because my desire to drink warm, tasty beverages is greater than my ability to drink caffeine. Sometimes, I need something caffeine-free.
I love a mocktail. It elevates the moment, gives me something delicious to sip on, and doesn’t make me tired or interfere with my sleep. I enjoy many tea-infused mocktails. But since I usually drink mocktails in the evening and don’t drink caffeine that late, tea mocktails aren’t my go-to choices.
I was inspired by Claire Robinson’s Earl Grey Shortbread Cookies. Using her recipe, I made some delicious cookies.
Although I love traditional, crumbly shortbread, I also really liked the texture of Robinson’s recipe. It’s less crumbly, slightly soft, and still very buttery. So, I experimented with it. My orange zest shortbread variation with chocolate was a crowd-pleaser, too.
Which tea would you pair with it? I bet a strong cup of East Frisian Tea would be delightful.