Building your own compost bin at home can be simple!

The first thing you’re going to need is a place to start piling up your compostable materials. This can either be on the bare earth, or on pavement. If you choose to have your compost pile on pavement, you’ll want to put a couple of inches of moist dirt on the bottom as a base layer for your compost pile – this helps to retain moisture, which is very important for the composting process (Source: Groundwater.org). Although not entirely necessary, many people choose to construct or buy a compost bin – something to keep the composting area tidy and prevent any animals from searching for food in your pile. This can be as big or as small as you’d like, depending on how much compostable material you will have available. It’s very easy to construct a compost bin out of materials like chicken wire, shipping pallets, cinder blocks – whatever you’ve got!

The next thing you’ll need is stuff to compost! This includes tea, fruit and vegetable scraps, coffee grounds, breads and cereals, twigs and leaves, and even newspaper scraps. And of course, now you can even compost Arbor Teas’ new packaging material right in your own backyard!  You’ll want to mix up the materials as much as possible to make it easier for the organisms responsible for decomposition to get everything they need to grow and decompose your organic material. If you’re having trouble getting the process started, try adding a few shovels-worth of soil or a small amount of commercial fertilizer to the mix. Most soil already contains living organisms that will decompose organic material, and a half-cup of fertilizer per 10 inches of compost material will help them have enough high-nitrogen material to grow rapidly (source: USDA). If you live in a place that is very dry or very moist, you might want to cover your pile to lock-in or keep out moisture – a happy medium of humidity is best when it comes to composting. And make sure that you turn your compost pile regularly – this helps provide the microorganisms with oxygen that catalyzes the process.

There are a few things you should avoid putting in your backyard compost pile. These include meat scraps (which will attract many wild animals), diseased plants (which could taint your soil), and weed plants (which could rapidly take over your pile).

This method of backyard composting should take a few months to produce usable soil, with some slight variance depending on the temperature and what materials you’re composting (for instance, Arbor Teas’ backyard compostable packaging will take 4 to 6 months to breakdown completely). This soil will be great for use in a garden, or as mulch to place around trees to help keep the ground moist. No matter how you choose to use it, you can be confident that you disposed of your organic materials responsibly!

All kidding aside, thank you all for being part of our larger “family”, and for sharing these moments in the growth of the Arbor Teas family with us!

We’re thrilled to introduce our latest addition to our catalog of organic loose teas: organic Schizandra White Tea! This combination of organic white tea and schizandra berries is not your average blend!

Schizandra (aka “Magnolia Vine”) is a genus of hardy deciduous climbing shrubs native to East Asia. Schizandra berries are given the name wu wei zi in Chinese, which translates as “five flavor fruit” because they exhibit all five basic flavors in Chinese herbal medicine: salty, sweet, sour, pungent (spicy), and bitter. This complex flavor profile plays a supporting role to the fresh, smooth and aromatic character of the organic white tea leaves and sweet-citrusy touch of tangerine flavor. A knock-out choice hot or brewed!

The dried fruit of the schizandra plant is commonly used in traditional Chinese medicine, where it is believed to provide a remedy for many ailments: to resist infections, increase skin health, and combat insomnia, coughing, and thirst. Modern medical research suggests that Schizandra is particularly effective in protecting the liver, with clinical trials pointing to a benefit to those with chronic viral hepatitis. In combination with antioxidant-packed Bai Mu Dan white tea leaves, this blend is potentially as healthy as it is tasty!

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.

The standard shortbread recipe presented here is endlessly adaptable, so don’t hesitate to play to your tastes. As a technical aside, though, know that it can be a bit tricky to work with this butter-laden dough. Success in perfectly shaped cookies comes from keeping the dough well chilled before rolling and again before baking. Also placing the cookie sheet furthest away from the heat source, in the bottom third of the oven, will prevent spreading as they bake. Hope you enjoy this Cooking with Tea recipe From the Kitchen of Olivia!

Earl Grey Shortbread

makes ~2 dozen 1-inch square cookies

1 cup all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon Earl Grey black tea leaves, finely ground*
¼ teaspoon salt
½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened at room temperature
¼ cup confectioners’ sugar, sifted
½ tablespoon finely grated orange zest

Matcha Shortbread

makes ~2 dozen 1-inch square cookies

1 cup all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons matcha green tea powder
¼ teaspoon salt
½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened at room temperature
¼ cup confectioners’ sugar, sifted

Chocolate Chai Shortbread

makes ~2 dozen 1-inch square cookies

¾ cup all-purpose flour
⅓ cup Dutch-process cocoa powder
1 tablespoon masala chai black tea leaves, finely ground*
¼ teaspoon salt
½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened at room temperature
¼ cup confectioners’ sugar, sifted

Method

Whisk flour, tea, (cocoa powder, if using) and salt in a small bowl; set aside.

In the bowl of a standing electric mixer fitted with a paddle, beat the butter until creamy. Add the sugar (and zest if using) and beat until fluffy. Add the flour/tea mixture to the mixing bowl, then beat on low speed until just incorporated. The dough will be very soft.

Transfer the dough to a sheet of parchment paper (or plastic wrap), shape into a disc, and wrap tightly to seal. Refrigerate the dough until firm, at least 2 hours or, preferably, overnight. The dough can be refrigerated for up to 3 days.

Position a rack in the bottom third of the oven and preheat the oven to 350° F. Roll out the dough on a floured surface to about ⅜-inch thickness and cut into shapes. Space 1 inch apart on baking sheets lined with parchment. Chill cookies in the refrigerator on a baking sheet for 10-15 minutes or until firm. Re-roll the scraps and cut out more cookies, as above, chilling the scraps between batches.

Bake the shortbread in the bottom third of the oven, one sheet at a time until the edges are golden, 13 to 15 minutes. Let cool completely on sheets on wire racks. These cookies can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for about a week.

*You can grind the tea leaves in a small food processor, spice grinder, coffee grinder, or by using a mortar & pestle.

Please Note: We recommend infusing this tea with a slightly lower water temperature and shorter steeping time than that of other black teas (maybe 2-3 minutes at 180 degrees F).

According to the American Society for Testing & Materials (ASTM), compostable plastic has to be ‘capable of undergoing biological decomposition (..) such that the plastic is not visually distinguishable and breaks down to carbon dioxide, water, inorganic compounds, and biomass, (…) and leaves no toxic residue.’ Additionally, it needs to break down at about the same rate as paper.How is this different from biodegradability? For a plastic to be biodegradable, it merely needs to degrade due to the functioning of some living microorganism. But biodegradability standards do not address the amount of time the material takes to degrade, nor if it leaves a toxic residue. Unfortunately, most biodegradable waste (such as plastic cups made from corn starch), are buried in landfills too deep for the bacteria responsible for biodegrading to survive – there’s just not enough oxygen. And when there isn’t enough oxygen present, many of these biodegradable plastic release methane (a potent greenhouse gas) while degrading. Even worse, many of them can leave behind toxic residues such as heavy metals – which are harmful to plants, animals, and humans (Source: GreenLivingTips).

An even weaker environmental standard would be degradable plastics. For a plastic to be ‘degradable’, it simply needs to be able to be broken down through chemical reactions in a man-made environment. Usually these plastics are oil-based; a byproduct of gasoline production.

Arbor Teas’ new packaging rises above all three of these standards – the next-generation material we use is backyard compostable. In addition to all of the requirements for compostability set forth by the ASTM (as described above), backyard compostable materials need to degrade relatively quickly in a natural environment. Many products labeled as ‘compostable’ only break down under industrial conditions – usually large metal containers with computer-controlled aeration, humidity, and oxygen levels that provide optimal conditions for microorganisms to break down the material (Spellman 79). But backyard compostable materials, like those implemented by Arbor Teas, can break down in a natural environment – like a compost pile behind your house – turning into viable, usable soil that is free of any toxic residues.

Painter Jeffrey Axelrod has brought a whole new meaning to “the art of tea.” Claiming that making paint from tea “costs pennies,” Axelrod has recently gained popularity as the modern pioneer of making art using tea – a method he has been practicing for the last seven years.

In order to obtain the full spectrum of colors that he needs for his paintings, Axelrod claims to use over 200 teas; he blends five or six of them to create a unique shade. To create a variety of hues, he includes flavored teas (like plum teas) for blue colors, African rooibos for oranges and reds, and intense Japanese green teas like matcha for green colors.

Axelrod believes that painting with tea touts other benefits, too. Mistakes can be erased simply by applying water with a paintbrush. The drying process can be catalyzed with a blow dryer – but usually Axelrod lets them bake in the sun, preventing the colors from ever fading.  But most importantly, Axelrod believes that tea produces art which cannot be replicated with water colors or acrylics – the results are entirely unique.

You can read more about Axelrod’s work here or view his artwork on his website here.

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)

Place the eggs in a medium-sized pot with enough cool water to cover by 1-inch. Bring the water to a boil, then lower heat to simmer for 3 minutes.

Remove the eggs with a slotted spoon and place in a bowl of cool water. Reserve the simmering water in the pot for use in the next step of the recipe. When cool enough to handle, take the back of a spoon and gently crack the eggs evenly all around the shell. Take care when cracking to leave the shell intact. This allows the dark steeping liquid to seep into the egg white, staining it with a marbled design. The more you crack, the more intricate the design will be.

Add the remaining ingredients to the pot of simmering water, stirring to combine. Return the cracked eggs to the pot as well. Bring the liquid to boil again, then reduce the heat to low and simmer for 40 minutes. Turn off the heat and cover the pot with a lid. Let the eggs steep for a few hours to overnight. The longer the eggs steep, the more intense the flavor and color will be.

Drain the eggs, peel and serve. Unpeeled eggs can be refrigerated in a covered container for up to 4 days.

ABOUT OUR BACKYARD COMPOSTABLE TEA PACKAGING
Our exciting new packaging is composed of a cellulose film made from wood pulp sourced from sustainably-managed trees. Most compostable packaging available in today’s marketplace is only truly compostable in industrial settings optimized for rapid breakdown. By contrast, the films used for Arbor Teas’ new packaging can actually breakdown in a backyard compost setting.

Because of greater variation in moisture and temperature, backyard composting environments have historically been incapable of breaking down so-called “compostable” packaging materials (e.g. corn plastic cups and take-out containers and the like). However, the material chosen for Arbor Teas’ new packages requires a less optimized environment for biodegradation, representing a major advancement in low-impact packaging.

The film is certified to both the European (EN13432) and American (ASTM D6400) standards for compostable packaging, and has been submitted to an additional independent test protocol (Miti Test ISO14851) confirming its biodegradation at ambient temperatures and in aqueous environments, relevant for home composting in bins or compost heaps.

MORE TEA, LESS PACKAGING!
Not only are our new packages compostable, they’re also lighter than their predecessors. In all, our latest shift in packaging materials reduced the weight of Arbor Teas’ packaging by over 60%! This translates to a meaningful reduction in the carbon footprint of Arbor Teas operations. And, in response to customer requests, the new packaging accommodates more tea than ever before. On average, Arbor Teas packages contain 27% more tea than they did previously. The result: MORE TEA, LESS PACKAGING!
Individually, these may seem like small improvements. But taken together, they add up to the greenest option for tea lovers anywhere!

“Researchers at the University of Porto in Portugal have concluded a study indicating that green tea may be an effective anticancer agent for renal cell carcinoma (or RCC), the most common type of kidney cancer in adults and one of the most deadly.

The team noted RCC’s resistance to chemotherapy and radiotherapy, the resulting urgency to explore the potential of other therapies and the potential for managing other types of cancer that green tea and tea polyphenols have demonstrated in other studies.

With this in mind, the researchers set out to analyze the antiproliferative effect of an antioxidant-rich green tea extract on human renal cancer cell lines. They found that “green tea extract strongly inhibited the growth of both RCC cell lines in a concentration-dependent manner,” stated an abstract of the findings. “This is the first report showing that green tea is likely to be an effective anticancer agent for renal cell carcinoma.”

A report from the research will appear in the September 2010 issue of the scientific journal Food Chemistry.”