Tea has been proven to have loads of health benefits. There are claims of weight loss, anti-oxidants, digestive properties and more. These days, you can find once rare varieties being mass-produced by companies like Lipton. Varieties like green, white and even red tea are being sold in vending machines. But you should still keep an eye on ingredient lists: no point in going all healthy, just to be swigging down the equivalent of two candy bars in one bottled beverage. Also, those little bottles can add up to a pretty penny on a hot day!
The best and most economical way to get more tea into your life is to buy the bags or if you've got a good strainer, loose tea. Many aficionados swear by loose tea, but I tend to get little bits all over my counter. The only exception I make is Fauchon's Christmas tea, which has goodies like dried maraschino cherries in the blend.
Get yourself a glass pitcher. I have gone through a series of plastic pitchers and I always live to regret it. Plastic leaches all kinds of yuck, it stains, the flavors mix and it becomes scarily porous.
Do a little planning. With your glass pitcher, set a few bags in crisp bottled or filtered water. You can set it in the sun for several hours, then chill. Voila, sun tea! Or, just boil up your special water, add twice as many tea bags as servings and steep for 5 minutes.
I have a wonderful Russian cookbook that suggests using tea as a gelatine flavoring. Take your favorite fruit gelatine or unflavored. Instead of plain boiling water, experiment with boiling flavored tea. I promise, you will have a sophisticated, low fat dessert that people will ask about!
Drink That Tea!
Posted by Tamar F.
Tea has been proven to have loads of health benefits. There are claims of weight loss, anti-oxidants, digestive properties and more. These days, you can find once rare varieties being mass-produced by companies like Lipton. Varieties like green, white and even red tea are being sold in vending machines. But you should still keep an eye on ingredient lists: no point in going all healthy, just to be swigging down the equivalent of two candy bars in one bottled beverage. Also, those little bottles can add up to a pretty penny on a hot day! The best and most economical way to get more tea into your life is to buy the bags or if you've got a good strainer, loose tea. Many aficionados swear by loose tea, but I tend to get little bits all over my counter. The only exception I make is Fauchon's Christmas tea, which has goodies like dried maraschino cherries in the blend. Get yourself a glass pitcher. I have gone through a series of plastic pitchers and I always live to regret it. Plastic leaches all kinds of yuck, it stains, the flavors mix and it becomes scarily porous. Do a little planning. With your glass pitcher, set a few bags in crisp bottled or filtered water. You can set it in the sun for several hours, then chill. Voila, sun tea! Or, just boil up your special water, add twice as many tea bags as servings and steep for 5 minutes. I have a wonderful Russian cookbook that suggests using tea as a gelatine flavoring. Take your favorite fruit gelatine or unflavored. Instead of plain boiling water, experiment with boiling flavored tea. I promise, you will have a sophisticated, low fat dessert that people will ask about!