Since I did my article on Red Tea I’ve gotten a lot of questions about different ways to use your tea besides hot and iced. People have especially been interested in Sugar Free options. My suggestion in regards to this is use sugar recipes but use your favorite sugar substitute in its place. I love splenda, and I get a liquid version of the stuff online. It’s a secret place that only sells it certain times of the month in limited quantities so if you want to know more about it email me directly. Black market sugar substitute…can you believe it?!
These are my favorite recipes from a great site called Silk Road
Mulled Teas
(makes 1 cup)
Steep 1 tsp. tea leaves in 1/2 cup water · heat 1/2 cup hot apple or pear juice · combine tea & juice · serve in heatproof brandy snifters, bowls or tall glasses · garnish with a cinnamon stick; citrus, pear or apple slices.
to make a wine or cider based mulled drink, decrease the water & juice to 1/4 cup each & replace with 1/2 cup of wine or cider.
Tea Sangria
(makes 1 cup)
Steep 1 tsp. tea leaves in 1/2 cup water · heat 1/2 cup white or purple grape juice. Combine tea & juice. Serve in heatproof glasses or champagne flutes and garnish with cranberries, thinly sliced seedless grapes, lemon, orange, mandarin or tangerine.
For an iced sangria, steep the tea & refrigerate until cold. Instead of heating the juice, make sure it’s well chilled before combining with the tea.
For wine based sangria, decrease the water & juice to 1/4 cup each & replace with 1/2 cup of fruity red or white wine.
Tea Punch or Lemonade
(makes 1 cup)
Steep 1 tsp tea leaves in 1/2 cup water. Heat 1/2 cup cranberry, cran-raspberry, grape, apple, or pear juice. Combine tea & juice. Serve in heatproof punch glasses or champagne flutes. Garnish with cranberries, raspberries, cloves, thinly sliced lemon, orange, mandarin, tangerine.
To make an iced punch or lemonade (homeade or store bought), steep the tea & refrigerate until cold. Instead of heating the juice or lemonade, make sure it is well chilled before combining with the tea.
Tea Infused Spirits
(makes 1 cup)
Create your own tea flavoured vodka, gin, tequila, saki or rum.
The infused alcohol can be added to tea drinks, tea punch or in the case of vodka or gin, used to make a martini. 24-hour infusion: add 1 tsp of tea leaves to 1 cup of alcohol. Wait 24-hrs & then strain the tea leaves out. 20 minute infusion: add 3 tbps of tea leaves to 250 ml of alcohol. Wait 20 min and then strain the tea leaves out.
Glacial Melts
(makes 1 cup)
Place a few scoops of ice cream, gelato or sorbet into a heatproof bowl or sundae dish. Steep 1 tsp tea leaves in 1 cup water. Strain & pour liquid over ice cream. Serve immediately with garnishes like whipped cream, chocolate shavings, cinnamon powder or a vanilla bean.
Fruit Salad
Mix melons, peaches, grapes, oranges, apples, lychee fruit, mangos, etc. Brew tea & chill until it’s cold. Cover fruit with tea and let stand for at least 15 min before serving. Almost any tea works well for this, just choose flavor carefully. Fruity, floral, or herbal are always good choices.
Fruit Popsicles
(makes 6-18 popsicles, depending on size of molds)
Thaw 2 cups frozen fruit slightly or use fresh. Mix with 1/2 cup water, 1/2cup cold tea & 1 tbsp sugar. Pour into molds or paper cups. Freeze until mixture is mushy
and then insert sticks & continue to freeze until pops are hard.
Marinades
Teas make terrific marinades for chicken or duck, tofu, vegetables, kebabs etc.
There are several ways to introduce tea as a flavouring: marinade the item in tea that has been chilled, or add tea to cooking oil or vinegar. I love to use citrus and herbal flavored teas for this also smokey flavors like chai, lapsang, and oolong.
Rice
Try adding a teaspoon of tea when cooking rice. Think floral flavors like jasmine, and lavendar. Also smokey flavors like chai, lapsang, and oolong.
Salad Dressings
Teas can add a delicious flavour to salads. Simply add a teaspoon of loose tea to olive oil & allow the herbs to infuse overnight. For flavoured vinegars, add 1tsp. loose tea to vinegar, allow the herbs to infuse for 1 hour.