Time for Tea

I have always been a coffee drinker and love the smell of freshly ground coffee.  At one time I even banned instant coffee from the house, preferring only the French press method.

I don’t really like a cup of tea (except funnily enough with proper Afternoon Tea) but a few years ago did start drinking the redbush tea, a caffeine free tea originally from Africa which I find very refreshing indeed.  It is something of an acquired taste and did take me a while to like it but now I do make a cup when I need a really thirst quenching drink.

I have heard lots of time in the past however, that drinking green tea has loads of health benefits both preventative and curative.  I have never got on with fruit teas.  The smell lovely but fail to deliver the same experience to my taste buds as they do the nose.

Many years of eating in SoHo in London (the Chinese quarter) I learned to really like the Chinese jasmine tea served with meals.  This is thirst quenching, caffeine free and contains lots of health benefits. 

 

So I was intrigued to try jasmine tea from Choi Time’s award winning collection (www.choitime.com).  Melissa Choi sent me some samples of her jasmine tea pearls and other teas in her range to try.  First of all the fragrance was intense and beckoning.  You need 5-10 pearls in a pot and pour boiling water over to release the flavour and let it brew for 4-5 minutes. The smell was so strong it was torture waiting for it to be ready to drink.  It did however keep its promise and was a lovely drink on a hot summer day. This tea is what they call ‘single estate’, green lu-cha tea leaves naturally scented with thousands of jasmine blossoms and then dried rolled into ‘pearls’.  Much easier to measure out exactly the right amount than loose tea such as that found in high street tea/coffee shops.

 

Melissa Choi  learned the wonderful tea drinking and appreciation from her grandmother since an early age.  She started bringing the best quality teas back from her trips to China and Hong Kong for friends and this blossomed into a thriving business.  Her teas are beautifully packaged and she also has a range of beautiful glasses and teapots to enhance your tea drinking experience. Her teas are sold online and are also stocked in Harrods and Selfridges.  If you want to order online Melissa will give readers of this blog a 10% discount till the end of the year.  Just type ‘HRKitchen' in the discount voucher area.  This offer will be held until the end of 2011.

The next tea that I tried was Thousand Year Red.  This is a single large flower which did make me laugh when I first saw it.  This tea aids digestion, strengthens the immune system, helps to lower cholesterol and has anti-ageing properties.  To brew pour hot water (82-88C) into your cup or pot.  Drop one bulb into the hot water and watch the bud uncurl.  You can use this one flower bud for 5-12 infusions depending how strong you like your tea.  Apparently using the same bulb or pearls intensifies the anti-oxidant effects too. 

I decided to invite my friend Lizzie to have a tea party so we could try some of the teas.  We did find the Thousand Year Red a bit of a disappointment.  It was great to watch the flower bud unfurl but it didn't seem to have much aroma or flavour.  We brewed a couple of pots so had lots to drink and hopefully we help our digestions!

I certainly look forward to trying the rest of the samples in the range in the very near future.  Don't forget, use the voucher to try some of these pure and fantastic teas for your self.

Every Day is Fish Day

Recently I was invited to a Food Bloggers evening on behalf of Lyons Seafoods.  I was very excited to attend, especially given the description of the event and whilst this was taking place in East London I would be taken to and from the event by cab.  This made quite a difference to my willingness to attend as it would otherwise have been an awkward journey especially as the event started at 6:00 pm.

The venue as an absolutely stunning loft apartment, a converted Victorian factory (previously used in Victorian times to manufacture zips and suspenders) just off the Kingsland Road in Shoreditch, East London.  This area is not known to be a well off area of London but when we passed through the security gates to the courtyard it was fantastic.  Very modern and contemporary buildings and companies within the courtyard.  The apartment can be hired out for photo shoots and corporate events such as the one I was attending. (www.studiohirefirstoption.com)

On arrival (I was accompanied by my fish foodie friend Mandy) we were offered cocktails with either a gin base or a vodka base, lots of nibbles and a chance to chat to the hosts (Cirkle Beaconsfield www.cirkle.com and Lyons Seafoods who are one of the UK’s leading seafood suppliers -  www.lyons-seafoods.com or www.lyonsseafoods.co.uk )  Once the rest of the diners (there were only 12 of us) arrived we went into the kitchen and they had put on a chef to cook us each one of their new range of seafood meals which will be found in the chiller cabinet of the supermarket.  Sainsburys are the first to stock this range which I will describe in detail below.

The chef was using the latest 28cm wok from Tefal – Sensorielle range designed to be the latest in non-stick, thermo-spot technology/ easy use-easy clean www.tefal.com) and each meal was to serve two people with the addition of rice or noodles as appropriate. 

There was also a lovely lady there to show us how to add the nice little extra touches to our meals before serving like edible flowers for garnish and loads of other hints. 

 It was a very relaxed atmosphere where we felt free to ask questions and one lady even had a go flipping the wok contents chef style instead of using a wooden spoon to stir.

As our food was cooked (and each dish took an average of only 6-7 minutes from pack to wok to plate with no mess and no wastage) we went into the other room to a lavishly set table and were offered lots of wine with our meal.  It was great to sit, eat and chat to fellow bloggers in such a relaxed setting. 

Time passed quickly and when it was time for our respective carriages to arrive we were presented with a fantastic goodie bag for coming!  Each goodie bag included one of each of the new meals that Lyons Seafoods are launching and a Tefal Sensorielle range 28cm wok to stir fry them at home. 

I certainly had a fantastic evening and hope the photos can give you some idea of the style and settings of the evening.

The range of meals that Lyons Seafoods have launched are four meals to be found in the chiller cabinet of the supermarket.  They are priced at £5.99 (don’t forget this feeds two people)

The idea of the range is something quick and easy to prepare when you get home after a very busy day or late shift that is fresh and nutritious and still tastes great.  I think they have achieved their aim and I certainly will be purchasing these products in the future. 

There is the main ingredient, a fish or collection of fish, fresh stir fry vegetables and an appropriate fresh sauce all individually wrapped in a cardboard sleeve.  The range is not freezer friendly so you can’t be ultra organised but they do have a good fridge life so you can plan ahead a few days in advance.

My favourite was the Thai Sweet Chilli King Prawns.  

This is a delicious combination of king prawns, crunchy water chestnuts, baby sweetcorn and mange tout with a tangy thai sweet chilli sauce – you just need to serve with noodles.  The Chef’s tip on the packet suggests sprinkling some chopped red chillies for added warmth and stirring a few drops of sesame oil through the cooked noodles prior to serving. The packaging has very easy to follow instructions, clear ingredient list and nutritional & allergy information. There is also recycling information on the package. 

I could not rate the remaining three in order of preference because they were all so different and I loved them all.  I will just tell you about them in no particular order.

 Classic rich Catalan Fish Stew:

A lovely combination of cod, squid and chorizo with Mediterranean vegetables and a classic red wine and smoked paprika sauce to be served with crusty ciabatta bread.  Chef’s tips to rub a clove of garlic onto toasted Mediterranean bread and drizzle with olive oil to serve.

Hot and aromatic Malaysian King Prawn Laksa:

A distinctive and creative combination of king prawns, baby sweetcorn, ripe cherry tomatoes with crunchy green beans and a fragrant coconut sauce to be served with rice.  The Chef’s tips would be to sprinkle with red chillies for added spice (if you feel it needs it) and stir fresh chopped coriander and lime juice through the rice just before serving.

 Hot and spiced Kerala Seafood Curry:

A creative combination of cod, salmon and king prawns with chick peas, sweet mango and baby spinach and an Indian spiced, aromatic coconut sauce suggested to be served with rice.  I am not usually a fan of hot spicy food but this was tasty, aromatic with lots of flavour and not an unbearable heat to it.  I would certainly eat this one again. – Chef’s tips to stir fresh chopped coriander and lime juice through the cooked rice just prior to serving.

No more Fish Friday now everyday can be a fish day!!

Total Greek Yoghurt

I was luck enough to be invited to a Total Greek Yoghurt ‘I Love My Lunchbox’ event recently and got some generous samples to take home and try.  Following on from that event Total Greek Yoghurt sent me a selection of their duo pots (plain yoghurt in the main part and a fruit compote or honey in the small attached part of the pot) to review.

Years ago I thought plain yoghurt was just for eating if you were on a weight loss diet and was about as exciting!  More recently I discovered Greek style yoghurt (I have not been to Greece yet but hope to one day) and the taste and creaminess was nothing like the yoghurt of my youth.

These days it is unusual for me not to have Greek style yoghurt in the fridge and it seems appropriate that a good tablespoon or two gets into a large proportion of the food I prepare.

When the samples arrived from Total Greek Yoghurt (TGY) the first thing I did was try each flavour.  They sent me Honey, Blueberry, Strawberry and Tropical Fruits.  My favourite is definitely the plain yoghurt with honey.  The quality of the honey is extremely good and mixes with the plain yoghurt to produce a creamy, rich, luscious dessert. 

Recently when I made a cake with this flavour it brought to mind middle eastern images so I added pistachio nuts and chopped dates.  The recipe for this cake is:

Ingredients:

100g Self Raising flour

100g Castor sugar

100g Unsalted butter

2 large eggs

1 pot TGY Greek yogurt with honey duo pot

100g chopped dates

50g chopped pistachio nuts

3 Tbsp Demerara sugar for topping

Method:

• Grease and line a 20cm square baking pan.
• Cream butter and sugar till light and fluffy (I used the new Russell Hobs hand mixer that I received to review – this will be a further post to watch out for)
• Add the eggs and a little bit of the flour to stop the eggs curdling.
• Add the contents of the duo pot of yoghurt, the chopped nuts and the chopped dates (it is a good trick to coat the dates in a little of the flour to stop them sticking together and to stop them falling to the bottom of the cake)
• Mix well together and pour into prepared baking pan.
• Sprinkle a little golden Demerara sugar over the top of the cake which will add a crunch to the finished cake.
• Bake for approximately 35-45 minutes till the top is golden brown and a skewer stuck in the middle comes out clean.
• Cool completely, cut into squares and serve sprinkled with icing sugar on top and a little frozen Total Greek Yogurt on the side.

This cake did not last long in our house!

The next TGY duo pot I tried was the Blueberry.  I was visiting my daughter and decided to bake blueberry muffins with my two year old grandson Logan helping me!  I weighed out the ingredients but let Logan put them into the bowl and help with the mixing.  I did however have to explain that we do not put the whole egg, shell and all into the mix, and that we need to open the egg first!  He got that OK and cracked the second egg on the counter top!

We followed the recipe I got from the ‘I Love My Lunchbox’ event which was demonstrated by Nick Coffer aka ‘My Daddy Cooks’.  This is a simple recipe and a very good one to make with the children or grandchildren as the exact quantities are not so important.  The Greek yoghurt gives the muffins a light effect and you can add fresh or frozen blueberries if you like as well.

Whilst I liked the Strawberry flavour duo pot my least favourite was the Tropical Fruits.  I could not really identify which fruits were used when I tasted it but perhaps it would come into its own if you were to bake with it and add some tropical extras to the mix.

There are so many ways you can use Greek style yoghurt and here are just a couple of my favourites:-

• mix in the fruit/honey pot, stir then pour over breakfast cereal or fresh fruit.  The strawberry duo pot is excellent poured over fresh, sliced strawberries and raspberries.  The tropical fruit or honey duo pots work well mixed together and poured over kiwi fruit and passion fruit mixed or sliced bananas.
• I made potato salad and for the dressing to pour over the cold potatoes I mixed 3 Tbsp mayonnaise, 3 Tbsp plain Total Greek Yoghurt, My Secret Kitchen (Heidi’s Secret Kitchen Facebook page or www.mysecretkitchen.co.uk ) Lemon Chipolte Sea Salt, 2 garlic cloves crushed (www.pamperedchef.biz/partieswithHeidi), 2 tsp creamed horseradish or wasabe and 2-3 Tbsp My Secret Kitchen Thai Dressing with Kaffir Limes.  I mixed this through the potatoes and added chopped chives.  Lovely!

Keep checking back to this blog to see what I do with the plain yoghurt from Total Greek Yoghurt.

If you like reading my blogs please follow me and tell your friends to have a look too.  Look out for my competition coming soon!!

Grandma's Banana Bread

When I was growing up my mother would use up the old, wrinkly bananas to make her mother’s recipe for Banana Bread.  Over the years this became one of my favourite recipes and still reminds me of my childhood and because it is super easy I make it whenever we have bananas past their good looking stage.

Very often the skin turns brown but inside the actual banana is fine but if my children saw the brown outside they would not eat the ripe fruit.  So it traditionally became a way to use the bananas and not throw them out.  To the point that sometime friends would call in for coffee and bring me their over ripe bananas and ask me to make a Banana Bread for them.

I make the recipe almost exactly as my mother and her mother before her used to make it.  The only small change I make is to vary whether I add chopped walnuts, raisins or chopped dates for a special touch.

To make this recipe work you have to use an American cup measurement set and not weigh the ingredients.   In the USA we measure all flour, sugar, butter and liquid ingredients etc in cup measurements and although a cup = 8oz it does not work if you weigh the dry ingredients.

So for a 2lb loaf of Banana Bread you need:-

3 ripe bananas (as soft and brown as possible)

1 egg

2/3c sugar

2 cups Self Raising Flour

You can add up to ½ cup chopped walnuts, raisins or chopped dates.

Preheat the oven to 350F/175C/Gas 3

Grease and flour a 2lb loaf tin or use a loaf liner.

In a large bowl put the peeled bananas (the skin or peel can go directly on the compost heap) and mash with a fork until almost liquid.

Add 1 egg and beat with the fork

Add 2/3 cup of sugar

If using this is the time to add the walnuts etc.

Mix in one cup of the flour and continue to mix well.  Then add the other cup of flour until all the flour is well incorporated.

Pour all the mixture into the prepared baking tin and place in the middle of the oven for 1 hour.  Let cool completely if you can before slicing and serving with butter and a cup of coffee.  My favourite Saturday morning breakfast.

The Village Fete

Nothing says summer like a village fete. 

Cricket can be played on the green with village residents sitting around enjoying this very English sport. The village fete is one of those quintessential English occasions where everyone joins in the spirit of the day.  I was invited to the Longstowe village fete in Longstowe, Cambridgeshire a few weeks ago.  This was the 17^th fete, usually held in May but it was felt there was a better chance of nice weather to hold it a bit later on in the year.  And as if it was payment for good behaviour the sun shone making it a bright and sunny day for an outside event.

It was being organised by my ex-husband and he had roped in my son to be the chief BBQ cook.

I was looking after my granddaughter Elizabeth for the weekend so we decided to pop up the see her daddy and granddad in action.

It turned out to be a beautiful afternoon. There were loads of people attending the fete and the atmosphere was very buoyant.  Three and a half year old  Elizabeth was quick to join in on the fun, having a ride on the merry-go-round and a second ride later on.

There was a marquee on one side of the village green. Local residents had brought their best vegetables, cakes, jams and wines to be judged.  The rosettes looked lovely placed on the winning entries.  Towards the end of the afternoon the entries were raffled and the proceeds were all added to the total raised on the day. 

I bought some vegetables for £0.40 and a basket of prize winning potatoes for £1.50.  All of these were part of the meals for the next day or so. The winners were presented with trophies

Usually at BBQs of this type the sausages and burgers are supermarket bought but the Longstowe BBQ meat was donated by a local butcher and the sausages were lovely and thick with no added fillers or flavourings.  You could taste the real sausage and the burgers were lovely and not just tasting of seasonings that mask the absence of real meat.  These were lovely and round and didn’t shrink much with cooking. 

My son Edward was chief BBQ grill man and worked his way through about 100 sausages and several dozen burgers and was still smiling at the end of the afternoon.

And of course, where there are farmers there are also tractors.  Several of the locals own tractors and enter competitions and races at all sorts of venues and events.  Each owner was very proud and willing to show off their machines.

It is a shame that summer has come to an end but this kind of event leaves us with memories of bright summer days, cricket, BBQs and happy village residents!

Fish Tasting at Zilli Fish

I took advantage of a special offer to try the fish surprise tasting menu at Zilli Fish in Brewer Street,London W1. The offer was for two people, a four course fish tasting menu with a glass of wine each at the special price of £17 each.  I went tonight with my friend Mandy who adores fish and we were both quite excited.
Here is what the offer said "At the Soho-based eatery, chef Aldo Zilli will pick four surprise courses for you, depending on what's setting gills a-flapping at Billingsgate fish market on the day -- all washed down with two glasses of wine." This was offered at the special price of £34 for two, a £71 value! 
Here is what we got: A small bowl of mussels and 1/2 a kind of tortilla with a filling of sweet potato and sweet corn to share for the first course.  A slate with a small piece of salmon, small piece of coley, small piece of halibut and a small piece of sea bass - about a mouthful each of each fish and a prawn each. Plus a bowl of two scoops of ice cream each.  We both had a glass of white wine and all this cost us £17 each.  On top of this, not mentioned on the offer, we had to pay 12.5% service charge.

On the menu they had a three course meal for £16.90 and a table near us had that and it was proper sized portions with chips as part of the main course, so how was our meal value for money?

The food we actually ate was delicious and well prepared and the service was fine.  The waiter David was very friendly and looked after us well.  Aldo Zilli came over to the table and we had a quick chat before he had to leave with his family.
The restaurant was on a busy London street with plenty of people watching between courses and the general smell of the restaurant was mouth watering.

Perhaps Aldo Zilli would like to invite me back for a proper meal some time - I would be happy to accept!!

Lemon Posset with My Secret Kitchen Mango Mojito Dessert Sauce

In medieval times a posset was a British hot drink of milk which was curdled with wine or ale and usually consumed to help the digestion or to promote sleep.  It was also use to cure minor illnesses such as the common cold.  Even in today’s times hot milk is used to help you sleep.

Posset sets were popular gifts often made of silver.  They were the container for mixing, various containers for the ingredients as well as spoons. The Spanish ambassador gave Queen Mary I of England and King Phillip II of Spain when they got engaged in 1554.  This set was jewel encrusted and is on display at Hatfield House in Hatfield, Hertfordshire.

Lady Macbeth used a poison posset to knock out the guards outside Duncan’s quarters in William Shakespeare’s Macbeth, Act II, Scene ii.

Now a days, however, a posset is a dessert or pudding made from cream or milk and sugar with the addition of lemon or lime juice to curdle it.  This helps it set when refrigerated before serving.

Becky Boast, a colleague from My Secret Kitchen gave me this recipe to try and let me tell you how easy and delicious it is. Becky has just won a great prize from www.mysecretkitchen.co.uk for this recipe and I think you will agree with the judge’s decision.

In a medium to large sauce pan put 600ml Double Cream and 150g castor sugar.

Heat the cream and sugar slowly until the sugar dissolves.  Turn up the heat and bring to the  boil.

When the mixture comes to a full boil, boil for EXACTLY three minutes without stirring or touching the cream.  It is very difficult to just watch but it won’t burn or overboil.

Take the pan off the heat and wisk in the juice of 1 ½ lemons and half a bottle of Mango Mojito Dessert Sauce (85ml) (www.mysecretkitchen.co.uk) .

Cool slightly then pour into little dishes or martini glasses and refrigerate for a couple of hours or overnight.

To serve dribble a little Mango Mojito Dessert Sauce on top and place a couple of blueberries or sprig of mint in the middle and serve with www.mysecretkitchen Lemon and Bergamot Shortbread and then just enjoy!!!

(Makes 6 ramekins or small cups).