Darjeeling

The Darjeeling region is in north central India on the lower region of the Himalayas and is known for a unique tasting tea. The tea growers of the area developed distinctive hybrids of black tea and fermenting techniques, with many blends considered among the world's finest. Darjeeling usually comes in two flushes. First flush is spring pick and second flush is summer pick. It is often considered the 'champagne' of black teas.

So, I made some last night. IT IS QUITE GOOD! It has a little bite, but it is not a big bite. I enjoyed it because it has a nice full flavor. There are many teas that 'require' milk, this is not one of them. I didn't drink all of it before it cooled off and when I went back to finish it it was just as good cold as it was hot. Will have to keep this one on my list.

Also made some scones last nite. Cranberry. The recipe was simple, but they felt too much like a biscuit. They were really flaky and sweet, but just too 'biscuity' for me.

Cranberry Scones

2 cups AP flour
2 T sugar
2 t baking soda
1/2 t salt
3/4 cup butter (yes, it is a lot, but....)
1 1/2 cups dried cranberries ( I used less, but....)
1/2 cup milk.

As usual I used my processor. Preheat oven to 450 degrees F.
Mix all dry ingredients. Add butter in pieces until mix resembles cornmeal. Add milk, process a little and then add the cranberries. Don't process too long or you will cut up the cranberries too much. Should be a nice 'ball' of dough.
Roll out onto a lightly floured surface. I kneaded slightly pressing out into a flat cylinder, folded over itself and repeated about 4 times. This is part of what makes them flaky. Cut into circles or wedges. Bake 8 - 10 minutes or until lightly browned. Enjoy!!! Good with good butter or clotted cream. Maybe a little cranberry jam?
Sorry, no pictures, my family ate them too quickly after they came out of the oven, but they were pretty.
See y'all later.

Golden Monkey

This morning I tried something new - Golden Monkey. No, no, not THAT golden monkey - the tea!!!! GM is a China Black grown high in the Wuyi mountains. The Wuyi mountains are in the Yunnan province, an ancient province in southwestern China which borders Vietnam, Laos and Burma. This cloudy, misty, mountainous province has grown tea for 1700 years. The "yun" in Yunnan means "cloud". It has a good 'mouth feel' as the tea tasters would say. It is not a blend but a straight black tea. It is smooth and mellow. It is touted as good for the heart, good for the immune system, and good for weight loss.

According to the Tao of Tea, "The tea term 'Monkey' in China, refers to the fuzzy, golden down ‘leaf hair’ on the leaves. The golden down provides texture and smoothness to the brew." ( http://www.taooftea.com/detail324-Golden_Monkey.html )

I think I would like to try this in some recipes. If I find one I like I will post it here.

It is raining here now. I didn't invite Humberto to tea, but he is here nonetheless. All we will get is a great deal of rain, but further south I have friends who are already watching their yards become swimming holes. I have to admit we do need the rain, but not 5 - 6 inches at a time.

Types of Tea --- Again

It was late last night when I quit, but I didn't get to mention a couple of things.

If you peruse the tea catalogs you will find a great number of different blends of black tea.

Metropolitan tea has 15 pages of blends, estate, and naturally flavored blacks. (And there are about 12 - 15 teas/page). Harney and Sons has 2 pages. And all the other catalogs lay somewhere inbetween. Now some of these blends overlap and many stand alone with their flavor.
There are also: Paper Street Teas, CoffeeAM, Taylors of Harrogate, Twinnings, etc. Even in New Orleans there is a small company distributing China teas - All of which carry their own blends and specialties.

TO MANY TEAS, NOT ENOUGH TIME.......

You will have to taste one to decide if you like it, so keep tasting. I do.

I need to add a recipe to this page. Try this one. It was one of the first Scone recipes I tried.

Harvest Scones

3 cups AP flour

3/4t salt

4T sugar

3/4 t soda

1T baking powder

1 stick butter, chilled

1.5 cup buttermilk

2 eggs

2t lemon peel

Mix dry ingredients (Again, I use my processor successfully)and then cut in the chilled butter in small pieces. (You have to use chilled butter because if you don't the soft or warm butter keeps the scones from mixing well.) Mix together the eggs, milk, and lemon peel and add this to the dry mix. Swirl only until the dough comes together into a nice ball. Place ball on a floured surface and roll out ( I much prefer to flatten with my hands and fold over for a flakier scone). Cut into circles, or wedges. Brush tops with a smidgen of milk. Bake for 13 - 15 minutes and enjoy with some Strawberry jam and clotted cream. UUUMMMMMM!!!!! These don't have a heavy taste so go well with just about any tea.

The Types of Tea.

I have a cup of Earl Grey within reach. I have decided to learn to like Early Grey. Too many of my friends say it is their favorite. So, while I'm sitting here just enjoying a cuppa, I thought I would expand on the different types of tea - Black, Green, White, and Oolong. How the tea is processed will determine their final classification. The main difference is the amount of oxygen the leaves are allowed to absorb during processing.

BLACK is the most popular form of tea in the US today. It was originally produced out of necessity rather than taste. When tea was first exported from China, green tea was the only type available. On the long trip to Europe the green tea would lose its freshness. In order to keep the tea fresh on the long journey they would oxidize the leaves longer turning them black in the process. for many years this was the only way Westerners could enjoy tea. Many of today's popular teas are blends of black teas from different tea farms around the world. English Breakfast is a blend of Assam, Ceylon, Kenyan, or Keemun. Irish Breakfast is similar to English, but usually contains only Assam and Kenyan giving the tea a stronger, but malty flavor. These are only two of many blends of Black tea.

All I have time for tonight. Other types to come.

The Wonder of Chai

My absolute favorite tea is Masala Chai. If you go to India and just ask for chai you will just get tea. If you ask for Masala Chai you will get a wonderful blend of black tea and a variety of spices. The spices most often used include cinnamon, cloves, and cardamon. (Other spices can be added, but later in the blog.) These added to black tea give a wonderful, aromatic adventure in the taste of another world. The first time I had chai ( I am simply going to call it that for quickness....) it was iced with milk and sugar. Little did I know it was even better hot.

Over the years I have attempted to widen my horizons with different brands of chai. Some are good, some are not. I am still trying to find the perfect combination before I start making my own.

• Celestial Seasonings: (Bags) This is actually pretty good, but it can be somewhat weak. I like mine fairly robust with lots of flavor. If you brew it, don't let it brew longer as that makes it bitter (true of any black tea), but rather brew with more bags. The spices are discernable but not overpowering.
• World Market Brand: (Loose) Masala Chai This is packaged by Costco for WM stores and is their brand. Not bad, but again a little weak. I think making chai for the American Market is like making curry recipes - don't make it too strong, Americans don't like strong tastes. (When I make curry and the recipe calls for 1T I usually use 2 - 3T.)
• Honest-T: (Bags) Kashmiri Chai Again, I like it, but brew it a little stronger. IT is better than some, not as good as others. If I am not mistaken, it is organic.
• Twinning: (Bags and loose) It is difficult where I live to find loose tea and I much prefer it to the bags. Much better quality. Anyway, the loose is much better than the bag here. With the loose you can see the spices and the leaves are fuller and not the 'fannings' one finds in bags. I guess Twinnings would be my second most favorite.
• Mawker: Mexican Chai I visit the produce market in Dallas when I can and it is here I found a small family owned tea/coffee company. They blend their own teas. Some chai have a bite from pepper added to the mix. I like bite. Unfortunately, this has more bite than I like. Sorry, too much pepper. I know, Mexican is spicy, but I do like to be able to taste the tea and other spices and not just the pepper. (They have a website if anyone wants to order and try - http://www.mawkercoffee.com/)
• OregonChai: (Bags) I found this one at Marshall's - on sale - and it is good. Organic and robust. The bags are not the usual paper flow-thru. They are the nylon pyramid bags. These allow the tea to seep much better because they are not restricted to just 'sitting' in the water. In the past OregonChai has come in the concentrate and in the mixes. Now it is in the bags. Much better control over taste. The spices are very apparent and very visible. I would have to rate it up there with Twinnings.
• Boston: (Bags) Now, I really like this one. It is not weak as many other bag teas become. It holds its flavor well and gives good aroma whether as latte or not. I have tried several of their flavored teas and they are really quite good.

Okay, these are the ones I have tried so far, still looking for more. And this is just personal preference. And I like mine latte, but don't use anything less than 2 percent. Some people will like different ones. Just thought you would like to know. And the more I think about it, the more I would have to put my 3 favorites so far on an even footing.

As to the spices I have also seen some with ginger, nutmeg, vanilla bean. I will have to try those. One thing, if you are going to make your own make sure you use a good brand of black tea.

While on the subject of Chai. Try using the mix to make chai cookies, or chai tea loaf. GOOD!!

So long for now. Time for a spot of chai.

P.S. Almost forgot, I have also tried some flavored chais, but they, to me, take away from the basic flavor of the original spices. More later.

Black Tea

It is now Tuesday and I am sitting in my office after a great 3day weekend enjoying a spot of just plain ol' black tea. It is actually decaf (why???) and not bad. A blend of black and orange pekoe from Africa and Cylon. Sometimes a simple black is just the thing.

Now, I have to explain something to Y'all. I live in the deep south. That means it is never cold enough this time of the year to really enjoy a good cuppa. (Drinking tea is not like drinking coffee where one just does it every morning with out thinking.) It means that I must turn my a/c down to about 69F (20C) for a couple of hours to enjoy wrapping my hands about a mug of tea to savor it to its fullest. Now, in my office it is currently about 69F (20C) as we have lots of a/c over the weekend and no one has been in the office for 3 days. No body heat to bring the temp up, so it is a chilly morning in the office and a perfect a.m. for tea.

I have to admit that, being a tea addict, I always have tea when I am anywhere. This means that, in the deep south, I do enjoy several glasses of ICED TEA a day and it is not just from bags but often made from loose teas of different kinds - chai masala, white, green, and black - all with and w/out flavorings. I want to try the cold Earl Grey in the bottle currently being advertised on the telly just to see what it is like. (????)

I will try a different tea and maybe a different scone recipe this week and keep y'all up to date on them.

Have a great week!!

Lavender

LAVENDER!!! It makes wonderful scones. They are lovely. I just made a batch and they came out so pretty. I am including a pic so you all can see. I am looking for the perfect scone. These aren't bad. They are sweet and flowery.

Okay, here is the recipe:

1 1/2 cups AP flour

1 T baking powder

4 T sweet, unsalted butter

1/4 cup sugar

2 t fresh lavender or 1 t dried cluinary lavender

2/3 cup milk (+ little extra for glaze)

I mixed all the dry in my processor, added the butter in small chunks to make a grainy mixture and then poured in the milk to make a sticky dough. I like using the processor and usually it works for me. If you don't have one, mix by hand in a regular bowl. Turn dough onto a well floured surface. I didn't roll out, but rather worked manually folding the dough 2 or 3 times and then pressing into a good sized round about 1/3 inch thick. I cut with a small biscuit cutter. Brush tops with a little milk and sprinkle with some lavender buds. Bake for 10 - 12 minutes at 425 until golden brown.

Now you could cut into wedges as well.

I hope these turn out as well for you as they did for me.

Have a great weekend.

Sunday Morning. Sitting with a cup of Irish Breakfast. Contemplating the day. Looking at the sun coming up, the mist disappearing, the weather, the news. Which new tea shall I try later today.

Ever had pu ehr? Personally, I like my tea without dirt, but some people like it. I have tried to like it, but the musty fragrance and taste just isn't my bag. It is one of the most expensive teas in the world, depending on how long it has been 'buried'. Actually, it isn't buried, but it is 'contained' and allowed to ferment. Some of the really old stuff can go for several hundred dollars/pound. I guess it is the champagne of teas, so to speak. Guess I have cheap tastes. I do plan to try it periodically just to see if I can learn to love it. OR at least handle it.

Many tea shops/cafes don't carry Pu ehr, so if you want to try it you will probably have to order it. I have seen it in shops as Russian Caravan.

Tell about your teas. Any recommendations?

Your First Cup

Well, here we are. Or at least here I am and hope you will be here too. I am Maggie and I am a tea lover. Also a lover of scones, clotted cream, steak and kidney pie, and snow. I bake and drink tea. I read and drink tea. I blog and drink tea. Mostly Black, a litte white, some green, and even a few herbals, doesn't matter. Chai masala is my favorite and I am learning to like Earl Grey. Can't let Captain Picard drink alone! (Yes, also a Trekkie!) Learning to bake the perfect scone. Starting a tea business with one of my best friends.
Let's just discuss the yays and nays of some teas. Share a few scone recipes. Maybe a few stories.
Please join me.
Maggie