Tea Meme

Thank you, Mrs. Bear, for this meme!

Your first cup, when do you drink it? Either while breakfast is cooking or with breakfast.

How many cups a day do you drink? During warmer months I don't drink any, but during the coldest months I probably have had up to five. Right now in October I drink two.

Teabag or leaf? I like both, but usually buy teabags because they seem to be cheaper.

Milk or sugar? None for herbal teas, milk for a couple black teas and both for most black teas.

Your favourite way of brewing? Pour a boiling kettle of water over the tea and set the timer for four minutes.

With whom do you prefer to enjoy your tea? Family or friends, but normally I am by myself.

Your favourite tea? At home either English Breakfast or Blackberry Sage. At a coffee shop it is chai. I just can't seem to make good chai at home.

Where do you prefer to drink your tea? At the computer or on the couch watching my children.

What does your favourite cup look like? Like this only red instead of green.

English Breakfast or Earl Grey? English Breakfast - I love it!

Favourite occupation while drinking tea? Talking with friends or reading blogs.

Formative tea experience? After my mom started homeschooling us, we would always have a tea break in the late morning in the winter. It was usually chamomile or raspberry. I have loved tea ever since, but didn't discover black tea until I was in college.

Incidentally, I have had to declare a moratorium on buying tea. I have so many different types that it will take a long, long time to use up. My poor husband has been very patient with my vice, but I know he would like to see my tea taking up only one shelf in the kitchen.

The Loveliness of Comfort Drinks

The first weekend in autumn it starts to cool down my husband always says, "I'm cold. Let's have some cocoa." Then he gets out the saucepan and makes a scrumptious batch of hot chocolate. The recipe comes from his favorite cookbook. It is a wonderful treat he makes for us during the winter and my cleaning the pan is a small price to pay for it. :)

Hot Chocolate

4 C. Milk
¼ C. Powdered cocoa such as Hershey's (or use 2 squares of unsweetened baking cocoa, chopped)
¼ C. Sugar, or to taste
A pinch of salt
A dash of vanilla

Blend the dry ingredients with about ½ C milk over very low heat in a small saucepan, stirring until smooth. Stir in the rest of the milk, beating with a fork or wire whisk.

Heat the mixture over medium-low heat, stirring occasionally, until hot. Add the vanilla, pour into cups and serve.

Beverage Update

Well, we tried the strawberry margaritas with gin instead of tequila and they were quite refreshing. We didn't have any fresh mint so we had to make do with dried. My only quibble with the recipe is that it says it makes 5 cups. That is only if one wrongly assumes that one cup of frozen watermelon is the same as one cup of blended watermelon.

We also tried this frappuccino recipe because it was the only one for which we had all the ingredients on hand. (We had to make chocolate sauce.) It was excellent! We made it a second time and it wasn't as good, probably because we added too much ice.

Watermelon-Mint Margaritas

Someone pointed me to this recipe on Southern Living. Although I haven't tried it yet, one of the things that makes it looks appealing is that it specifies that it can be made without alcohol. My husband doesn't care for tequila, but he will still be able to try this recipe. Another thing that looks great about it is that with the watermelon and fresh mint it has such wonderful summertime ingredients.

Watermelon-Mint Margarita Recipe

Prep: 10 min., Freeze: 4 hrs. Use leftover watermelon to make this slushy summer drink.

4 cups seeded and chopped watermelon
Fresh lime juice
Sugar
1/2 cup tequila*
1/4 cup sugar
1 tablespoon grated lime rind
1/4 cup fresh lime juice (about 3 limes)
2 tablespoons chopped fresh mint leaves
Garnish: fresh mint sprig

1. Place watermelon in a single layer on a baking sheet. Freeze 4 hours or until firm.

2. Coat rims of cocktail glasses with lime juice; dip in sugar.

3. Process frozen watermelon, tequila, and next 4 ingredients in a blender until slushy. Pour into glasses. Garnish, if desired.

*1/2 cup orange or apple juice may be substituted for tequila.

Yield: Makes 5 cups

Starbucks Frappuccinos

Although neither my husband or I are coffee drinkers, we both like an occasional frappuccino from Starbucks. Between the milk, sugar, and chocolate or caramel syrup, the coffee flavor is diminished enough to enjoy it.

Given, however, that these cost more than three dollars each it is a rare treat for us. The blogger at It's Just Money was also lamenting the cost. He linked to this nifty site where they have a basic frap recipe as well as several Starbucks recipes which can be downloaded as an ebook. Similar recipes can be found here.

The best imitation frap site looks like it can be found at GourmetSleuth.com. It has a large collection of imitation Starbucks recipes which include other drinks and sweets that either are or have been sold there. I am sure that with all these options, my husband will be happy running the blender to taste test some of them.