Musings from the Blue Room

Ahmad Tea

2023-11-15T23:21:14Z

I picked up an assortment pack, so let's jot notes on one teabag in 8oz boiling water:

Darjeeling: almost a cardamom-zing in what should be a plain unflavored choice. can rebuy, not sure if better than Bigelow Darjeeling at price-point
Lemon & Lime Twist: tea. it reminds me of Lemon Lift without the spice notes. can rebuy
Cinnamon Haze: tea. I want to mix this with apple juice as a mulling spice. Mild not zingy. Ambivalent about repurchase
English Breakfast: tea. Perfectly serviceable plain black tea.
Strawberry Sensation: tea. sweetened, it's 100% fake strawberry candy and it's a super fun flavor. do rebuy
Jasmine Romance: green tea. very nice scent. a decent basic example for jasmine-green. have bought, can rebuy.
Chamomile Lemongrass: herbal. prob. won't try
Ceylon: utilitarian basic. perfectly fine. can buy
Blackcurrant Burst: tea. aroma fills room, unsweet is very sour. sweet is still sour. do not buy.
Mango & Lychee. green tea. scent mostly mango. unsweet is nice. sweet is fine but at this point it's way overbrewed. could rebuy, not needed.
Earl Grey. tea. Solid choice. Floral not soapy, not too bitter. can rebuy.
Elegant Earl Grey. Kew collection. Substantially less bergamot than main line EG. Somewhat lemony. Even better.
Garden Afternoon: Kew collection. Like Irish breakfast x EG. Very nice.
Splendid Ceylon: Kew collection. Excellent. Can rebuy
English Tea Number 1: it's like PG tips. robust. could rebuy, not necessary
Peppermint & Lemon: herbal. yikes. that is lemon zest over a hot mint. never again.
Cardamom: tea. pleasant flavor, would be good with dessert. it's a one-note "chai" with a woody finish. not necessary to rebuy. would drink again.
Chai Spice: tea. better than the Cinnamon Haze or Cardamom single flavors but again, would drink again and not necessary to rebuy.
Pomegranate & Raspberry. green tea. scent is pomegranate with a soapy floral. Indifferent-to-pleasant experience. do not rebuy

comments

Apricot Clafoutis, GF flour

2023-05-31T23:04:10Z

100g king arthur GF flour, no xanthan gum ("1/2 c wheat flour") King Arthur is brown rice, potato, tapioca, and white rice.
100g white sugar ("1/2 c granulated sugar")
1 c whole milk
3 eggs, beaten
2 tbsp butter, melted
1-2tsp vanilla extract
dash salt (not in recipe)
raw apricots, quartered, 10-15 whole

Oven, 325F. 8" square glass pan, greased on the bottom

Whisk flour and sugar, then add milk and stir to smooth. Rest (a bit) and stir again. Add eggs and blend smooth, then add butter and vanilla and a tiny bit of salt, and stir again.

Pour batter into 8x8 glass pan. Add apricot quarters a handful at a time, checking overall density of the distribution.

Bake. 35-40 per the recipe, and I'm going 45 because rice flour.

comments

Tea: Empty Tins Jamboree

2020-04-19T02:18:14Z

My cupboard got full. Let's document these and discard the empties.

Harney Colorful Tins
grey: English Breakfast
lavender: Blackcurrant
orange: Mango
taupe: Vanilla Comoro
yellow: Peach Ginger Twist
green: Peppermint
blue: Winter White Earl Grey

Harney White Tins
blue: Paris
red: English Breakfast
iced tea: Peach
Ambessa Green-Lingonberry

Harney Historic Royal Palaces
red: Royal English Breakfast
purple: Tower of London

Harney Black Tins, Large
Brigitte's Blend
Murder on the Orient Express Blend
Eight at the Fort
East Frisian
Malachi McCormick
Orange Pekoe (Ceylon & India)

Harney Black Tins, Small
Stanley's Blend
Queen Catherine
Big Red Sun
Palm Court
Scottish Morn
Supreme Breakfast
Tippy Yunan
Brigitte's Blend
Khongea Broken
Kaimosi CTC

Fortnum & Mason
Earl Grey Classic
Royal Blend

Hugo Tea
Grey Line

comments

Tea, Spring 2020

2020-04-04T07:04:26Z

Harney Teabags
Chamomile

Harney Samples (2019)
Apricot tasty, but how will the flavor shift with time?
Big Red Robe

Harney Small tin (2018)

Lunar New Year Huge leaf expansion. supposed to be oolong + lychee & lemon but I mostly get ginger
Kim Tuyen Black " Vietnamese tea combines the best of both worlds for an unforgettable infusion. Visually, the brew resembles a black tea; steep the leaves, however, and you'll find a beautifully tropical aroma full of character with the subtle and silky body and fruity qualities of an exquisite oolong. Second brew is best.

Harney Large tin (mostly 2018)
Peach Iced Tea nice peach flavor and pleasant tea base. Fifteen Minute Brew Time! I don't need to rebuy, but do not regret this purchase.
~~East Frisian~~ my favorite of the last Harney order; softer than Irish Breakfast. I like this specifically better than Malachi McCormick and Brigitte's.
Ambessa Lingonberry Green underwhelming, vaguely tangy

Holy Mountain Trading Company (2018)

Black [Amaranth] Globe: Qian Ri Hong
Purple Leaf Tea brews up murky purpley-brown, tastes between a green and an oolong.

Bamboo Tea House (2017)
~~Blackcurrant Black~~ farewell Bamboo Tea House. St James Ceylon was excellent.

Minto Island (2016)
Pan-Fired Green
Oolong

Steven Smith Teamaker
~~18: Brahmin~~ individual bags. heavy honey flavor.
~~55: Lord Bergamot~~ individual bags. Brahmin + Bergamot.
24: Big Hibiscus, herbal.

Others
Mishka's gunpowder-and-mint . This might be bulk Kusmi. (2018)
Spice Traders cinnamon/apricot (2017)
Blue Lotus Chai
TJ's Peppermint
Townshends 6: Lapu Mountain Souchong
Trader Joe's Irish: everyday spouse-tea
PG Tips: weekend spouse-tea
Penzey's broken-leaf Spearmint: it's nice after-dinner.
Point Loma Tea: Butterbeer Rooibos

What else is there? There's the handful of single packets that are leftover from things or samples from places.

Souvenirs: Maple Ice Wine, Corn Silk
Southern Boy Blackcurrant White Ice Tea Quart-size.
Republic of Tea Pumpkin Spice from a catalog
Culinary lavender buds from a defunct tea company whose samples are in another container and NOT blogged here. Arg.
Five Mountains Organic Genmaicha: Steamed Pan-Fired Ryokucha Green Tea & Toasted Brown Rice
Origin: Kawane Mountains, Shizuoka, Japan This is rice-heavy and lovely. The container is ferociously difficult to open up.

52 Teas
Firebolt vanilla cinnamon

Summer Additions 2019

B'lure Butterfly Pea Flower For the novelty. Like hibiscus, but not tangy.
Ahmad Limeflower Linden blossom.
~~Jasmine Pearls Bombay Breakfast~~ Cardamom-Rose chai assam. At 18 months, all that's left is ginger. Don't rebuy.
Scots QuadPack: whisky, ~~S breakfast, highland and earl grey~~
The Art of Tea "Huntington Blend" is vanilla earl grey x jasmine green (2019)
Brodie's ~~Scottish Afternoon~~ (2019), CTC. serviceable high caffeine
Bewley's Irish Breakfast (2019)
~~Yorkshire Tea, Red~~ string teabags.

Spring Additions, 2020

Spice Trader Teas
Earl Grey
Assam
English Breakfast
Irish Breakfast
Lychee-Rose Green

comments

Honey Flan: from recipe card

2019-08-26T21:42:23Z

Honey Caramel 1/2 c sugar 3 Tbsp honey In 3qt pan, make dry caramel with sugar: melted and light golden brown. Add honey, shake to combine. Remove from heat. Glaze 6 ramekins with this liquid. Custard 1 c evaporated milk 14 oz sweetened condensed milk 1 c whole milk 3 eggs 1 yolk 3 Tbsp honey BLITZ these in a blender to combine until smooth. Divide evenly between ramekins WATER BATH HOORAY Put ramekins in 9x13 pan. Add boiling water to 1.5" depth in pan. Cover loosely with aluminum foil. Bake 30-35 min at 350F until each ramekin is loosely set but still jiggles. Remove from water bath, cool on counter 30 min, then plastic wrap each and refrigerate 4 hrs minimum. Loosen edge with knife and invert onto plate.

comments

Soda Bread: from recipe card

2019-08-26T19:15:03Z

My grocery store has recipes at the register, but they're on 6" square cardstock, so I forget to file them. IRISH SODA BREAD 4 c AP flour 2 Tb granulated sugar 1 tsp salt 1 tsp baking soda 1 tsp baking powder 4 oz butter, cold, small dice 1/2 c currants 1 3/4 c buttermilk 1 egg 1 oz butter, melted Sift: flour, sugar, salt, b.soda, b.powder. Add diced butter, work in w/ pastry cutter to 1/4" pieces. Mix in currants. Add to dry: buttermilk and egg. Stir these until the dough comes together, still tacky. Knead on work surface: 3-4 times then shape into round loaf. Score top with X, brush entire loaf with melted butter. Bake: 35-45min at 350F until golden and hollow-sounding when tapped on bottom.

comments

Cream of Tomato Soup

2019-08-01T02:36:39Z

Two Very Large Heirloom Tomatoes (850 g)
1 large carrot
2 stalks celery
1/2 Very Large Onion (use 250g)
2 pc bacon, medium dice
3 Tbsp flour
enough olive oil
1 tsp marjoram
1 tsp shallot powder
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp garlic mince (dried Penzeys)
salt
2 bay leaves
1/4 tsp ground cloves
1/4 tsp pepper
more salt
1 can tomato paste, use half.
1 c cream

Dice onion small, cut celery in four pc longways and then 2mm crosscut, cut carrot fine dice. In 10" pan, saute onions translucent, then add celery and carrot and deglaze with water when caramelizing/scorchy. Fry until the carrot is tender. Add more olive oil, stir in flour, fry a bit longer until the flour all hydrates and starts sticking to the pan bottom.

In 4qt pot, cook the bacon, remove bacon and leave fond and fat. Add large-diced tomatoes. Stir to deglaze fond. Add mirepoix, deglaze frypan with plain water, stir all together. Simmer 20 min, stirring occasionally. Remove bay leaves. Use the immersion blender to puree the soup. Adjust tomatoey-ness with tomato paste to taste, add more herbs/spices and more salt. Stir in 1 c cream and serve soup. Four LARGE dinner portions; good for dipping chips or toasty sandwiches into.

The other half of the onion can be large-diced, fried to soften, and put on the soup as garnish.

comments

Tea Summer 2019

2019-07-24T22:16:31Z

So I went on vacation and came back with tea, and my sibling went on vacation and came back with tea for me, and _prepping_ for my vacation _also_ prompted tea buying. Whoops.

Harney Teabags
~~Paris~~ caramel blackcurrant earl grey. I like this. Worth rebuying sometime.
Chamomile
~~AOH Hibernian~~, an Irish breakfast. It's over! It was okay.

Harney Samples (2019)
Apricot tasty, but how will the flavor shift with time?
Big Red Robe

Harney Small tin (2018)
~~Khongea~~ "A bold, brisk Assam. Great for starting your mornings off right! This tea is produced by the Prakash family of Glenburn Teas. It is made on the south side of the Brahmaputra River in India." I don't love this. VERY malty honey.
Lunar New Year Huge leaf expansion. supposed to be oolong + lychee & lemon but I mostly get ginger
~~Chamraj Nilgiri FOP~~ "an enjoyably mellow black tea with light citrus notes. It grows in the hills of southern India, on a sister estate to Korakundah." This is beautiful and brews three times.
~~Amba Ceylon~~ Very big leaves. Brew twice. Don't rebuy.
Kim Tuyen Black " Vietnamese tea combines the best of both worlds for an unforgettable infusion. Visually, the brew resembles a black tea; steep the leaves, however, and you'll find a beautifully tropical aroma full of character with the subtle and silky body and fruity qualities of an exquisite oolong. Second brew is best.
~~Kaimosi CTC~~ Kenyan. such small pellets! good flavor tho, and can rebrew 1/4 volume for weak color. don't need rebuy
~~Big Red Sun~~ Kenyan Milima/ Kenilworth Ceylon, so it should be like an English Breakfast. Spouse likes it! (can rebuy)

Harney Large tin (mostly 2018)
~~Ceylon & India orange pekoe~~ really nice. pleasantly zippy without heavy astringency. Plan to rebuy
Peach Iced Tea nice peach flavor and pleasant tea base. Fifteen Minute Brew Time! I don't need to rebuy, but do not regret this purchase.
~~Malachi McCormick's Decent Tea~~ yeah, it's fine. Assam/Keemun. I got it for the box art.
~~Brigitte's Blend~~ a honey-backed Ceylon? It keeps being fine-but-meh. Do not rebuy.
East Frisian my favorite of the last Harney order; softer than Irish Breakfast. I like this specifically better than Malachi McCormick and Brigitte's.
Ambessa Lingonberry Green
~~Murder on the Orient Express~~ smoked jasmine earl grey teabag. needs food.
~~Decaf Vanilla Comoro~~ purchased b/c decaf. vanilla flavor doesn't make it a winner.

Mighty Leaf (asst years)
~~Ti Kuan Yin~~ brew three times. Second infusion is best.

Tao of Tea (unknown)
~~Rose Petal Black~~ bought b/c container. I keep trying to love it and I don't.

Holy Mountain Trading Company (2018)
~~New Vithanakanda SFTGFOP~~ (large) it's been pleasant. no need for rebuy.
~~Nepal Organic Kangchenjunga Black~~ really quite excellent. medium body, light tannin. One spice-jar cap per pint of water.
~~Darjeeling TGFOP~~
Black [Amaranth] Globe: Qian Ri Hong
~~Irish Breakfast~~ this is mellow and fine, but not as assertive as I'd have thought the "Irish" label would have indicated.
~~Assam TGFOP~~ this is very nice. I like it better than the Irish Breakfast, and it is genuinely nice with milk.
~~Kenilworth OP~~
Purple Leaf Tea brews up murky purpley-brown, tastes between a green and an oolong.
~~Organic Golden Monkey~~ this was nice.

Bamboo Tea House (2017)
~~Blackberry Black~~ super underwhelm. so glad it's over.
Blackcurrant Black

Minto Island (2016)
Pan-Fired Green
Oolong

Steven Smith Teamaker
18: Brahmin individual bags. heavy honey flavor.
55: Lord Bergamot individual bags. Brahmin + Bergamot.

Others
Mishka's gunpowder-and-mint. This might be bulk Kusmi. (2018)
Spice Traders cinnamon/apricot (2017)
Blue Lotus Chai
~~Lupicia Elderflower Chamomile~~
TJ's Peppermint
~~Choice Organic: Organic English Breakfast~~
~~Teekanne Ostfriesian~~ honey flavor
Townshends 6: Lapu Mountain Souchong
Trader Joe's Irish: everyday spouse-tea
PG Tips: weekend spouse-tea
Penzey's broken-leaf Spearmint: it's nice after-dinner.
Point Loma Tea: Butterbeer Rooibos
~~Cosa Tea: instant powder packets~~ none of these were worthwhile. Mango green good, plain green bitter, oolong (dark roasty), lemon black (screaming lemon), english breakfast (good without sugar, terrible with sugar) Stash green tea-powder packets were better but still not impressive.
Typhoo Extra Strong plain but nice

What else is there? There's the handful of single packets that are leftover from things or samples from places.

~~Ahmad Blackcurrant~~ was nice, more blackcurrant than tea. Worth rebuying.
Bigelow Lemon Lift is a heavy lemon spice. I liked it, but not enough to stock or rebuy.
The Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf Chamomile is a hotel sample
The Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf English Breakfast is a hotel sample, but it's Very Good. Could rebuy.
My oil-change place has a coffee amusement machine and a basket of Bigelow samples. I Love Lemon and Orange Spice.
Souvenirs: Maple Ice Wine, Corn Silk
Southern Boy Blackcurrant White Ice Tea Quart-size.
Republic of Tea Pumpkin Spice from a catalog
Culinary lavender buds from a defunct tea company whose samples are in another container and NOT blogged here. Arg.
Five Mountains Organic Genmaicha: Steamed Pan-Fired Ryokucha Green Tea & Toasted Brown Rice
Origin: Kawane Mountains, Shizuoka, Japan This is rice-heavy and lovely. The container is ferociously difficult to open up.
~~YamaMotoYama Oolong~~ never again. bland fannings teabag.

52 Teas
~~Apple For Teacher~~ apple sage allspice. allergic to this.
Firebolt vanilla cinnamon
~~Amortentia~~ strawberry green chai. mostly cardamom. no regrets, no rebrew or rebuy.

Summer Additions WHY WHY WHY
~~Choice Tea Lemon-Lavender-Mint~~ Like Sleepytime, but lavender! Mostly minty lemongrass.
B'lure Butterfly Pea Flower For the novelty. Like hibiscus, but not tangy.
Ahmad Limeflower Linden blossom.
~~Ahmad Darjeeling Tea Bag~~ it's fine
~~Ahmad Ceylon Tea Bag~~ it's nice and also fine
~~Ahmad English Afternoon~~ lightly bergamot. Fine.
Jasmine Pearls Bombay Breakfast Cardamom-Rose chai assam. I like, spouse doesn't.
~~Hugo Tea Earl Grey~~ Smoky, alright. Don't do for Christmas
~~Nambarrie~~ Irish Breakfast. Nothing particularly special
~~Twinings Everyday Teabags~~ simple Yunnan blend
Scots QuadPack: whisky, ~~S breakfast, highland and earl grey~~
The Art of Tea "Huntington Blend" is vanilla earl grey x jasmine green (2019)
Brodie's Scottish Afternoon (2019)
Bewley's Irish Breakfast (2019)
~~ROT Organic Assam Breakfast~~ so mundane
Yorkshire Tea, Red string teabags.

comments

Tea spring 2019

2019-03-14T02:32:03Z

Harney Teabags
Paris caramel blackcurrant earl grey.
~~Mint Verbena~~ lemony mint. quite nice, but not worth stocking
~~Raspberry Herbal~~ rehomed. orange peel.
~~Japanese Sencha~~ I liked this a lot! Savory-vegetal, not too bitter. Green-tea-ice-cream flavor.
Chamomile

Harney Samples (2019)
Apricot tasty, but how will the flavor shift with time?
~~Livingstonia GFOP~~ from Tanzania. Pleasant. Like a green tea in terms of weight, but without the savory-bitter that would be in a green.
Big Red Robe

Harney Small tin (2018)
Khongea "A bold, brisk Assam. Great for starting your mornings off right! This tea is produced by the Prakash family of Glenburn Teas. It is made on the south side of the Brahmaputra River in India."
Lunar New Year Huge leaf expansion. supposed to be oolong + lychee & lemon but I mostly get ginger
Chamraj Nilgiri FOP "an enjoyably mellow black tea with light citrus notes. It grows in the hills of southern India, on a sister estate to Korakundah."
Amba Ceylon Very big leaves. Brew twice and try a third brewing.
Kim Tuyen Black " Vietnamese tea combines the best of both worlds for an unforgettable infusion. Visually, the brew resembles a black tea; steep the leaves, however, and you'll find a beautifully tropical aroma full of character with the subtle and silky body and fruity qualities of an exquisite oolong
Kaimosi CTC Kenyan. such small pellets! good flavor tho
Big Red Sun Kenyan Milima/ Kenilworth Ceylon, so it should be like an English Breakfast. Spouse likes it! (can rebuy)

Harney Large tin (mostly 2018)
Ceylon & India orange pekoe really nice. pleasantly zippy without heavy astringency. likely to rebuy
Peach Iced Tea nice peach flavor and pleasant tea base. Fifteen Minute Brew Time! I don't need to rebuy, but do not regret this purchase.
~~Malachi McCormick's Decent Tea~~ yeah, it's fine. Assam/Keemun. I got it for the box art.
Brigitte's Blend a honey-backed Ceylon? It keeps being fine-but-meh.
East Frisian my favorite of the last Harney order; softer than Irish Breakfast. I like this specifically better than Malachi McCormick and Brigitte's.
Ambessa Lingonberry Green
Murder on the Orient Express smoked jasmine earl grey teabag. needs food.
Decaf Vanilla Comoro purchased b/c decaf. vanilla flavor doesn't make it a winner.

Mighty Leaf (asst years)
Ti Kuan Yin brew three times. Second infusion is best.
~~Assam Golden Leaf~~ aggressive. probably better with milk. Benefit: locally available, purchase gets me a free Peet's simple beverage. Might rebuy for benefit of free beverage.

Tao of Tea (unknown)
Rose Petal Black bought b/c container. I keep trying to love it and I don't.

Holy Mountain Trading Company (2018)
New Vithanakanda SFTGFOP (large)
Nepal Organic Kangchenjunga Black
Darjeeling TGFOP
Black [Amaranth] Globe Qian Ri Hong
~~Irish Breakfast~~ this is mellow and fine, but not as assertive as I'd have thought the "Irish" label would have indicated.
~~Assam TGFOP~~ this is very nice. I like it better than the Irish Breakfast, and it is genuinely nice with milk.
~~Kenilworth OP~~
Purple Leaf Tea
Organic Golden Monkey "From China's Fujian province, Organic Golden Monkey is a very playful tea with lots of character and a wonderful aroma. It's not easy to find a high quality black tea (called red tea in China). Most are mass produced commercially on large farms. This is a good example of one picked and made with great care. It's a first flush early-picked spring tea and production is limited. Use 1 generous tsp. dried leaf (3-4g) per 6-ounce cup of spring water heated to just below boiling (212°). Pour hot water over leaves and steep 4 minutes."

Bamboo Tea House (2017)
Blackberry Black
Blackcurrant Black

Minto Island (2016)
Pan-Fired Green
Oolong

Steven Smith Teamaker
18: Brahmin individual bags. heavy honey flavor.
55: Lord Bergamot individual bags. Brahmin + Bergamot.

Others
Mishka's gunpowder-and-mint. This might be bulk Kusmi. (2018)
Spice Traders cinnamon/apricot (2017)
Blue Lotus Chai
Lupicia Elderflower Chamomile
TJ's Peppermint
Choice Organic: Organic English Breakfast
Teekanne Ostfriesian honey flavor
Townshends 6: Lapu Mountain Souchong
Trader Joe's Irish: everyday spouse-tea
PG Tips: weekend spouse-tea
Penzey's broken-leaf Spearmint: it's nice after-dinner.
Point Loma Tea: Butterbeer Rooibos
~~Cosa Tea: instant powder packets~~ none of these were worthwhile. Mango green good, plain green bitter, oolong (dark roasty), lemon black (screaming lemon), english breakfast (good without sugar, terrible with sugar) Stash green tea-powder packets were better but still not impressive.
Typhoo Extra Strong plain but nice

What else is there? There's the handful of single packets that are leftover from things or samples from places.

~~Ahmad Blackcurrant~~ was nice, more blackcurrant than tea. Worth rebuying.
Bigelow Lemon Lift is a heavy lemon spice. I liked it, but not enough to stock or rebuy.
The Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf Chamomile is a hotel sample.
My oil-change place has a coffee amusement machine and a basket of Bigelow samples. I Love Lemon and Orange Spice.
Souvenirs: Maple Ice Wine, ~~Russisch~~, Corn Silk.
Southern Boy Blackcurrant White Ice Tea Quart-size.
Republic of Tea Pumpkin Spice from a catalog
Culinary lavender buds from a defunct tea company whose samples are in another container and NOT blogged here. Arg.
Five Mountains Organic Genmaicha: Steamed Pan-Fired Ryokucha Green Tea & Toasted Brown Rice
Origin: Kawane Mountains, Shizuoka, Japan

comments

Tortillas: methods testing

2019-01-29T02:59:22Z

I picked up a bag of masa harina at the store. EXCELLENT choice--it's been years since I've done so. I have delicious crafting material. In lieu of committing a ziploc to the tortilla press, are there other ways to cook these flatbreads?

Hand squashing is fine but everything comes out uneven.
Finger-pressing onto parchment the way I press shortbread is fine and is currently the best procedure.
Stainless steel rolling pin was a sticky disaster; it would need a second sheet of parchment and for 110g corn flour, was deemed an excessive use for resources.

Yield: 8 or so 4" tortillas.

Ultimately, I'm aiming at stuffed tortillas, such as pupusas and tlacoyos, and thick corncakes, such as sopes, arepas, and cachapas. They're not all made with masa harina, but plain tortillas are a good place to start.

comments

Brownies

2019-01-28T05:12:12Z

I got semisweet on sale, so brownies-time!

1 stick butter melted w/ 4oz choc
1 c sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
1/4 tsp salt

Beat sugar with eggs until light/fluffy/ribbons. Add vanilla and salt. Stir in cooled-ish butter and choc.

3/4 c flour
1/2 c mini choc.chips or chopped nuts

To the choco-eggs, carefully stir in flour and when that's mostly blended, add chips/nuts.

Spread into a parchment-lined 8x8 pan. Bake 350 until done. My pan took about 37 min in the small countertop oven.

With 1/2 c flour, the top is crunchy and the bottom is squidgy. With 3/4 c flour the crust is thin and tender, and the brownie is evenly soft throughout.

This comes out very differently with unsweetened choco. and triple the nuts (pecans). That version powered my teenage years, but did not gain height (treat food =/= grow food) alas.

comments

If I don't post, there's no content.

2019-01-27T01:58:12Z

To recap: Nov/Dec theater project was super busy all the time, but I survived. YAY.

Tea: I have +3 lbs of dry leaf relative to October. I am trying to use up the '16-'17 teabags before cracking open too many of the new tins from Harney. It's neat realizing which teas don't need a re-brew and which ones absolutely need a re-brew because there's SO much flavor in a twisted whole leaf!

Currently: my doctor thinks the ankle is Achilles Tendonitis (1 tablet naproxen sodium every 12 hrs for two weeks) and I'm being very careful to not point my toe. It's the non-standard ankle for habitual injury, but this having been the result of Speedy Walking is massively annoying.

Cooking: am making more efforts in this regard, and I'm trying to eat breakfast more regularly. It's noticeable in that I'm now getting actually-hungry at lunchtime, am not snacking across the afternoon, and generally am avoiding the "I've been snacking alllllll day, but never feel hungry, so I don't *really* need dinner?" problem.

Fanfic: have been reading through the "Jane Bennet" tag on AO3, but not everything.

comments

Cake to Try

2019-01-04T04:50:30Z

1/2 c butter
1 c sugar

Cream these together, add one egg and beat. Add 1 tsp vanilla.

Sift:
1 1/2 c flour
2 tsp baking powder
pinch salt

Stir flour mix into butter mix, alternating with 1 cup milk.

Bake 350F, 30 min, 9" round pan.

comments

Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies

2018-09-04T04:14:44Z

Melt 1/2 c butter. Add 1/2 c white sugar, 3/4 c brown sugar, 1 tsp vanilla, 1 tsp salt. Stir to combine. Stir in an egg. Measure 1 1/4 c flour and mix 1/2 tsp baking soda with the quarter cup. Stir into the sugary butter. Stir in 1c chocolate chips (more or less). Chill 30 min. Shape into thumb-length by thumb-thick pucks and bake 325ish for 13 or so minutes. Cool on sheet to firm up. I got a pan of 12 and a pan of 9. Spouse declares them "The best texture cookies you've ever made" and promptly ate four.

comments

State of the Hobbies

2018-07-16T06:20:53Z

Ukulele, a project started three? years ago. Have learned some Major chords: C, D, F, G, A. Minor chords: Am. Need to learn: E7, Dm, Gm, possibly Em.

Harp: ukulele cross-ruffed some skills over here. Have a better sense of timing within harmony. Am working on ear-training sound intervals into finger shapes as I noodle around on classic O'Carolan melodies.

Cookery: have learned pancakes. This is bigger than it seems. The tea posts are a sincere effort to streamline the clutter. Discovered PENZEY'S for Spices. Am making an effort to season food and use pepper more often.

Time commitments: am considering a daily volunteer gig to gain more structure in my time. It would likely require retooling the entire sleep schedule though.

Barnabas made family-heritage PB-rice krispy treats with butterscotch-chocolate topping. There's a 9x13 pan. This is a ridiculous lot of sweet.

comments

Midsummer Tea

2018-07-15T23:26:53Z

TJ Irish
Twining's Earl Grey (2018)
Mighty Leaf Tieguanyin

Tao of Tea Rose (Keemun?) (2018)
Taylors of Harrowgate Earl Grey (2017)

Taylors of Harrowgate English Breakfast (2017)
PG Tips (2018)
Harney East Frisian (2018)
Harney Brigitte's Blend (2018)
Harney Malachi McCormick's Decent Tea (2018)
Harney Amba Ceylon (2018)
Harney Paris sachets, a caramel Earl Grey (2018)
Mishka's gunpowder-and-mint. This might be bulk Kusmi. (2017)
Spice Traders cinnamon/apricot (2017)
*Harney decaf Vanilla Comoro (2018) very weak, but it is decaf.

Floating on the counter:
Stash Double Bergamot Earl Grey teabags (2018)
*Harney Paris teabags (2018) - I need to try a comparison directly with the sachets
*Lemon Lift teabags (2018) - I don't like this as much as when I was younger
Blue Lotus Chai
Ahmad Bags Blackcurrant (2017)
mixed loose bags. zomg many.
Penzeys broken spearmint leaf

Lupicia Elderflower Chamomile
TJ's Peppermint

Cupboard above (bin, hooray!)
Steven Smith Brahmin (2018)
Steven Smith Lord Bergamot (2018)
Bamboo Tea House 2oz looseleaf packets (2017) blackcurrant, blackberry
Minto Island Pan-Fired Green (2016)
Minto Island Oolong (2016)
Choice Organics English Breakfast (2018)

Cupboard above, not in the bin:

*Harney Murder on the Orient Express (2018) It's smoky jasmine Earl Grey.
Mighty Leaf Assam (2018)

Finished

bulk dept hibiscus flower pieces

Taylors of Harrowgate English Breakfast (2017)
Twinings Mixed Berry (2018)
Taylors of Harrowgate Scottish Breakfast (2017)
Trader Joe's Organic Earl Grey (2018)
Bamboo Tea House Rose tea (2017)
Bigelow American Tea: Charleston Breakfast looseleaf (2018). So disappointingly weak in flavor!
Bamboo Tea House Spiced chai (2017) truly awful
Harney Tippy Yunnan good for boba, but badly flavor-faded

comments

Tri-tip rub

2018-05-25T22:23:02Z

with a mortar and pestle, grind:

white peppercorns (fish the one out of the teapot promptly)
thumbnail size bay leaf piece
cumin
thyme
salt

rub on meat, bake 350F-->desired temp

comments

Chai + Peach Iced Tea

2018-04-30T21:54:05Z

It's not great, but it made the best of one awful choice and one mildly regrettable choice.

Bonus mildly regrettable choice: braising flank steak in herbs (garlic, oregano, sage, marjoram, white pepper) and Chardonnay, then making soft tacos. Beef + mango + avocado was fun. Beef + ripe green olives needed something sharp, like minced red onion, to shove it closer into a South American flavor profile. Basically, I wanted it to be pabellon, and it wasn't.

Edit to add: Bigelow Earl Grey is aggressive like a bagpipe substituting for a French horn. Choice Organic Earl Grey takes the French horn, adds a mute, then substitutes that all for a wooden recorder. It's soft, barely bergamot, and barely tea. Nice color though.

https://shop.choiceorganicteas.com/Earl-Grey/p/CHO-919719&c=ChoiceOrganicTeas@BlackTeas

comments

When your Epic Movie has tons of space for Cameo-Extras

2018-04-14T07:12:22Z

https://scotspacewolf.tumblr.com/post/171598388187/elvenkingthrandy-royd-allan-reuel-tolkien-is

comments

Rose Tea

2018-03-28T09:13:01Z

https://taooftea.com/product/rose-petal-black/

Bought this. BEAUTIFUL container, by which I mean Has Inner Lid for better airtight qualities. I haven't brewed it alone yet, but with Earl Grey it makes the EG a lot nicer.

Bamboo TH "Persian Tea" is a finely cut black tea, not a CTC.

comments

Uncle Lee's Black Tea

2018-02-12T22:07:42Z

Is a blend that includes lapsang souchong. Seriously did not expect that. I added the rest of my raspberry syrup-sweetened iced earl grey and it's a lot better now.

comments

Tea 2018

2018-02-09T00:07:00Z

2/8/18, the state of the cupboard
4/27/18, updated

2017 saw a lot of finish-the-samples and efforts to get things streamlined. I drank a LOT of Harney & Sons looseleaf, from a hand-me-down box of black teas. I buy Taylor's of Harrowgate, Trader Joe's Irish Breakfast, PG Tips, and occasional tubes of Republic of Tea. RoT used to be one of my go-to brands. Last year my annual-visit bricks & mortar tea shop closed to go online-only, which is unfortunate. I'd enjoyed their things for eight-ish years. I've finished off most of my Lupicia choices. It's a nice company overall, but pricier than I want to be drinking on a regular basis, so I keep writing them off as "special occasion."

I keep looking at the Kusmi Teas website. I've tried a few of their things, but am wanting to finish the pre-2017 teas before buying more/premium-price choices. Harney at 50c/bag is pushing things. The Peets/Mighty Leaf merger frustrates me, because the Peets things I liked seem to be unavailable.

TJ Irish
Twining's Earl Grey (2018)
Mighty Leaf Tieguanyin
Bamboo Tea House spiced chai (2017)
Tao of Tea Rose (Keemun?) (2018)
Taylors of Harrowgate Earl Grey (2017)
PG Tips (2018)

Harney Paris sachets, a caramel Earl Grey (2018)
Mishka's gunpowder-and-mint. This might be bulk Kusmi. (2017)
Spice Traders cinnamon/apricot (2017)
Steven Smith Brahmin (2018)
Steven Smith Lord Bergamot (2018)

Blue Lotus Chai

mixed loose bags. zomg many.
bulk dept hibiscus flower pieces
bulk dept spearmint leaf pieces

Harney Tippy Yunnan

Lupicia Elderflower Chamomile
TJ's Peppermint

Cupboard above (bin, hooray!)

Bamboo Tea House 2oz and 4oz looseleaf packets (2017) 4-Rose, 2-blackcurrant, 2-blackberry
Minto Island Pan-Fired Green (2016)
Minto Island Oolong (2016)
Ahmad Bags Blackberry (2017)
Twinings Mixed Berry (2018)
Choice Organics English Breakfast (2018)

Stash Double Bergamot Earl Grey teabags (2018)
Harney East Frisian (2018)
*Harney Murder on the Orient Express (2018)
*Harney decaf Vanilla Comoro
*Harney Paris teabags (2018)
*Lemon Lift teabags (2018)

Finished:
Lupicia Blueberry-Cassis (not worth rebuy)
Mighty Leaf Assam Golden Tip
Japanese samples from Illinois
Twining's Irish

Rosie Imports Organic Irish looseleaf
Harney Jasmine Sample (fine), Earl Grey Sample (good), Earl Grey Supreme Sample (odd) (2018)
Taylor's of Harrowgate Irish Breakfast teabags (2017)
Ahmad Jasmine Romance (Green) (2017)

Harney Darjeeling bags (2018)
Harney Irish Breakfast bags (2018)
Twining's extra-bold Earl Grey (2018)

Bewley's Original Blend teabags (2018) okay but not memorable

RoT Three Gardens Breakfast (2018) I liked this one!
Bamboo Tea House Persian tea (2017)
Massachusetts oatstraw, chamomile, tulsi. I'm not sure what this actually is. (2017) Given to Aunt K.

Barry's Irish Breakfast (2018) and remembering "Barry's Gold" (in the red box) was meh-okay. Irish Barry's was also mostly meh.

Tillerman Earl Grey. Napa small shop, closed now. So glad it's done. How old was this anyway?! IDK. I am sad about it, because I liked previous batches of this tea a lot when it was fresher.

Bamboo Tea House Irish Breakfast tea (2017)

comments

Apples

2017-11-22T19:46:45Z

Yesterday:

Rome apple, cored almost through, blossom sliced out. Melon baller ftw.
sugar in the raw, 2-3 tbsp?
1 butter pat
cinnamon
cardamom

squish to combine. add into apple a portion of that + 1/3 extra butter pat

Bake 350F / soft in 9x13 with an inch of water in the bottom

~~~~

Golden Delicious/melon ball shape
-->with just spices, no butter or sugar

holds its shape after cooking. Little balls in mini pie pan.

Toddler relative has been informed that shortbread is "crackers" and everybody gets *one* cracker. Toddler relative is being kept away from high levels of sweeteners so as to not warp the sense of taste.

1 c flour
2 Tbsp cornstarch
1/3 c powdered sugar
1/2 c butter
1/2 tsp vanilla
1/2 tsp almond extract
additional 1/4 tsp or so water to bind

Cut all together, pat flat on parchment, score and dock, bake 350F. Makes 14-16 fingers.

comments

Spatzle

2017-09-08T03:43:51Z

I've been making them a lot recently.

Tonight we have:

1.5 c flour in a bowl
2 eggs in a 1.5 c measuring cup. Fill that with milk.
Dash of ginger
Two dashes of nutmeg
Dash of salt

2qt salted water in a 3qt pot
spatzle grater
straining scoop

Cook in three batches.

I mixed a portion with small-chopped fried bacon and caramelized onions, plus a diced raw roma tomato.

Tomorrow I will butter-fry some with a chopped apple and add cinnamon to the pan over the noodles.

comments

Palm Court

2017-07-30T00:48:28Z

Harney, "Keemun, Assam, Ceylon & Formosa Oolong"

What that means is a milder Irish breakfast with Chinese tea flavors, like mixing Prince of Wales with English Breakfast.

It's fine. 7/10.

I have been drinking through Tetley British Blend to use it up. Such *weak* tea compared to PG Tips.

comments