Iced, Spiced Apple Tea or Apple Chai

 apple-tea3

I love both Indian chai tea and Turkish apple tea. Chai tea is strong and scented with cardamom and cloves. Turkish apple tea (elma cay) is golden, refreshing and tastes quite like apple juice. This recipe combines the best of both teas – the aromatic spices from chai tea and the bright apple flavor of apple tea. Serve this tea cold in a tall glass with ice on a hot summer afternoon. Or serve it warm in tea cups on a chilly autumn day. 

tea-and-spices

Use a good quality loose leaf black tea. I used assam tea. If you dont have loose leaf tea, you could use tea bags instead. You’ll also need some apple juice and spices – cinnamon, cardamom and cloves. Star anise or saffron will also be nice..use whatever spices you like.  

apple-tea2

apple-tea1

Iced, Spiced Apple Tea or Apple Chai Recipe
makes about 2 cups

1 cup water
2 cardamom pods
2 cloves
1 thin one inch piece of cinnamon
2 tsp loose leaf black tea or 2 tea bags
Sugar to taste
1 cup store bought apple juice
Apple slices for garnish

Lightly crush the cardamom pods with the back of a wooden spoon till it cracks open. Place the water, cardamom, cloves and cinnamon in a saucepan and bring to a boil. Add the tea, turn off heat and let the tea steep for about 3 minutes. Then strain the tea and stir in sugar to taste.

Mix the prepared tea with apple juice. Serve cold (or hot). Garnish with apple slices.

Yerba Mate – a South American Herbal Drink

yerba mate and gourd

We discovered this hot, green tea-like South American drink when we visited Argentina. Yerba mate was everywhere Argentina. In the evenings, families flocked to Buenos Aires’ parks with mate gourd and a flask of hot water in hand. Shopkeepers stood by their stalls sipping yerba mate from its bombilla or straw. People socialized over yerba mate. At a house party, when I asked for tea, I was given yerba mate…by a very handsome Argentinean.

This being Argentina’s national drink, I had to bring back some yerba mate and a couple of mate gourds from my trip. I didnt realize till now that I hadnt shared pictures of my yerba mate and mate gourds with you. So here is my yerba mate post!

Spot the mate gourd picture that has a reflection of me!

Yerba Mate in Argentina
A mate maker carving gourds & an olive vendor enjoying yerba mate in Mendoza, Argentina.

‘Yerba’ means herb and ‘mate’ is the gourd used to drink yerba mate. So the drink literally means ‘herb in a cup’. True to its name, Yerba mate tastes like strong, earthy, somewhat bitter green tea.

Research shows that yerba mate has cancer fighting, antidepressant and energy boosting properties. If you’ve ever used Biofreeze – a topical muscle and joint pain reliever – you have experienced yet another medicinal property of yerba mate. Biofreeze, by the way, works like magic for aches and sprains; I HIGHLY recommend it. Biofreeze is so incredibly effective only because it is made from yerba mate! It contains Ilex, which is the botanical name for yerba mate!

Continue reading

Exotic, Warming Teas – Kashmiri Kahwa and Moroccan Mint Tea

 

lashmiri kkawa and moroccan mint tea

Any south Indian family will know how to make and enjoy a good cup of coffee. The day always starts with a stainless steel tumbler full of strong, sweet, frothy coffee. But not in my family. Most my family are tea drinkers. Serious tea drinkers at that. Tea time at my grandmother’s house in India is an elaborate affair reminiscent of the British era. Every morning and evening, tea is carefully brewed and poured into a bone china tea pot with pink roses on it. A matching creamer with full fat milk, tea cups with saucers, little teaspoons and sugar are all placed on a tray. The tray is then ceremoniously placed on a teapoy before my grandmother. The tea is mixed, Marie biscuits are dunked and the slurping starts.

One day my grandmother offered a sip of tea to my 13 year old cousin, T. He loved it and wanted more. Then there was a great discussion whether a 13 year old boy should be drinking tea or not. But T had his way. And from that day on, my cousin had his daily tea, with his own little teapot, tray and teapoy. He is 35 now and still takes his tea with the same pomp and ritual.

Me…I’m not into 19th century teapoys or pretty British teapots. But I do have cute mugs and some great tea recipes that will be just perfect for a cold winter’s day.

 

Kashmiri Kahwa (makes 2 cups)

We use to live 3 doors away from a Kashmiri family. Every time we visited them they would offer us Kahwa (or Kehwa) – Kashmiri green tea spiced with cinnamon, cardamom, saffron and walnuts. The saffron gives the tea a beautiful golden, honey color. The walnuts impart a delightful buttery flavor.

Green Tea – 1 tsp (I used Chinese gunpowder tea)
Cloves – 2
Cardamom – 3
Cinnamon – 1/2 tsp powdered or 1 stick
Walnuts – 4
Saffron – a pinch
Sugar to taste
Water – 2 1/2 cups

Coarsely chop the walnuts. Using the back of a wooden spoon, lightly crush the cardamom, cloves and cinnamon stick, if using.

Place the water, crushed cardamom, cloves and cinnamon in a pot and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and gently boil the water for about 5 minutes. Then add the green tea. Immediately turn off the heat. Let the tea steep in the water for about 2 minutes. Stir in sugar. Strain the tea.

To serve, divide the walnuts and saffron and place in tea cups or mugs. Pour tea over the saffron and walnut pieces.

Moroccan Mint Tea
(makes 2 cups)

We first had this refreshing mint tea when we went to Morocco. The tea was ubiquitous – every home and every shop always served a glass. We were even offered mint tea in the middle of the sahara dessert!

Green Tea – 1 tsp (I used Chinese gunpowder tea)
Mint – about 5 sprigs
Sugar to taste
Water – 2 cups

Bring the water to a boil in a pot. Turn off heat and add the green tea. Let tea steep about 2 minutes. Add sugar and mix well. Strain the tea.

Place the mint sprigs in tea cups or mugs. You’ll need to use about 2 full sprigs of mint per medium sized cup/mug. This might seem like a lot of mint, but that’s what imparts flavor to the tea.

Pour hot tea over the mint and serve immediately.

Related Posts with Thumbnails