Tea, anyone?

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fairyfli
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Re: Tea, anyone?

Post by fairyfli » Sun Mar 06, 2011 6:08 pm

Ok Jen,
You started another addiction for me.... I have lots and lots of teas from T
eavanna.... just because there was a store close by and I could smell and see the teas...but I have not bought any online till today... I have been stalking steepster.com since you recommended it and have read so much about tea that I think my head is going to explode.. :D

Anyways I bought from two different vendors the first one The tea table from your recommendation lots of teas and good prices! The second one is 52 Teas... I just had to try some of their blends! So I will update you all on the teas when I get them... can't wait! (Not like I need anymore teas but oh well) ;)
egerandi
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Re: Tea, anyone?

Post by egerandi » Sun Mar 06, 2011 6:25 pm

zeebs wrote:Lavender tulsi! From Stash. Just picked it up at the supermarket to make lavender chocolate truffles with, but I'm drinking a cup of it, and it's good.
Oh! Could you share the recipe? I have tons of organic lavender buds and raw cacao, and hoping to put them to good use :)
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JenW
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Re: Tea, anyone?

Post by JenW » Sun Mar 06, 2011 6:31 pm

fairyfli-
That is so funny...I just put my first order in at 52teas (well, actually mysweethoneybush, but it is the same guy!)

I ordered Chocolate Malt Honeybush! I love this guy's whole irrevrent take on tea...he blends non-traditional flavors, but it works. I hope I like it. The other thing that is cool (except for the whole limited amounts thing....) is that he comes up with a new one every week.
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zeebs
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Re: Tea, anyone?

Post by zeebs » Mon Mar 07, 2011 1:30 pm

egerandi wrote:
zeebs wrote:Lavender tulsi! From Stash. Just picked it up at the supermarket to make lavender chocolate truffles with, but I'm drinking a cup of it, and it's good.
Oh! Could you share the recipe? I have tons of organic lavender buds and raw cacao, and hoping to put them to good use :)
There is no recipe, really, since I totally faked it as I went along. But here's what to do (I halve this recipe, usually, but these amounts will make about two dozen truffles). I adapted this method from a book http://www.amazon.com/Chocolates-Confec ... 0470189576

1. Combine four ounces of heavy cream and 1 tbsp honey (I use the raw kind) in a saucepan and heat over med/low heat until the cream just starts to boil. Stir constantly.

2. Add 1-2 tbsp of ground herbs. I just cut open the tea bags since they were powdered pretty finely.

3. Add 1 tbsp unsalted butter and 12 ounces of white chocolate (you could also use milk chocolate or dark as you prefer, but for dark chocolate, the amount is different). Stir until melted. Heat again over low if needed, but you can probably just stir off the heat if you don't dawdle with the addition of the herbs.

4. Place on a silicone mat (or parchment if you don't have one) in the fridge. I place a silicone mat in a shallow baking dish, and that works great.

5. Refrigerate for at least one hour, up to eight hours.

6. Remove from fridge. Dump the ganache into the bowl of a mixer. Run the mixer on a medium speed for 30 seconds. You can do this by hand, but you'll need to beat vigorously, the mixer gives better results.

7. Allow to sit at room temp for 5 minutes.

8. Use a small round scoop (or some spoons) to scoop the centers onto a silicone mat or parchment paper. They should be approximately one inch or less, whatever your preference is.

9. Temper chocolate in which to dip the centers. I do this by melting 7-8 ounces of chocolate (usually dark - I'm guessing this is where your cacao comes in, but I can't advise, I use storebought dark chocolate chips from Ghiradelli) in a double boiler (or ad hoc water bath made with two pans that fit inside each other) to about 110 or 120 degrees. Then, remove from the heat. Slowly add another 4-5 ounces of chips, in small handfuls, until the chocolate cools to 85 degrees. The texture should begin to change as you do this, but it's easy to get impatient. Don't get impatient! Now, dip a test spoon in the chocolate. Let it sit for 8 minutes on a plate. Don't touch it! If it hardens after 8 minutes, you're ready to dip centers. If it doesn't, add another ounce or two of chips to the pan and dip another spoon, repeat until tempered. You can reheat before doing this, but sometimes I don't. The alternative is to buy dipping chocolate at the store, and then you can just melt it in the microwave. I assume there are websites that can advise you on the tempering process as well.

10. Gently roll the centers in the tempered chocolate. I use two forks to do this. Let them drip thoroughly or else you'll end up with a bloody mess all over the silicone mat or parchment paper (pick them up off it, dip 'em, put 'em back on the mat). You may need to reheat the chocolate to maintain a silky texture throughout the process, and that's okay. Once it's tempered, you can heat it and cool it as long as you're gentle about it.

11. Allow to cool. They should harden at room temp if you've tempered the chocolate well, but you can put 'em in the fridge if you want to, and I usually do, as it makes them easier to transport if they're harder.

Happy truffling!
AdoptYourNextPet
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Re: Tea, anyone?

Post by AdoptYourNextPet » Mon Mar 07, 2011 10:21 pm

JenW: let us know what you think of the Chocolate Malt Honeybush, sound intriguing!
zeebs wrote:
egerandi wrote:
zeebs wrote:Lavender tulsi! From Stash. Just picked it up at the supermarket to make lavender chocolate truffles with, but I'm drinking a cup of it, and it's good.
Oh! Could you share the recipe? I have tons of organic lavender buds and raw cacao, and hoping to put them to good use :)
There is no recipe, really, since I totally faked it as I went along. But here's what to do (I halve this recipe, usually, but these amounts will make about two dozen truffles). I adapted this method from a book http://www.amazon.com/Chocolates-Confec ... 0470189576

1. Combine four ounces of heavy cream and 1 tbsp honey (I use the raw kind) in a saucepan and heat over med/low heat until the cream just starts to boil. Stir constantly.

2. Add 1-2 tbsp of ground herbs. I just cut open the tea bags since they were powdered pretty finely.

3. Add 1 tbsp unsalted butter and 12 ounces of white chocolate (you could also use milk chocolate or dark as you prefer, but for dark chocolate, the amount is different). Stir until melted. Heat again over low if needed, but you can probably just stir off the heat if you don't dawdle with the addition of the herbs.

4. Place on a silicone mat (or parchment if you don't have one) in the fridge. I place a silicone mat in a shallow baking dish, and that works great.

5. Refrigerate for at least one hour, up to eight hours.

6. Remove from fridge. Dump the ganache into the bowl of a mixer. Run the mixer on a medium speed for 30 seconds. You can do this by hand, but you'll need to beat vigorously, the mixer gives better results.

7. Allow to sit at room temp for 5 minutes.

8. Use a small round scoop (or some spoons) to scoop the centers onto a silicone mat or parchment paper. They should be approximately one inch or less, whatever your preference is.

9. Temper chocolate in which to dip the centers. I do this by melting 7-8 ounces of chocolate (usually dark - I'm guessing this is where your cacao comes in, but I can't advise, I use storebought dark chocolate chips from Ghiradelli) in a double boiler (or ad hoc water bath made with two pans that fit inside each other) to about 110 or 120 degrees. Then, remove from the heat. Slowly add another 4-5 ounces of chips, in small handfuls, until the chocolate cools to 85 degrees. The texture should begin to change as you do this, but it's easy to get impatient. Don't get impatient! Now, dip a test spoon in the chocolate. Let it sit for 8 minutes on a plate. Don't touch it! If it hardens after 8 minutes, you're ready to dip centers. If it doesn't, add another ounce or two of chips to the pan and dip another spoon, repeat until tempered. You can reheat before doing this, but sometimes I don't. The alternative is to buy dipping chocolate at the store, and then you can just melt it in the microwave. I assume there are websites that can advise you on the tempering process as well.

10. Gently roll the centers in the tempered chocolate. I use two forks to do this. Let them drip thoroughly or else you'll end up with a bloody mess all over the silicone mat or parchment paper (pick them up off it, dip 'em, put 'em back on the mat). You may need to reheat the chocolate to maintain a silky texture throughout the process, and that's okay. Once it's tempered, you can heat it and cool it as long as you're gentle about it.

11. Allow to cool. They should harden at room temp if you've tempered the chocolate well, but you can put 'em in the fridge if you want to, and I usually do, as it makes them easier to transport if they're harder.

Happy truffling!

Those sound YUMMY!!!!
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zeebs
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Re: Tea, anyone?

Post by zeebs » Tue Mar 08, 2011 8:37 am

Update: I think that dark chocolate centers would have been more harmonious with the herbal tastes. I'd advise that.
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JenW
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Re: Tea, anyone?

Post by JenW » Thu Mar 10, 2011 8:48 am

Has anyone tried anything from David's Tea? I am pretty sure they are only in Canada, and am looking for recommendations before placing an order.
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egerandi
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Re: Tea, anyone?

Post by egerandi » Thu Mar 10, 2011 12:58 pm

zeebs wrote: There is no recipe, really, since I totally faked it as I went along. But here's what to do (I halve this recipe, usually, but these amounts will make about two dozen truffles). I adapted this method from a book http://www.amazon.com/Chocolates-Confec ... 0470189576

1. Combine four ounces of heavy cream and 1 tbsp honey (I use the raw kind) in a saucepan and heat over med/low heat until the cream just starts to boil. Stir constantly.
Thanks! I can't use this as I'm vegan and mostly eat raw desserts (I'm just used to calling raw cacao and nut balls 'truffles', so I just assumed this would be one too, heh), but it was sure nice to read through an imagine the ganache... mmm :)
fairyfli
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Re: Tea, anyone?

Post by fairyfli » Thu Mar 10, 2011 7:40 pm

Hey there Jen,
I was thinking about getting some teas from David's tea as well but haven't yet... I figured I would try Harney and Sons first really wanted to try the vanilla comoro... but david's tea is on my list... let me know if you decide to try it!
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zeebs
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Re: Tea, anyone?

Post by zeebs » Fri Mar 11, 2011 8:08 pm

egerandi wrote:
zeebs wrote: There is no recipe, really, since I totally faked it as I went along. But here's what to do (I halve this recipe, usually, but these amounts will make about two dozen truffles). I adapted this method from a book http://www.amazon.com/Chocolates-Confec ... 0470189576

1. Combine four ounces of heavy cream and 1 tbsp honey (I use the raw kind) in a saucepan and heat over med/low heat until the cream just starts to boil. Stir constantly.
Thanks! I can't use this as I'm vegan and mostly eat raw desserts (I'm just used to calling raw cacao and nut balls 'truffles', so I just assumed this would be one too, heh), but it was sure nice to read through an imagine the ganache... mmm :)
Ah, yes, I didn't remember that you were eating vegan. I knew you'd gone raw, so I was perplexed but willing to share. :) These are my new project, the chocolates, and since they are pretty much a total violation of my Paleo diet, I give most of them to friends. If you do find a good recipe for raw vegan treats, share?

Ever cook with Elana's Pantry? http://www.elanaspantry.com/category/desserts/
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