From The Tea Spot
Serves 2.
Steep 2 heaping tsp Red Hot Chai
in boiling water for seven minutes to make the tea base. While tea is
steeping, heat ¼ cup milk, either with an automatic whisk, or a milk
steamer or foamer. Spoon the hot foamed milk, dividing evenly, into two
10–12 oz mugs. Pour the ready Red Hot Chai over the foamed milk in each
mug and serve immediately. Sweeten with honey, if desired. A soothing
spiced chai tea favorite!
This was super easy to make and really tasty!
Preheat your oven to 350. Put a cup of so of oats, 1 tbs of butter, 2 tbs of maple syrup (ish) into a small saucepan over medium heat and stir until the butter has melted. Sprinkle some salt into the mixture and pour onto a baking pan. Bake for about 10 minutes, checking every 5 minutes. (Our first batch burned.) You can play with the proportions based on how fruity, buttery, sweet, salty you like your granola, and even add things like nuts or coconut flakes or whatever! It’s your breakfast.
Enjoy!
By Lindsay Carmichael of One Bite Too Many
INGREDIENTS
1 ½ cups water
½ cup loose-leaf Nutty Almond Cream tea
3 packages/12 sheets of gelatin
1 ½ cups granulated sugar
1 cup glucose
pinch of sea salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
½ cup icing sugar
¼ cup corn starch
DIRECTIONS
1. In a small
saucepan, bring the water to a boil, then add the tea. Simmer for 6-8
minutes. Remove from the heat, but allow
the tea to steep for at least an hour (because this is an herbal tea, it
can steep even longer without becoming bitter). Place in the fridge for 8-12 hours.
2. After
8-12 hours, strain the tea. Make sure to press firmly in the sieve to wring out
the extra flavour.
3. Measure ½ cup of the tea and place in the bowl of an electric mixer. Sprinkle gelatin on top of the liquid
and allow to bloom while preparing the sugar syrup.
4. Over
medium-high heat, pour the remaining ½ cup of tea into the medium saucepan,
along with the sugar, glucose, and salt. Cover and allow to cook for 4-5
minutes.
5. After
the first 4-5 minutes, uncover the pot, clip on your candy thermometer, and
continue cooking over medium heat without stirring.
6. Once
the sugar syrup reaches 240°F, remove from the heat and turn the mixer on low.
Slowly pour the sugar syrup into the gelatin mixture.
7. Turn
the mixer to high and whip for 14 minutes.
8. During
this time, mix the icing sugar and cornstarch in a small bowl. Lightly spray
the baking sheet with oil, then use the sieve to dust the sheet with the icing
sugar/cornstarch. Make sure that the
entire sheet is covered with the mixture, then set the rest aside for later.
9. After
the marshmallow has been whipping for 14 minutes, add the vanilla and allow to
whip for 1 additional minute.
10. Pour the marshmallow into the prepared
pan and use a lightly oiled offset spatula to spread the mixture evenly in the
pan.
11. Dust
the top of the marshmallow with the icing sugar/cornstarch, and set aside for
at least 4 hours (overnight is best).
12.
Once the marshmallow has set, turn it out
onto a large cutting board. Use a
lightly oiled pizza wheel to cut out squares. Dust the cut edges with the last
of the icing sugar/cornstarch.
13. Store
in an airtight container for up to 1 month.
Drink of the week: White Russian Wedding
White Wedding tea + White Russian = holiday bliss!
1 oz rum
2 oz chilled White Wedding tea
1 tsp Noble Bourbon Barrel Aged maple syrup
Splash of milk
Pour all the ingredients into a martini shaker with ice. Shake, pour and enjoy!
We made tea bitters! Sort of an accident that got forgotten at the back of our fridge but nonetheless, delicious. Here’s the basic recipe:
250 mL alcohol (we used vodka and gin, separately)
3 tbs loose-leaf tea (we used Samovar’s Cali Persian Organic and Rishi’s Ginger Lime Rooibos, respectively, but there are so many fun ones to try!)
1 tbs sugar (but you could use more for a more rounded flavour profile)
Place all ingredients in
a sealed jar and leave at the back of your fridge for at least 4 weeks. Just
kidding – shake the jar every other day and check weekly, strain and pour when
you are satisfied with the strength of the bitters.
by Lindsay Carmichael
With
the holidays upon us, your social calendar is probably jam packed with parties
and get-togethers, not to mention all the unexpected guests! Keep some of this double infused cream in
your fridge and whip it into a beautiful topping or filling whenever you need
to impress in a hurry.
EQUIPMENT
·
Medium Glass
Jar w/ Tight Fitting Lid
·
Chilled Glass
or Metal Bowl
·
Sieve
·
Whisk or
Electric Mixer
INGREDIENTS
·
1 Cup
Whipping Cream
·
5-6 Tablespoons
loose-leaf Nut Crunch Rooibos, divided in 2
·
1 Tablespoon
Granulated Sugar
DIRECTIONS
1. Pour the whipping
cream into the glass jar and add half of the Nut Crunch Rooibos. Close the jar
and gently shake (just enough to distribute the tea). Place in the fridge for
8-12 hours.
2. After
8-12 hours, strain the cream. Make sure to press the damp tea firmly in the
sieve to wring out the extra flavour.
3. Pour
the infused cream back into the glass jar, and repeat steps 1 and 2 with the
remaining tea.
4. Once
the whipping cream has been double infused, place it into the chilled
bowl. Whisk the cream quickly or use an
electric mixer on medium high.
5. When
soft peaks start forming, sprinkle the sugar over the cream and continue
beating until thick.
6. Use
on your favourite hot drinks and desserts, like my Nut Crunch Cream
Puffs/Éclairs, choux pastry filled with the double infused whipping cream,
topped with dark chocolate ganache and homemade hazelnut praline. Yum
Holy Chai
2/3 cup milk
1/3 cup water (you can experiment with the
water/milk ratio, but the more milk you add, the higher the likelihood
of it boiling over)
1 heaping tsp Herbal Republic’s Holy Tulsi
Combine
water and milk in a saucepan and bring to a simmer. Gently add the tea
leaves. Once the mixture reaches a full boil, instantly turn it down to
low (to avoid milk bubbling over). Simmer for 5 minutes. Strain, pour
and serve!
Drink of the week: Hathikuli Hot Toddy
3 oz Organic Assam Hathikuli tea
Cinnamon stick
Bay leaf
1 oz apple juice
1 tsp sugar
1 oz brandy
Brew
the Assam. Remove tea leaves and place 1 cinnamon stick and 1 bay leaf
per 8 oz of tea. Let the mixture cool completely. Fill martini shaker
with ice. Pour in brandy, apple juice, sugar and tea. Shake, pour and
enjoy!
Drink of the week: Buddha Bamboo-tini
1 oz vodka
4 oz Buddha Bamboo tea (brewed strong – we used 1 heaping tbs/8 oz)
1 tbs cherry purée (3 cherries + 1 tbs sugar mashed into a pulp makes enough for 2)
Brew the Buddha Bamboo and let it cool completely. Fill martini shaker
with ice. Pour in 1 oz vodka and add 3 oz of the tea. Then add 1 tbs of
cherry purée and the final oz of tea. Shake, pour and enjoy!
By Lindsay Carmichael from One Bite too Many
It’s
that time of the year again… You know, the sugary months between discount
Halloween candy and New Year’s resolutions, where you can you barely turn
around without someone offering you a piece of chocolate or a buttery cookie. As an amateur pastry chef, I love this season
because it keeps me busy and I get to make a wide variety of goodies; but, as
an adult, I prefer quality over quantity.
I dread the onslaught of treats that never seem to satisfy as they are
filled with poor quality ingredients, artificial extracts, and 10 different
kinds of sugar that leave you wanting something more. If you’re going to indulge, wouldn’t you
rather have a piece or two of homemade candy that is made with real butter and
cream, that satiates your sweet tooth, and that has a grown-up flavour? Enter my Salted Earl Grey Caramels, made with
Rishi Tea’s Earl Grey Supreme.
EQUIPMENT
2 Saucepans (1 small, 1 medium)
Candy Thermometer
8”x 8” baking pan
Aluminum Foil or Parchment Paper
Wax Paper
INGREDIENTS
1 ¼ Cup
Whipping Cream
3-4 Tablespoons Loose Leaf Earl Grey (I used
Rishi Tea’s Earl Grey Supreme)
1 Cup Granulated Sugar
¾ Cup Glucose (Corn Syrup)
6 Tablespoons Butter, Sliced
1 Teaspoon Pure Vanilla Extract
Finishing Salt, for Sprinkling (I used pink Himalayan salt)
DIRECTIONS
1.
Line 8-inch square baking pan with greased
aluminum foil or parchment paper. Set aside.
2. In
a small saucepan, heat the whipping cream and Earl
Grey over medium heat for 7-8 minutes or until bubbles
appear on surface. Allow the cream
to gently boil for 2
minutes, then leave to infuse for
an hour.
3. Once the
cream has been infused, strain it. Make sure to
press the damp tea firmly in the
sieve to wring out the extra
flavour. Measure 1 Cup of the Earl Grey cream and
place it
in a medium saucepan.
4. Add the sugar,
corn syrup, and butter to the cream. Mix
well to get rid of any lumps.
5. Using a pastry
brush dipped in cold water, wipe the inside of the saucepan so that there isn’t any sugar left above the
mixture. This prevents crystallization.
6. Clip a candy
thermometer to the side of the pot and turn the heat on to medium-high. Bring
the mixture to a boil, stirring occasionally.
7. Once
the mixture boils and the sugar is discoloured, lower the
heat to medium-low and allow to slowly boil until the thermometer reaches 242º-245ºF, or when a small amount of mixture dropped into ice water forms a firm ball (about 20 minutes).
8.
Remove from the heat and stir in
vanilla. Beat until slightly thickened.
9. Pour the caramel into the prepared baking pan.
Let it cool completely.
10. An hour into
the cooling process, sprinkle finishing
salt on top of the caramel.
11. After it has completely cooled (2-3
hours), cut into small pieces using an oiled knife. Wrap each piece of caramel in wax paper and
twist the ends. Store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 weeks (if they last that
long!).
Drink of the week: Hot Chocolate Mint Rooibos!
1.5 cup milk (whichever kind you drink)
1 cup water
2 tbs Thay Tea’s Chocolate Mint Rooibos
Combine
the milk and water in your saucepan and slowly bring to a boil over
medium heat. Once you see the mixture start to bubble and thicken at the
edges, add the tea leaves and turn the heat down to low. Simmer for at
least 5 minutes, depending on how strong and creamy you want your tea to
be – the longer you let it simmer, the creamier and stronger it will
be! Strain, serve and enjoy.