Photo courtsey Lepiaf.Geo

There is a old tradition of high tea in England and other parts of the United Kingdom where one relaxes in the afternoon with a pot of tea and some delicious finger sandwiches. If you are visiting UK this summer, please do plan ahead to take tea at Ritz or one of the ubiquitous tea rooms. For others who are not planning on travelling, an alternative is to create the experience at home. Our friend, Ms. Margaret Johnson, at Pitsburgh Live has published an article with some great recipes of food served with tea at some of the most famous hotels in UK. Please do try these out and let us know how you liked it. If you have recipes of your own, please share them with us. We would love to share them with our other readers!

Below is a shortened version of the Goat Cheese & Fig Sandwich on Raisin Bread… For more recipes, please check out the article here…

Afternoon tea at Dublin’s Four Seasons Hotel includes a lovely fruit-and-cheese sandwich on raisin bread.

Boil 1 ten oz pack of figs in 1 1/2 cup of water. Add 2-3 tsp sugar and simmer for 20 to 25 minutes. Add lemon juice (1-2 tsp) and blend the tender figs in a food blender until it becomes a smooth paste. Separately, breakup the goat cheese (4 oz) and add 2 tbsp milk, whisk until smooth.

Making sandwiches: Cut the edges of raisin bread slices with a knife and toast them lightly. On one slice, spread the goat cheese and on the other spread the fig paste. Bring the two slices together and cut across to make four small triangles. Serve with Hot tea!

Be sure to visit the article for the Salmon Mousse Pinwheels and Truffled Wild Mushrooms Tartlets

Photo courtesy: http://www.thebittenword.com

Just as ground hog day heralds the arrival of Spring, Memorial day heralds the arrival of “barbecue” season. THa annals of cooking are filled with lore about Southern barbecue ribs served with ice cold tea. But this memorial day, why not add some flair to your barbecue and introduce your friends and family to a variation of barbecue that includes tea.

There are several ways to include tea into your barbecue. One quick way is to brew some very strong tea, and mix it with your favorite barbecue sauce. Our Ananda tea is perfect for this quick method. Here is how you would prepare the sauce:

• Allow half cup water to come to a boil.
• Add two tea spoon of Ananda tea, and allow it to boil for 4-5 minutes
• Strain the tea using a regular tea strainer
• Mix one part of tea to two parts of your favorite barbecue sauce
• Rub the marinade over ribs or chicken or tofu per your preference and barbecue as per your favorite method

Another method is a variation of the Chicken Tikka dish, and utilizes lighter darjeeling tea. Here is my receipe, which you can try out this barbecue season.

• 4 tea spoon Rungmook Cedar Tea
• 1 Cup Yoghurt
• One bunch fresh coriander leaves
• 2 Tea Spoon Ginger paste
• 2 Tea Spoon Garlic paste
• 4 Tea Spoon Garam Masala (Can be purchased here)
• 1 Tea Spoon Chillie Powder (less if desired)
• 4 Tea Spoon Lemon Juice
• 1 kg chicken (breast or thigh) skinless and cut into 2″ chunks
• 1 cup chopped onion
• 1/2 cup chopped capsicum
• 1/2 cup chopped carrots

• Soak tea in just enough warm water.
• Mix yogurt, soaked tea leaves, chillie powder, garlic & ginger paste, Garam masala in a bowl
• Rub marinade on chicken breast(s) and leave overnight in the refrigerator to marinate
• Next morning, drain the excess marinade off and grill chicken breast on medium flame for 10 minutes or more until well cooked
• Spread chopped carrots, chopped capsicum and onion on a plate to make a bed. Place grilled chicken on the bed and sprinkle lemon juice and salt over it. Serve hot

Of course, no barbecue is complete without iced tea. To make iced tea for a large number of people, its often better and cheaper to make iced tea with loose tea. Here is how to make iced tea.

• Bring two cups of water to boil
• Add six tea spoons of Mangalam Estate Assam Tea and boil for 4-5 minutes
• Strain tea into a large container and dissolve two cups of sugar (or Splenda - for diabetics)
• Allow to cool and add six cups of chilled water
• serve chilled on ice cubes

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Author: Dr. Madhulika Pareek-Joshi, President, Jaya Tea
We encourage you to replicate this article in your blogs and newsletters. If you do so, we would appreciate a link back to our website to please the god of internet - Google-ji

Photo credit: Rajesh Kumar Singh

The most populous democracy on the planet, India, just cast its 15th vote in general elections and the results are a victory to moderation and unity. Congress party, with standard bearer Rahul Gandhi leading the charge, fielded a large number of youth on its ticket and won 205 seats. Since Congress did not win the simple majority it needs in the 543 seat Lok Sabha, Congress will need to negotiate with other parties to form a government. News reports indicate that Congress is leaning towards partnering with a number of smaller parties rather than partner with Communists or Janata Party which are known for their anti-business agenda and divisive politics.

The Indian general election is historic in that all this is happening at a time when India is surrounded by countries that are totalitarian in their outlook. On its west is Pakistan which has had a checkered history in democracy, and is currently fighting for its survival as a democratic nation, and on the east is Burma which has been ruled by military for a number of years. To the North is China, and to the north east is Nepal, which has seen a maoist insurgency come to power and then implode.

So how is it that India continues its democratic march?

In my opinion it boils down to leadership. Ever since the birth of the nation in 1947, even in the most difficult days Indian leaders have insisted in adhering to the path of democracy. Four wars, one Emergency, and countless other incidents could have easily caused Indians to reconsider the value of democracy. Yet, although some times the country has faltered, each time the Indian leaders have put the power back into the hands of people and let them decide. So, 60 years after independence, India remains a beacon of hope for millions along its border. Each year, thousands and hundreds of thousands cross the border of India with Pakistan, Burma, Bangladesh, Nepal to come into India and enjoy fruits of a democratic state. This alone is a testimony to this powerful means of governance where the most illiterate and poor, and the richest and most highly educated citizens have the same right to vote.

Lets hope that the other nations in that neighborhood see the wisdom of following Indian example and developing the system of democracy. For as faulty as democracy seems to be, the world is yet to devise a better system of governance.

You can see some of the most stunning pictures of democracy in action on this Sacramento Bee Weblog

Coupon code - “memorialday”

Although our country is at war, for most families like my own it doesn’t really feel like it every day. And the main reason for this is that we are protected by very able men and women of the armed forces. We should all be very grateful to these men and women of armed forces who put their lives on line every day to ensure that our freedoms are safe.

But I am sure that it is different for the families of soldiers whose loved ones have given the ultimate sacrifice of laying down their life to protect us. To all those families I salute in honor. Your sacrifices and those of your loved ones will not be forgotten.

This memorial day, lets take a moment to remember all the young men and women who have given their lives in this war and wars of the past. To celebrate this somber occasion, Jaya Teas is offering 10% off on all the teas and tea accessories.

To take advantage of this offer, simply use the coupon code “memorialday” at checkout. If you have any questions, please contact us by clicking here

Click this link to check out this article from Nutrition & Metabolism.

Marc Winnefeld led a team of researchers from Beiersdorf AG, Germany, who studied the biological effects of an extract of white tea – the least processed version of the tea plant Camellia sinensis. He said, “In the industrialized countries, the rising incidence of obesity-associated disorders including cardiovascular diseases and diabetes constitutes a growing problem. We’ve shown that white tea may be an ideal natural source of slimming substances”.

We have known this for a while, but its good to see the results reaffirmed.

White tea is made from the buds and first leaves of the plant used to make green tea and the black tea most commonly drunk in Western countries. It is less processed than the other teas and contains more of the ingredients thought to be active on human cells, such as methylxanthines (like caffeine) and epigallocatechin-3-gallate (EGCG) – which the authors believe to be responsible for many of the anti-adipogenic effects demonstrated in their study.

While they are right, fact remains that processing tea doesn’t really diminish the EGCG, it merely oxidises them. So if Green tea or Oolong or Black tea is your fav, do not despair. You will get very similar results from those teas as well. Just don’t add any SUGAR to your tea, please! Adding sugar is like working out for an hour and then consuming a six pack of beer - negating the whole point of working out!

Celebrate Mother’s Day, For Next Six Months!

Dear Customer, This May 10 we will undergo the annual ritual of celebrating our mothers for all they do for us. But really, shouldn’t we be celebrating our moms every day of the year? Tough if you live far off like I do, but we will make it easier for you. Now, with our Tea Club membership you can celebrate your mother not only on Mothers Day, but the joy of the day gets repeated each month when your mother receives tea from us!

For a limited time, we are offering 10% off on the Tea Club membership. So, what is traditionally $120 tea club membership, will cost you $108!. Whats more, you will be rewarded 108 reward points which gives you a discount of $10.80 on your future purchase!

So, this Mothers day, give the favorite lady in your life a gift that will renew itself each month. Give her the Tea Club membership. Click on Gift Packs and Baskets link in the categories box on the left.

Happy Mother’s Day. I look forward to hearing from you. sales(AT)jayateas.com

- Madhu Pareek-Joshi