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Rooibos Mulled Wine

Wed, 23 Dec 2009 00:00:00 -0500

Everyone who knows mulled wine as a Christmas tradition appreciates the deep, warm feeling that imparts at holiday parties through its blend of wine and spices.  Here is an alternative recipe, inspired by South African Rooibos!  This variation involves slightly less cloves in order to allow the aroma of the Rooibos to express itself.

2/3 c. sugar

1 liter of red wine

2/3 cup of brandy

3 to 4 cloves

1 cinnamon stick

orange peel from 1/2 orange

Classic Tips Rooibos (bagged or loose will do)

1. Warm the wine in a stainless steel saucepan.

2. Thinly slice orange peel without any of the whtie and point it into small pieces.  Add to the wine, squeezing in some juice.

3. In a separate pan, steep enough Rooibos for 10 minutes (bagged or loose) to make 2 cups of tea.

4. Add remaining ingredients.

5. Stir occasionally without letting the wine boil or simmer.

6. Shut off heat once the wine begins to steam and get ready to serve.

7. Ladle the wine out into mugs or glasses, leaving the seasonings behind.

Almond Tea with Puff Pastry

Fri, 03 Jul 2009 00:00:00 -0400

I learn this almond tea recipe from a Chinese restaurant near where I live. While it might seem hard to prepare, it’s actually quite easy to make this almond tea with baked puff pastry (酥皮杏仁茶) with store-bought ingredients such as puff pastry sheets, almond powder, and canned ginkgo nuts.

Other baked goods/recipes that go well with Almond Tea with Puff Pastry (酥皮杏仁茶):

1. Shortbread Cookies 2. Mini Portuguese Egg Tarts 3. Banana Nut Muffins 4. Lemon Chiffon Cake

Almond Tea Recipe (酥皮杏仁茶) 2 servings

Ingredients:

5 tablespoons sweetened almond powder 1 teaspoon honey 10 ginkgo nuts (canned) 1 cup water 1 puff pastry sheet (thawed and cut into two 4.5 in. x 4.5 in. squares)

From Rasa Malaysia

Method:

Preheat oven to 400 degree Fahrenheit.

Bring one cup of water to boil and add in the almond powder, ginkgo nuts, and honey. Stir well and set aside.

Transfer equal portion of the boiled almond tea into two regular soufflé dishes. Top the soufflé dishes with the puff pastry squares. Stretch the puff pastry square to cover the dish opening tight.

Bake for 12-15 minutes or until the puff pastry turns golden brown. Serve hot.

Cook’s Notes:

1. You can get both almond powder and canned ginkgo nuts at Asian food stores. 2. Fresh ginkgo nuts (pictured above) can be used. Use a nut cracker to crack the shell, then remove the skin and soak the ginkgo nuts in water for a few hours (to soften them) before use

Apple Punch

Fri, 25 Sep 2009 00:00:00 -0400

Here is a recipe for a refreshing apple punch with rooibos tea.

Boil 700ml water and pour over 2 peppermint and 4 rooibos teabags. Leave for 5 minutes. Remove the teabags, squeezing them well. Add a cup of organic apple concentrate and top up with water to taste. Float strawberries or other fruit in the punch.

From http://www.ecostreet.com/blog/

Cardamom Tea

Fri, 12 Jun 2009 00:00:00 -0400

Fragrant cardamom, a staple of bakers, adds an uplifting, incense-like aroma to a wide variety of teas. Serves 4-6 Preparation time less than 30 mins Cooking time less than 10 mins Ingredients 3 green cardamom pods 2 brown cardamom pods 2 teabags of your favorite tea 4 tbsp sugar milk to taste Method 1. Put about seven cups of fresh cold water in a large saucepan. 2. Lightly smash the cardamoms in a pestle and mortar. Add to the water. 3. Bring to the boil. 4. When boiling, add the teabags and sugar. 5. Add enough milk to turn it a pale beige colour. 6. Bring to the boil again and just as it is rising to the top of the pan, switch off the heat. 7. Pour through a strainer. From bbc.co.uk

Cumquat Tea

Fri, 03 Jul 2009 00:00:00 -0400

It’s very easy to make, and the following recipe, whilst serving only 2 people, can be doubled or changed to suit however many guests you have.

For vegans who don’t use honey, try a little sugar instead. I don’t recommend molasses, as the flavour would overpower the subtle taste of cumquats and passionfruit.

Serves: 2

Ingredients:

* 2 cumquats, washed * water * 1 tbs of your favourite honey (I use Orange Blossom) * 10 tbs passionfruit pulp in syrup

Instructions:

1. In a pot, stab the cumquat all over to ensure the flavour will come out on boil and soften. 2. Place water to the top of the cumquats and place on the stove to boil. 3. Add the tablespoon of honey and stir through. 4. Allow to boil for 10 minutes. 5. Using a masher, mash the cumquats right down and boil for another couple of minutes. 6. Take off the boil and mix the passionfruit in. 7. Pour the liquid into a teapot with strainer. 8. If you’d like some more hot water add it whilst it’s in the teapot and mix through the strainer to allow to infuse with the ingredients. 9. Sit for a minute before serving.

From melbedggood.com

Garlic Shiitake & Gari Soba with Sweet Green Tea Sauce

Wed, 31 Dec 1969 00:00:00 -0500

Here serves 2.

Garlic Shiitake & Gari Soba with Sweet Green Tea Sauce Ingredients

2 serving buckwheat soba 4 medium-sized fresh Japanese shiitake mushrooms 1 garlic clove, finely chopped 1 tbs gari (ginger pickle), for garnishing olive oil, for cooking few drops of toasted sesame seed oil

For the sweet green tea sauce: 2 tbs Japanese shoyu 1 tsp ground almonds 1 tsp rice vinegar 1 tsp sake 1 tsp honey 1 tsp brown sugar 1/2 tsp green tea cooking sprinkles 2 tsp hot water white sesame seeds, for garnishing

The noodles take about 5-7min to cook so get started on your sauce first. Whisk all the ingredients together, except for the green tea cooking sprinkles and hot water. Then in a heavy-based saucepan, heat the mixture and stir slowly on low heat. In a small bowl, mix together the green tea sprinkles with hot water and let it sit for about a minute. Add this to the saucepan and leave it to reduce a little for 2-3min. Then cut the heat and set aside.

Cook the soba noodles.

In a frying pan, fry the garlic till nearly golden brown. Then sautée the mushrooms. When cooked, add a few drops of sesame oil. Stir and then set aside.

When the soba is ready, drain the water and run some cold water over it to stop the cooking and keep the noodles cold. Place noodles in bowl. Place gari pickles on top, followed by garlic fried shiitake mushrooms. Drizzle about 2 tbs of sweet sauce over it and garnish with sesame seeds.

From Sugarbar.org

Gluten Free Thai Iced Tea

Sat, 07 Mar 2009 00:00:00 -0500

Thai iced tea makes an ideal dessert drink for summer as it is both cool and satiating. In place of the cashew milk you can use heavy cream if that's what you prefer. Either way, enjoy!

Thai Iced Tea

2 tablespoons loose rooibos tea 2 cups boiling water ¼ teaspoon almond extract 1 tablespoon agave nectar 12 drops stevia 10-12 ice cubes ½ cup cashew milk

1. Place loose tea in a 2-cup pyrex measuring cup 2. Pour hot water over tea, add almond extract, agave, stevia and steep for 15 minutes 3. Place ice cubes in 2 large glasses 4. Strain tea into glasses 5. Pour in cashew milk 6. Serve

Serves 2

From Elana's Pantry

Honey Tea Bread

Fri, 25 Sep 2009 00:00:00 -0400

This recipe for Honey Tea Bread is simple, as it only has a few ingredients (except for the spices, of course) and no added fat. 1 1/4 cup raisins and dried cherries 1 1/4 cup strong, hot tea (Rooibos Vanilla) 1/4 cup honey 2 eggs 2 1/4 cups whole wheat flour 1/2 tsp cinnamon 1/8 tsp allspice 1/8 tsp cardamom 1 tbsp baking powder 1/4 tsp salt Place raisins and cherries in a large bowl. Pour strong, warm tea over the and stir in the honey. Cover with plastic wrap and let stand for 1 1/2-2 hours. Preheat oven to 350F. Lightly grease a 9x5 inch loaf pan. Stir two eggs into raisin mixture. In a small bowl, mix flour, spices, salt and baking powder. Add to raisin mixture and stir thoroughly. Pour into prepared pan. Bake for 40-50 minutes, until a tester comes out clean. Turn loaf out of pan and cool on a wire rack. Makes one loaf. From: http://bakingsheet.blogspot.com

Matcha Green Tea and Chocolate Marble Cake

Wed, 31 Dec 1969 00:00:00 -0500

In the spirit of chocolate week, and a couple of chocolate tastings I've been going to the last few days, I made a Japanese-inspired matcha green tea and chocolate marble cake, which is a delightful mix of dark, brooding chocolate and quirky Kermit-the-frog green derived from the addition of matcha green tea powder. The playful contrast between the green and brown aside, marble cakes can be quite dry so I countered any prospective dryness with a good dose of yoghurt and quite a lot of ground almonds. Otherwise the recipe couldn't be easier, simply mix dry and liquid ingredients together add your matcha and cocoa in separate batches, mix again and bake.

So there you have it: matcha green tea and chocolate marble cake, fabulous, as you might have guessed, with a cup of steaming green tea...

Ingredients:

* 200g plain flour * 100g ground almonds * 125g melted butter * 125g plain yoghurt * 175g caster sugar * 2 medium eggs * 3 tbsp cocoa * 2 tbsp tbsp matcha green tea powder * 1 tsp vanilla extract * 2 tsp baking powder * 1/4 tsp baking soda * 1/4 tsp salt

Preheat oven to 180ºC, lightly grease a rectangular loaf tin

You'll need a few bowls handy as the mixture gets divided into two. In one small bowl, crack the eggs, whisk briefly and then add the yoghurt, whisking again to create a smooth mix

In a large bowl sift all the dry ingredients, except the cocoa and matcha powders. Stir through to distribute the raising agents and then divide the dry ingredients in half - placing one half in another bowl (doesn't have to be large, a medium one will suffice) and leaving the other in the original large bowl.

Add the cocoa to one bowl, stir through, and repeat with the matcha powder in the second bowl. Now add half the liquid ingredients to one bowl, and repeat with the other. Using a large metal spoon, fold the liquid ingredients into the dry until the mixture is fairly smooth (a few lumps here and there won't offend anyone)

Then place your chocolate mixture in the loaf tin, followed by the green tea matcha mixture. This is the fun part - using a fork, swirl through both mixtures back and forth, in figures of eight, whatever you fancy.

Once you're done swirling, place the loaf tin on the middle shelf of the oven and bake for 1 hour...

From Scandilicious.blogspot.com

A Moroccan Recipe

Fri, 03 Jul 2009 00:00:00 -0400

How to make the Moroccan Chickpea Stew

Dice an Onion, a Tomato, and mince 5 garlic pods. Heat a tbsp of oil in your Pressure Cooker, add the diced Onion and minced garlic, and saute it till the onions turn translucent. Add chopped tomato and saute that. Add a little salt to it and mix well. Add 1/2 tsp of cumin powder, 1/2 tsp of corriander powder and mix well. Add the Chickpea(soaked for 12 hours) and mix well. Now add 2 tsp's of Harissa Paste and mix well with the veggies. Add a cup of water and pressure cook them upto 5 whistles. Add Corriander Leaves to Garnish.
This is Best served with Couscous and Bread.

Moroccan Tea

Tea is served during meal times in Moracco. This is the drink that is served when Moroccans have guests. Serving Mint Tea is considered as Hospitality. This is the Sweeter Tea, with the flavour of Mint.

How to Make Moroccan Mint Tea

Tea is cleaned with boiling water before being dried. This removes dust from shipping and supposedly makes the tea less bitter. Tea and boiling water are combined, and may be boiled further for several minutes. After that, sugar and mint are added and mixed into a teapot with a long, curved spout. The sugar may also be combined with the tea and water in the first infusion, rather than with the mint after brewing. Using a traditional curved spout allows the tea to be poured into tiny glasses from a height of approximately half a meter to form a foamy head. It is then returned once or twice to the teapot for a good mix.

From Home Cook's Recipe's

Rooibos-Chocolate Layer Cake

Fri, 25 Sep 2009 00:00:00 -0400

Here is a recipe for a delicious Chocolate Layer Cake. The Rooibos Tea adds a round, fresh, ever-so-slightly nutty flavor to this chocolate cake. Cake 2 rooibos tea bags 250 milliliters / 1 cup boiling water 125 milliliters / ½ cup cocoa powder 5 milliliters / 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 125 milliliters / ½ cup vegetable oil 4 eggs, yolks and whites separated 300 grams / 1½ cups sugar 240 grams / 1 2/3 cups plain flour 15 milliliters / 1 tablespoon baking powder 2 milliliters / scant ¼ teaspoon salt Icing (half these amounts if making a 2-layer cake, or be prepared to store some leftover icing) 2 rooibos tea bags 400 milliliters / 1 2/3 cups boiling water 200 grams / 1 cup sugar 50 milliliters / 3 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon butter 50 milliliters / 3 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon cocoa powder 50 milliliters corn flour (a.k.a. cornstarch) 7 milliliters / scant 1½ teaspoons vanilla extract 1 tin caramel OR 1 can dulce con leche Pre-heat the oven to 180°C (350°F). Steep the rooibos tea bags for the cake in the boiling water for at least 15 minutes, until the tea is quite strong. In a separate bowl or pot, steep the rooibos tea bags and boiling water for the icing, and keep this tea off to the side until later. Meanwhile, in a large bowl, mix together the cocoa powder, vanilla extract and vegetable oil until smooth. In a separate bowl, beat the egg yolks and sugar until they are thick and creamy. Add the egg-and-sugar mixture to the cocoa mixture, and mix well. Add the strong tea (for the cake) to this batter and stir. Sift together the flour, baking powder and salt, add it to the batter and beat well. Whip the egg whites until they form soft peaks, and fold them into the batter. Pour the batter into two round, 23-centimeter / 9-inch cake tins. Bake 30 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cakes comes out clean. While the cake is baking, prepare the icing. In a small saucepan, heat together the sugar and butter until the sugar has dissolved. Meanwhile, in a small bowl, mix together the cocoa powder and corn flour with a bit of the strong tea you have set aside and stir until it makes a paste. Add the remainder of the tea and stir well. Pour the cocoa-tea mixture into the saucepan and stir. Heat the icing until it thickens. Stir in the vanilla extract, and bring the icing to a boil, stirring constantly. Remove the pan from the heat, and let the icing cool. Place the icing in the fridge to cool completely. Before serving, mix the caramel or dulce con leche into the icing. Remove the cakes from the oven and let them cool for a few minutes. Then, remove the cakes from their tins and cool them completely on a wire rack. Here, you can choose to make a two-layer cake, or a four-layer cake. Clearly, to make four layers, you’ll need to carefully cut each round cake in half! Whichever option you choose, divide your icing between your cake layers and the top of the cake. The icing is quite soft, so some will drip down the sides. Decorate with cherries, chocolate curls or fresh mint leaves. From: Field to Feast

Tea Smoked Chicken

Wed, 31 Dec 1969 00:00:00 -0500

Tea Smoked Chicken

Makes 4 to 6 servings

3 pound whole chicken 1 teaspoon ground Szechwan peppercorn 1 tablespoon salt 1 teaspoon five-spice powder Smoking Mixture: 1/2 cup black tea leaves 1/2 cup brown sugar 1/2 cup raw rice 2 to 3 chunks fresh ginger 2 to 3 large strips of orange zest 2 tablespoons sesame oil Scallion brushes

Wash the chicken and pat dry inside and out with paper towels. Combine Szechwan peppercorns, salt, and five-spice powder in a small bowl. Rub the seasonings into the outside and inside cavity of the bird. Place the chicken in a large bowl, cover, and refrigerate 8 hours or overnight. Fill the lower part of a steamer with enough water to come within an inch of the cooking rack. Bring the water to a rolling boil, place the chicken on the rack, and cover the steamer. Steam the chicken for 45 minutes, keeping the water at a boil and replenishing it as it boils away.

Line a large wok or a heavy Dutch oven with tight fitting lid with heavy duty aluminum foil. Combine the smoking mixture ingredients and spread over the foil in the bottom of the pot. Turn the heat under the pot to high and place a rack about 3 inches above the smoking mixture so that the chicken does not touch it. Place the chicken on the rack, breast side up. Line the inside of the lid with more foil, leaving an excess of 3 inches around the lid. Cover the pot tightly and crimp the foil down so the lid fits securely and smoke doesn't escape

After you detect smoke, smoke the chicken for 20 to 25 minutes. Turn off the heat and let the smoke subside, about 5 minutes. The chicken should be a rich, golden brown on the outside. Lift out the smoked chicken and transfer to a cutting board. Immediately brush the sesame oil lightly over the outside. Allow chicken to cool, about 10 minutes. To serve, cut off the wings and legs. Divide the body of the chicken in half lengthwise by cutting through the breast and backbone. Lay the halves flat on the cutting board, skin side up, and use a cleaver to chop through each half, bones and all, into 3 to 4 equal pieces. Chop the wings and legs into pieces as well. Arrange the chicken pieces on a large platter, and garnish with the scallion brushes.

From Creativithé

Vegan Chai Pancakes

Fri, 25 Sep 2009 00:00:00 -0400

This unique vegan pancake recipe has the delicious taste of chai tea. 2 cups whole wheat flour 1/2 cups wheat germ 1 t baking power 1 t baking soda 3 T natural sugar 1 1/2 t cinnamon 1 cup strong Chai Tea, cooled (I used Vanilla Rooibos) 1 cup non dairy milk (you could use anything, water, more tea, apple juice) 1 t vanilla extract 1/2 cup apple sauce 1 cup blueberries (fresh or frozen) optional Preheat non-stick griddle to high (or frying pan) until water sprinkled over heated surface bounces. Mix dry ingredients in large bowl. Add wet ingredients and stir until mixed. Fold in berries, if using. Use 1/4 C measure to drop on hot griddle. Cook until bubbles form then flip and cook until brown. From: http://mean-time.tumblr.com/

Tea Braised Chicken

Thu, 11 Jun 2009 00:00:00 -0400

Everyone knows the individual goodness of tea and garlic. This dish has the combination of both tea and garlic, which gives a tea lover a kick in taste. Chicken drumsticks are slowly simmered to absorb the perfect aroma of tea and garlic. What you get is a uniquely flavoured tender pieces of chicken drumstick fit for the entire family! Ingredients Chicken drumsticks (big sized) – 4 pieces 2 cloves of Garlic (chopped) 6 cloves of whole roasted garlic (they come with dark brown skin, retain the skin) 2 teabags of your favorite tea 1 tsp Sesame oil 1/2 cup light soya sauce 750ml water Coriander leaves for garnishing Wash, discard chicken skin and cut chicken drumstick into 2 portions. Marinade with some salt and sesame oil. Set aside. Heat 2 tbsp oil in a stainless steel pot, saute chopped garlic till fragrant. Add water & bring to boil. Add light soya sauce, bring to boil. Add 6 cloves of roasted garlic with skin intact. Simmer for 5 mins. Add in chicken drumsticks, simmer for 5 mins. Add in tea bags, simmer for approx 30 mins in low heat. Simmer until gravy is reduced. Dish up & garnish with coriander leaves. Serve hot with steaming white rice. This recipe is brought to you by our Guest Chef Bits of Taste. Bits of Taste finds herself as a blessed Mummy with a prince & a loving husband. Being blessed with creative skills in the advertising industry, Bits of Taste seeks to recreate artistic looking dishes for her family. See more of her creative pieces at Bits of Taste Source: http://www.deliciousasianfood.com (Licensed under CreativeCommons)

Matcha Green Tea Ice Cream

Thu, 11 Jun 2009 00:00:00 -0400

Custard-based? No. Churner? No. Stirring as it's freezing? No. Smooth and creamy? YES!

Recipe adapted from Eat the Right Stuff

Ingredients: 1 1/4 cup evaporated milk - chilled 1 cup (or less) sweetened condensed milk - chilled 1 1/4 cup heavy cream - chilled 2 1/2 tbs matcha powder

Directions: Using an electric whisk, whisk evaporated milk until thickened. Fold into condensed milk. together heavy cream and matcha powder until thickened. Fold heavy cream into evaporated milk/ condensed milk mixture (1/3 at a time). Freeze.

Comments: Make sure that the evaporated milk is well chilled before whisking, if not it won't thicken. I would suggest using less condensed milk - about 1/4 cup or even 1/3 cup less than what I've used here as it's a bit too sweet.

Source: www.pigpigscorner.com (Licensed under CreativeCommons)