Archive for the ‘eating’ Category
Today’s Cuppa {Tea of the Week: Spiced Pear Bai Mudan}
I don’t start my day without a hot beverage. And, we’re an equal opportunity household – coffee and tea – with a pretty diverse selection at home. From Ethiopian Harrar (we heart Valhalla) to Starbucks Christmas Blend, from Earl Grey to Peach-Mango, Sweet Lychee to Yunnan – I brew them both.
But there’s nothing like stopping into your favorite spot for your cup o’ joe, or maybe you frequent a tea place. I’m soooo lucky that there’s a local tea shop. I’ve mentioned TeaLula before. I visit with my kids, my husband, by myself… TeaLula, how we love you so. And it’s not just a shop with all things tea, and a hundred different loose teas, it’s an oasis for me. And I feel like we’ve made some very nice friends over the last couple years…
You know when you go to a restaurant and order the same thing every single time? I thought it might be nice to start off the year with something… new (innovative, I know). Since I visit TeaLula on a fairly regular basis, I thought it might be fun to journal about the brews. Recently I tried a white tea, Spiced Pear Bai Mudan. Mmmmm. Sounds like it could be a swanky cocktail. Instead, it’s a swanky tea.
Bai Mudan is tea from the white peony. This blend has some star anise, sweet pear and see the helichrysum flowers? Adding a bit of sugar made the flavors more defined. Lovely. It’s light, unlike a black tea, and this blend has a fruity aftertaste with a surprising cooling sensation. Almost minty… it lingers on your tongue. (Made me want more, just so I could figure out what that taste was.) My daughter said only two words after sampling the Spiced Pear Bai Mudan: melted pears.
More flavors and tidbits from the tea bar next week!
If I don’t get back here before the weekend, I wish everyone a happy Chinese new year!
Tags: eating out, tea, Tea of the Week, TeaLula
Cranberry Raspberry Jello Crunch recipe
Over Christmas, I made a classic Jello recipe but changed up a few ingredients and steps. If you enjoy raspberry jello crunch, I have a recipe solution to using up some leftover cranberry jam with raspberry and cranberry jello. A nice balance between tart and sweet. I opted not to bake the crushed pretzels as stated in a lot of recipes – only because I didn’t have time. Just make sure you buy butter pretzels. Otherwise, you ought to take the extra step and bake your crushed pretzels with 1/2 cup of melted butter in a 350 degree oven for 10 minutes.
- 1 3-oz. pkg. cranberry Jello
- 1 3-oz. pkg. raspberry Jello
- 2 cups boiling water
- 1 to 1-1/2 cups of fresh cranberry sauce/jam
- 1 cup butter pretzels, crushed (I used Rold Gold Butter Checkers)
- 1 8-0z. pkg. cream cheese, softened
- 1 8-oz. pkg. Cool Whip
- 1/4 cup sugar (optional)
In a 4 to 6 quart glass serving container/bowl, empty contents of both Jello packages. Add the boiling water, and dissolve Jello. Mix in the cranberries after Jello is completely dissolved. Refrigerate until set (it may seem like a long time – give it 3-4 hours.).
Crumb topping: Mix cream cheese, Cool Whip and sugar until well combined. Spread on top of cold, set Jello. Top with crushed pretzels, and press down. Refrigerate until firm. Use a good size serving spoon when plating.
(I chose not to turn out (flip out) the Jello onto a serving platter… haven’t been totally successful with that.)
Five Foodie Books for Festive Gifts
Here are some gift ideas for the foodie in your life, or for yourself! These food books live on our bookshelves with the exception of the children’s book and Ruhlman’s Twenty. That’s on my wish list – maybe Santa will leave it under the tree for me. Click on the images for more information. What’s on your “to-read” list?
Thursday Tip: Lunchtime Jello
How is everyone doing? This school year took off with so much energy, and I feel like I’m just now coming up for some air… getting ready to go back down into the river of household-heading, room parenting, writing, blogging, crafting, etc. Like so many, I have a problem saying NO, and I have a penchant for starting projects every time I see something cool. But, after realizing I have way too many daydreams and not enough finished products, I thought I better try to tidy up my projects-in-progress before I start something new.
In the meantime, there’s been plenty of activity around here… hope to share soon. And now, for a Thursday Tip.
Reusable lunch containers are great
More often than not, I’m using reusable lunch containers for my daughter. The ones we have actually fit her cooler lunchbox from L.L. Bean.
Jello right in container
My husband saw that I was making some Jello, and suggested I pour some right into the lunch containers. Totally worked – no staining, either! (He’s so smart.) There was enough Jello for four containers, and the rest was put into an 8×8 glass pan.
Lunch boxes ready for the week
I’d love to hear your lunchtime tips… what are some favorite lunchtime meals?
Tags: Jello, kids, lunch, lunch boxes, school
Our New Outdoor Toy: The Smoker
We bought a new cooking toy – the Weber smoker (Star Wars fans: We’re calling it the “R2 unit”). Actually, it belonged to our brother-in-law. The “R2 unit” was going to make the trip out West, but somehow we managed to sway him into selling it to us. Just joking. It totally saved him the trouble of moving it out and this way, he can still cook for us when he comes to visit!
And, I love barbecue: grill or smoke. Give me a pulled pork sandwich and some slaw…Yum! Filipino BBQ skewers. Delicious. I love when my husband grills. I’m happy to prepare marinades, supply sides, just don’t ask me to cook outside. I don’t possess those skills. (Is it a gender thing?)
So we set out on our inaugural smoking: an eight-hour pork shoulder for lunch. The coals were lit at 11:45 pm. Right. At night. omg. I wish I had bought the remote meat thermometer (now I know what that’s really useful for), and granted, it was my husband who got up every few hours to check the temperature, but still. That’ll be our next purchase. Anyone our there have recommendations?
The cook was quite pleased with the way things turned out. Nice smoke ring, tasty flavor, fall-off-the-bone tender… couldn’t have asked for more. I was worried our initial spice rub might have been too weak, but it was fine. We’ll try adding a bit more next time to give it a nice crust.
Our spice rub was the rub I use for our oven-baked baby back ribs: salt, pepper, brown sugar, garlic powder, chili powder, ground thyme, ground allspice. Add a little cayenne or chipotle pepper for some kick! (Check Alton Brown’s Rub No. 9 recipe for ratios. Ours differs a little.)
Since we’re new to the smoking scene, I’d totally appreciate any tips. Thanks! Have a great weekend!
Tags: cooking, father's day, grill
