Teatime Tuesday: Cooking with Tea

Teatime Tuesday: Cooking with Tea

Tea isn’t just for drinking! Like other herbs, tea is a leaf, and as such can be used like you would an herb either in cooking or baking. A current trend is the use of matcha tea as a baking ingredient. A mint-green powder made by grinding the leaves, it is often used in cakes and pastries adding an aromatic “punch” as well as antioxidants. More baking ideas include Earl Grey or chai tea in pound cakes or shortbreads. Peppermint tea adds zip to your brownies in time for the holidays.

You can bake with any tea, however, as one site says, “that doesn’t mean every recipe will taste great when you use any type of tea (think of pizza – you wouldn’t top it with just any cheese.) As such, you’ll want to choose the type of tea with care. The flavor should blend or complement the other flavors in the recipe.

There are many ways bake with tea:

• Tea-infused liquids
• Ground tea leaves
• Tea-infused sugar
• Tea simple syrup
• Tea ganache (yep, you read that correctly. Instead of using milk, try brewed tea)
• Tea glaze

So, how about cooking with tea?

Adding tea leaves to soups, stews, and broths like any herb creates a complex flavor combination sure to please. Green tea goes well with onion, garlic, and ginger. Try your favorite tea as a marinade or rub. Black and oolong tea work well with chicken, turkey or pork, and play well with soy sauce, vinegar, sugar, and other spices. Tea-smoke duck is a classic Szechuan dish.

Dips, sauces, and dressings can also be “taken up a notch,” to quote a certain TV celebrity chef. Black tea goes well with hoisin sauce for your next stir fry. Or brewed sweet tea blends with sweet and sour sauce as a delicious dip for fried chicken, tempura vegetables, or other deep-fried goodies.

What your favorite not-so-usual way of cooking or baking with tea?

___________________

Legacy of Love, Part of A Cheerful Heart Anthology

Will their love come at a cost?

Escaping Boston to avoid a marriage of convenience aimed at garnering society’s respect for her family name in the shadow of her father’s war profiteering, Meg Underwood settles in Oregon. Despite leaving behind the comforts of wealth, she’s happy. Then the handsome Pinkerton agent, Reuben Jessop, arrives with news that she’s inherited her aunt’s significant estate, and she must return home to claim the bequest. Meg refuses to make the trip. Unwilling to fail at his mission, Reuben gives her until Christmas to prove why she should remain in Oregon and give up the opportunity to become a woman of means. When he seems to want more than friendship, she wonders if her new-found wealth is the basis of his attraction.

Purchase Link: https://amzn.to/4pO3PrZ 

Photo Credits:

Matcha Tea: Pixabay/Asana Kalumpaburt

Tea Leaves: Pixabay/DandelionL

Wartime Wednesday: WWII Gingerbread People Cookies

Wartime Wednesday: Gingerbread People Cookies

Pixabay/
artistlike

Even though it's still October, Christmas wrap, decorations, and other associated items are in the shops and Christmas-themed books are being released by many authors. Because we go away each year for Christmas, I do very little decorating in our home, BUT I do love to bake. I love sweets and would have found it challenging to go without desserts during World War II when sugar and other ingredients used for making goodies were rationed and/or difficult to obtain. 

One of the desserts I think of when Christmas comes to mind is cookies. Snickerdoodles, chocolate chip, pumpkin cookies, and GINGERBREAD MEN, although I guess nowadays, it's more correct to say Gingerbread People. So without further ado, here is a fun and easy WWII recipe for this yummy treat:

• 350g plain flour. (approx. 12 oz.)
• 140g of butter or margarine (approx. 5 oz.)
• 100g dark brown sugar (approx. 3 oz.)
• 3tbsp golden syrup (or molasses)
• 1tbsp ground flaxseed (mix with 2.5 tablespoons of hot water, it helps hold the mixture together when baking)
• 1 tbsp ground ginger
• 2tsp ground cinnamon
• 1tsp bicarbonate of soda
• pinch of salt

Method

• Mix the flaxseed with 2.5 tablespoons of hot water. Mix well and set aside to thicken.
• Melt butter, sugar and golden syrup in a pan on a low heat stirring slowly until all runny and melted. Set this aside in a mixing bowl to cool down a bit.
• Stir in the flaxseed mixture thoroughly.
• Add in the sieved flour, bicarbonate of soda, pinch of salt and all the spices and mix until a smooth dough is formed.
• Wrap or place in container and chill in fridge for 30 minutes.
• Heat oven to  350 degrees  (180C for non-U.S. bakers)
• Roll the dough out onto a lightly floured surface to about 0.5cm and start stamping out the gingerbread.
• Place on parchment paper on a baking tray.
• Cook for about 15 minutes (slightly more or less according to your oven)
• Remove from oven when cooked. Leave on sheet to cool down for 15 minutes then transfer to a cooling rack. Once fully cold then you can keep in an airtight container for about a week or so.
• Decorate with icing sugar when fully cold. If no icing sugar is available dent the dough before cooking to form eyes, mouth and buttons! Or just decorate with anything you’ve got!

Makes about 12 large gingerbread people.

__________________

A Merry Heart: An Anthology - coming November 7, 2023

Experience the magic of Christmas in this heartwarming anthology featuring ten talented authors, as they weave enchanting tales of clean and Christian romance. Delight in the spirit of the season, where love, faith, and miracles come together to create unforgettable holiday moments. All proceeds from this anthology will be donated to a life pregnancy center to be announced soon!

My novella, War's Unexpected Gift features Nurse Gwen Milford from A Doctor in the House. I thought she deserved her own story.

Pre-order link (only $0.99!): https://amzn.to/3Q166iG