Tea Treat – Pasteis de nata

Time for Tea Please?

I love baking ! Especially a tea treat. Today I’m having my first ever go at Pasteis de nata. Which are a Portuguese custard style tart.

Fancy having a go?

You will need:
3 eggs – split in to 2 yolks 1 whole egg
115g caster sugar
2 tbsp cornflour
400ml full fat milk
2 tsp vanilla extract
1 sheet ready to roll puff pastry
(it’s my first go so cheating on the pastry this time round!)

Step 1 – making the custard
On a low heat stir together the eggs, sugar & cornflour, slowly add the milk to the mix constantly stirring to avoid the lumps.
Step 2 – once the custard starts thickening and just reaches the boil remove from heat and stir in the vanilla essence.
Step 3 – poor into a glass/ceramic bowl , cover with cling film and leave to cool.

Step 4 – cut the pastry sheet in half and place on top of each other, roll the two together up tightly from the short side. Cut in to 12 pieces.

Step 5 – on a floured surface roll each round into a disc around 10cm.

Step 6 – place each disc into a muffin tin

Step 7 – fill with the custard mixture.

Step 8 – bake for around 25 minutes until golden topped.

Step 9 – leave to cool in the tin for around 5 minutes before turning out onto a cooling rack
Step 10 – Enjoy!

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Tazo – Butterscotch Blondie

Time for Tea Please?

When Tazo teas contacted me about trying a sweet treat of course I was more than intrigued about what they were sending me!
After having a quick browse at their colourful website, I very excited to read that “The people of Tazo® are serious tea lovers. We believe each cup should add a little joy to your day. So we seek out the most delicious tea leaves, spices and botanicals to carefully craft exhilarating and unexpected blends that delight the senses”.

If you fancy having a look for yourself hit the link! http://www.tazo.com

Tazo Butterscotch Blondie is a rich black tea with notes of vanilla and butterscotch. Now if that combos not enough to start you mouth watering I don’t know what is ! Even more so when opening the tea pouch you are instantly hit with the aroma of butterscotch.

This tea combines black tea with chicory root, cocoa peel, liquorice root, cinnamon , cardamom and natural flavours !

Can’t wait to get brewing !

The aroma whilst brewing is not too dissimilar to its dry state, if anything it just emphasises the buttery tones of the butterscotch.

Like most black based teas the brewed liquid is of a brown shade.

On first sip I am amazed at how much the tea does actually taste like butterscotch. Which considering what’s used in the blend is almost hard to believe. It’s only as you keep in sipping your way through the tea that it’s possible to start tasting the individual components, particularly that of the chicory. With further undertones of the cocoa which empathises the blondie aspect of the tea.

I was certainly surprised how much this tea does actually taste like butterscotch it just didn’t quite last flavour wise throughout the whole mug. This didn’t stop it being a great tasting tea and certainly fits Tazo meeting the dessert delights.

Happy Sipping 🙂

Tetley – Super Fruits

Time for Tea Please?

It’s that time of year when flu and colds are flying around and thanks to Tetley I’m hoping their tea is going to give me a much needed boost to get through the winter months.

Today I’m trying Tetley Super Fruits. This tea is specifically for giving you a much needed boost when feeling tired and fatigued. With added vitamin B6 in a cranberry and elderflower flavour.

The tea blend includes: hibiscus flowers, rooibos, rosehip, natural flavouring, liquorice root, elderflower (1%), raspberry (1%), cranberry juice granules (1%), vitamin B complex (1%) [nicotinamide, pantothenic acid, folic acid, vitamin B2, vitamin B6, vitamin B1, biotin, vitamin B12, mannitol (wheat)], elderberry(0.5%).

On opening the box of tea you are able to smell the fruity from the word go.

Time to brew !

I prefer my herbal teas really strong and tend to leave the tea bag for as long as possible I know might sound weird and sometimes I don’t even take the tea bag out !

As expected with the cranberry the brewed liquid is a rich dark pink colour. On brewing, it keeps it fruity aroma but with ab almost menthol tinge.

Upon first sip it was lovely !

The fruity tones of the raspberry and cranberry are main flavours being followed up with the underlying rooibos tea kicking in afterwards. The final component of the sipping experience coming is a menthol kick. It’s certainly adds a boost per sip. Which is exactly what the tea aims to do.

Here’s hoping the benefits of added vitamins will give me a much needed boost to get through the winter blues !

Happy Sipping 🙂

teapigs – Spiced Winter Red Tea

Time for Tea Please?

January just seems to be going on for ever ! Now don’t get me wrong I love January particularly as its my birth month , but it just seems never ending. The weather can’t make up its mind snow no snow, wind no wind, what ever next ! Now there’s no better way to brighten up a dull winter day than cozying up with a mug of tea.
To add some extra heat to my cuppa I’m giving teapigs spiced winter red tea a try.

This tea blends together rooibos, flavours, orange peel, gingko, orange blossom, cinnamon, ginger root, cloves, safflower.

Upon opening the tea pouch you are instantly hit with the spicy tones of the ginger mixed in with the fruity orange notes all mixed together with that distinct rooibos smell.

After brewing for around 4 minutes you are left with a browny red colour.

The aroma while brewing is not too dissimilar than to its dry state other than the prominence in the cloves.

First sip and I am intrigued. Sometimes you drink a tea and you can instantly taste a certain aspect of the tea. With this brew it allows all of them to work as one. The main flavour of the tea which I’m getting, is a strong mix of the cinnamon, ginger and cloves with very subtle tones of the rooibos.

Another bonus of this tea is that it’s a brew that tastes the same from start to finish and is consistent in its flavour and aroma.

This tea certainly provides you with a lovely spiced sipping sensation and no it’s not going to blow your socks off but it will warm you from the inside out. Making it a perfect winter warmer.

If you fancy giving this tea try then hit the link below:
https://www.teapigs.co.uk/tea/shop_by_category/all_tea/spiced_winter_red_tea.htm
Happy Sipping 🙂

Tea Travels

Time for Tea Please?
I’m super excited as I’ve just booked to go to Iceland in May. So can’t wait to fill up the flask and take a camper van round the whole island.

Wan Ling Tea House – Silver Needle 2014

Time for Tea Please?

Thanks to the lovelies at Wan Ling Tea House I’m able to share with you their Silver Needle , white tea.

Wan Ling Tea House was founded as name suggests by Wan Ling where she grew up surrounded by tea and her family even grew tea!

To discover their tea for yourself hit the link http://www.wanlingteahouse.com

Wan Ling Tea House and their Silver Needle 2014 is direct the tea mountains found in the Northern Fujian. This tea is produced by sun drying it.

I’ve not rally drank a lot of white tea before so I’m excited to try.

Upon opening the tea pouch you are able to smell the light tea tones of the white tea.

It’s clear to see how this tea got its name as the leaf does look like needles!

Brew time !

Upon brewing the aroma of the tea is very similar to the that of its dry state. With what I can describe as a light aroma not too dissimilar to that of green tea.

After brewing for around 3 minutes the brewed liquid is a light yellow in colour.

Upon first sip I am very surprised about its delicate flavour. It doesn’t even really have a taste I can overly pin point to describe it as to you over than white tea. Not that comparing the taste of a tea is something that can always happen.

However there is something quite calming about sipping on something that seems so delicate in its flavour. It’s certainly making a wet and blustery day seem that little bit brighter!

Happy Sipping 🙂

Crate and Cup – Spice Holiday

Time for Tea Please?

I was luck enough to receive a Crate and Cup selection pack for Christmas!

It’s a brand I’ve never heard of and after a but if digging I came to a dead end. Then I found on the back of the main packaging that it was created for a gift company.

Each cute little box contains a tea pouch containing 3 tea bags!

Today I’m feeling the holiday blues and wishing it could be christmas everyday so I’m opting for Spice Holiday Blend.

The packaging may be cute it doesn’t actually give much away. According to the box Spice Holiday is made up of 96% black tea, ginger, clove and flavours,

Upon opening the pouch there isn’t really a distinct aroma of anything , the black tea smells quite fruity and by holding the tea bag up to the light it also just looks like black tea so there must be more “flavour” than its letting on.

Let’s get brewing and seeing what we get !

The aroma of the tea while brewing does seem to have more of a spiced tinge to it, so here’s hoping it tastes it.

As expected with a black based tea it’s brown in colour and quite a bit darker than I was expecting it to be mainly because of the amount within the teabag.

First sip is pleasant enough. It’s not a very strong black tea and I’m drinking it without milk too. However I’m just not getting anything from this tea. Especially with it having ginger and cloves there’s no spicy kick. Unfortunately this is a tea that’s all fur coat no knickers!

Happy Sipping 🙂