Archive for the 'Cooking with Tea' Category
Summer is in full swing now, bringing with it plenty of sweltering heat and an outcropping of icy treats on a stick for relief. With all the press they’re getting lately, frozen pops appear to be the latest trend. It’s peculiar how life cycles; everything once old and nostalgic is eventually new and hip again. This is fantastic news for the home cook who doesn’t have the patience or the dedicated appliance needed to whip up a batch of gelato or semifreddo or ice cream. Making popsicles is easy and requires no special equipment!
The recipe guide below calls for just five simple ingredients. Adding Arbor Teas organic loose-leaf tea to the pops adds a whole new flavor dimension and an extra level of refreshment. Upon freezing, the tea flavor truly comes forward of the fruit. This is achieved by first making a tea-infused simple syrup. You could stop here and use the chilled syrup in cocktails or more casual summertime beverages, or you could forge on by adding fruit and freezing it on a stick. Wide grins are your guaranteed reward for just these few extra measures.
The flavors of pops I’ve made so far include: Peppermint-Blueberry, Crimson Berry Fruit Tisane-Cherry, Pineapple Passion Green Tea-Strawberry, and Raspberry Green Tea-Peach. Purposefully, though, this recipe is specific about ratios and vague on flavors. I’m leaving it to you to peruse the Arbor Teas selection and be inspired by what’s available at your local fruit stands. And don’t be deterred if you don’t own frozen pop molds. Try the tricks outlined here for a simple substitute.
Hope you enjoy this Cooking with Tea recipe From the Kitchen of Olivia!
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August 18 2010 | Cooking with Tea | No Comments »
Requiring only a handful of ingredients, few things are more simple, yet so satisfying to make than classic shortbread. These delicate cookie complement a glass of milk or a cup of tea equally well, and their buttery, not overtly sweet nature takes on additional flavors with ease. Here I’ve paired a basic shortbread dough with three classic organic, loose leaf teas from Arbor Teas: organic Earl Grey Black Tea, organic Matcha Green Tea, and organic Masala Chai Black Tea. With each tea selection and a few additional mix-ins, three distinctive flavors and hues spring from the platform of a once plain dough. Try all three, or mix and match to your own preferences.
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June 30 2010 | Cooking with Tea | 4 Comments »
A Chinese tea egg （cháyèdàn) is a traditional snack food commonly sold by street vendors or in markets throughout Chinese communities. It’s a hard-cooked egg steeped with tea leaves and traditional Chinese spices, which adds a savory, slightly salty tone to a normally neutral flavored source of protein. The shell cracking method is an important feature in this recipe that not only lends to a beautiful design, but allows the tea and spices to seep into the egg white. The tea used for making tea eggs is usually high in dark-brown tannins. Pu-erh is commonly used, but it can be substituted with any black tea leaf. Green tea is often considered too bitter, but may be worth trying if you’d like to explore the effects of the marbling pattern from an entire color palate of organic loose leaf teas from Arbor Teas.
I like the idea of imparting unique flavors directly to a hard-cooked egg, but I’m not one to eat such things directly out of hand. A quick poll of the egg eating habits of some friends, however, confirms that I seem to be in the minority. In any case, if you’re like me and prefer to incorporate hard-cooked eggs into other recipes here are a few suggestions to take tea-steeped eggs to the next level:
- Sieved over roasted fresh asparagus or a salad of spring greens. Press the eggs through a strainer, or grate on the finest facet of a box grater to create mimosa flower-like bits.
- Deviled with whole-grain mustard and cream fraiche to serve at you next picnic or barbeque
- Mashed with olive oil and sea salt. Enjoy as creamy sandwich filling between slices of crusty bread
- Stirred into a sauce gribiche, a vinaigrette bound with chopped hard-cooked egg, shallots, capers and herbs that makes a fine complement to roasted potatoes or grilled fish
Hope you enjoy this Cooking with Tea recipe From the Kitchen of Olivia!
Chinese Tea Eggs
6 eggs
2 TBS organic loose leaf Pu’erh
¾ cup soy sauce
2 tsp sea salt
2 tsp dark brown sugar
4 pieces star anise
1 cinnamon stick
1 tsp cracked black peppercorns
2 strips dried tangerine or mandarin orange peel (optional)
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May 14 2010 | Cooking with Tea | 2 Comments »
Commercially available yogurts are usually heavily sweetened, sometimes artificially colored, and often excessively priced. Making your own is economical and a good way to avoid highly processed sugar, while providing boundless options to be creative with flavors. Lately, I’ve been perusing Arbor Teas’ line of organic loose leaf herbal and rooibos teas for inspiration in my yogurt making. Flavors I’ve made include Crimson Berry Fruit Tisane (my hands-down absolute favorite), Orange Spice Herbal Infusion (with notes of lemongrass, cinnamon and ginger), and Vanilla Almond Rooibos (pictured to the right). Albeit tart, yogurt provides an impeccably blank canvas for the flavor of even the most delicate tea to stand out resoundingly.
Using a yogurt maker* undeniably streamlines the entire process, making things easier by automatically maintaining the proper incubation temperature. However, if you are like me and don’t own an automatic yogurt machine, then follow the steps I’ve outlined below. As with most things, your first batch is always the hardest, but once you get the method down, it feels like such an accomplishment to be able to create this healthy staple in your own kitchen. Tea-flavored yogurt has yet to hit the supermarket shelves. Why not impress your friends with something completely unique and entirely wholesome? Hope you enjoy this Cooking with Tea recipe From the Kitchen of Olivia!
DIY Tea-Flavored Yogurt
1 quart (4 cups) milk (any kind will work including whole milk, 2%, 1%, skim, pasteurized, homogenized, organic, raw, diluted evaporated, dry powdered, cow, goat, soybean, etc)
2 TBS existing yogurt with live “active” cultures, or powdered yogurt starter (freeze- dried bacteria cultures such a Yogourmet); this is the starter
3-4 TBS organic loose leaf tea
* If you are using a yogurt maker, follow the instructions from the manufacturer. Incorporate the sachet of tea as described below during the heating and cooling of the milk. Remove the sachet before adding your starter/culture.
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March 26 2010 | Cooking with Tea | 1 Comment »
Our amazing food blogger Olivia May (From the Kitchen of Olivia) found this wonderful recipe for Matcha Pancakes. Just in time for St. Patrick’s Day, this recipe looks fun, festive, and fabulous! Of course, you know where to look if you are searching for the organic matcha required to make the recipe. Check out the full recipe at the blog Une-deux senses.
March 16 2010 | Cooking with Tea and Tea Fun | No Comments »
Buttery and cake-like in texture with an ornamental, fluted shape, the madeleine is quite likely the most beautifully described cookie in literary prose. For it is the taste of a madeleine dipped in tea that sets into motion a vivid flood of memories recounted in Marcel Proust’s fictional novel, A la Recherche du Temps Perdu. Traditionally a dry cookie, perfectly conducive for dunking into a complementary cup of tea, this madeleine recipe combines the elements of tea and cookies in a singular elegance. The citrusy flavors of bergamot (from the tea) and orange (from the zest) play brightly in the foreground of these delicate cookies, while brown butter provides a nutty base. Although it may seem a bit unusual, adding ground tea directly to the batter creates lovely flecks of texture (not unlike a poppy seed) in addition to flavor. Grind loose tea leaves in a coffee/spice grinder or with a mortar and pestle and use straight away for maximum freshness. Hope you enjoy this Cooking with Tea Recipe From the Kitchen of Olivia!
EARL GREY TEA MADELEINES
Adapted from Dorie Greenspan
Makes 12 large or ~36 mini madeleines
6 TBS unsalted butter
¾ cup all-purpose flour
½ tsp baking powder
1 TBS Earl Grey Black Tea, ground to a powder
Pinch of salt
⅓ cup sugar
Zest from ½ an orange, grated
2 large eggs, at room temperature
2 TBS honey
1 tsp vanilla extract
Heat butter in a small saucepan over medium heat. Allow the butter to melt and then continue cooking, swirling the pan often to prevent burning, until it turns light brown and gives off a nutty aroma. Cool completely before using. Meanwhile whisk together the flour, baking powder, ground Earl Grey tea, and salt in a separate bowl. continue reading »
February 17 2010 | Cooking with Tea | 1 Comment »
The health benefits
of green tea seem to be popping up perpetually in the news these days. Just recently a published study found that drinking green tea increases the effectiveness of antibiotics. Good news for those suffering this flu and cold season! Another well-vetted remedy for these ailments is a humble bowl of chicken soup. Why not combine the two to give your immune system an additional boost? Yes, green tea can be incorporated into the broth of the soup, but did you consider for an extra-added health benefit that the steeped leaves could also be eaten—as a vegetable? Go ahead; incorporate some of the unfurled tea leaves within the soup instead of discarding them in the compost bin.
In developing this recipe, I played quite a bit with the ratio of green tea to chicken broth. The tea adds subtle notes of astringency as its smooth, light-bodied flavor competes with the aromatic celery, parsley and peppercorns on the palate. Be it your goal to boldly bring forward the tea’s flavor or to creatively incorporate more green tea in your diet, try playing with the ratios yourself to suit your taste preferences. A good starting point is 1 teaspoon of loose tea per 1 cup of chicken stock. Interestingly, the noodles absorb the green tea flavor and color as they cook in the soup, providing yet another vehicle with which to consume the tea. As for any soup or stew, homemade stock makes all the difference in this recipe, adding a level of clarity and richness to the flavor. It is well worth the extra time it entails.
Wishing you wellness this winter. Hope you enjoy this Cooking with Tea Recipe From the Kitchen of Olivia!
Dragon Well (Green Tea) Chicken Noodle Soup
Serves 4-6
1 whole roasting chicken, rinsed well
1 large onion, quartered
6 carrots, divided
4 celery stalks, divided
One bunch of parsley, stems and leaves separated
6 ounces pappardelle (or other wide style) egg noodles
About 3 TBS loose, organic green tea such as Dragonwell (Lung Ching)
1 TBS (or to taste) salt
1 TBS (or to taste) whole peppercorns
In a large stockpot, combine the chicken with onion, 3 carrots and 2 celery stalks cut into two or three pieces, parsley stems, salt and peppercorns. Add 8 cups water (or just enough to cover chicken) to the pot. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer gently for about 30 minutes. Skim and discard impurities from the top frequently.
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January 21 2010 | Cooking with Tea and Tea and Health | No Comments »
Imagine buttery sweet combined with salt and smoke. These are the flavor components that form quite possibly the most divine confection to come from my kitchen to date. Boutique caramels, flavored salts and smoked anything are all making headlines as current food trends. Here I combine them together into one sweet indulgence. The smoke flavor is easily achieved using Arbor Teas Organic Lapsang Souchong Black Tea. If you need a holiday gift to delight your favorite foodie, this recipe might just be the perfect treat! Be sure to make enough to treat yourself as well, though. Passing a small test batch around Arbor Teas friends and staff garnered rave reviews but also generated a bit of competition as to who would keep the extras. If you know you have a propensity for hoarding, I suggest doubling the recipe. Happy holidays! Hope you enjoy this Cooking with Tea Recipe from the Kitchen of Olivia!
Smoky Lapsang Souchong Caramels
Adapted from Pure Dessert by Alice Medrich
- makes 40 (1-inch) caramels –
2 TBS organic lapsang souchong black tea
1 cup heavy cream
½ cup Lyle’s golden syrup
1 cup sugar
rounded ¼ tsp fine sea salt
2 tsp pure vanilla extract
1½ TBS unsalted butter, cut into chunks, softened
Smoked sea salt to garnish
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December 18 2009 | Cooking with Tea and Tea Fun | 3 Comments »
Tea and scones go together like milk and cookies. One is just simply more enjoyable in the company of the other. Taking it one step further, I decided to meld the two together by flavoring my favorite scone recipe with tea. Masala chai tea offers the perfect balance of aromatic spices that can be imparted to dough through a cold infusion technique. With notes of cardamom, clove, cinnamon, ginger and black pepper, there is absolutely no need to open the spice cabinet or fiddle with many measuring spoons for this recipe. Those holiday flavors you are trending toward this cool weather season are available, conveniently packaged in an environmentally friendly canister, in Organic Masala Chai Black Tea from Arbor Teas. While the ingredients come together quickly, you will need to plan ahead to let the cream steep. The longer the tea infuses the more pronounced the masala chai spices will be. Butter and cream make these scones rich and moist, while cake flour lends a tender, crumbly texture. Hope you enjoy this Cooking with Tea Recipe from the Kitchen of Olivia!
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December 04 2009 | Cooking with Tea and Tea Fun | 2 Comments »
With immense pleasure we at Arbor Teas would like to introduce you to Nancy Biehn, Chief Executive Chocolatier of Sweet Gem Confections, an artisan chocolate shop located right here in our hometown, Ann Arbor, MI. Over the past few months a sweet collaboration has been forming between Nancy and us—we’ve teamed up to bring you handcrafted, organic tea-infused truffles!
Simply delighted to be a part of this exciting project, I dropped in on Nancy one evening to observe her master craftsmanship firsthand. The display of chocolate mastery I witnessed was nothing short of amazing! She was making a white chocolate, masala chai tea ganache that, when cooled, would be rolled into orbs and dipped in white chocolate. Without missing a beat while attending to all the stirring, cooling and additional stirring that the ganache required, Nancy poured perfectly tempered milk chocolate into shell-shaped molds, turning out the excess onto her parchment-covered workbench in a spectacle that can aptly be described as a chocolate “rain shower.” These shells will eventually enclose earl grey black tea-infused milk chocolate ganache. While those were cooling, she painted a shimmery campfire motif on the tops of a batch of 65% cacao dark chocolate Laspang Souchong truffles. Talk about a multi-tasker!
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November 03 2009 | Cooking with Tea and Products and Tea Fun | 4 Comments »
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