Roasted Harvest Roots served in a Jack-o-latern

Roasted Harvest Roots served in a Jack-o-latern

Harvest roots blanched in tea and roasted in tea-sonings. A great side dish for any holiday dinner.

Yield: 8-10 servings

Ingredients

• ¼ cup canola oil
• 1.5 lb beets - roasted, peeled & cut (large dice, ¾ x ¾  x ¾ )
• 2 TBS Harvest Spice loose tea, for blanching water
• 2 lb Sweet Potatoes – peeled & cut (large dice)
• 2 lb Butternut Squash - peeled & cut (large dice)
• 2 lb Rutabaga – peeled & cut (large dice)
• 1 lb Carrots, peeled & cut (large dice)
• Cheese cloth & string
• 2 cups Maple syrup
• 8 TBS butter, divided into ½ TBS pieces
• Harvest Spice Tea-soning: To make tea-soning, hand blend the following ingredients...
• 1 TBS Harvest Spice, finely grounded
• 2 TBS Brown sugar
• 1 ½ TBS Salt
• ½ TBS white pepper
• Optional - Jack-o-lantern serving bowl: 1 large Pumpkin, hallowed 

Preparation:

1. Preheat oven for 375. Place whole beets on tin foil. Oil beets with canola oil and sprinkle salt & pepper. Cover and place in oven for 30-40 minutes, until soft in center. Take out beets and let cool. When cool, peel with damp tea towel. Cut into large dices ( ¾ x ¾  x ¾ ).
2. While the beets are roasting, blanch & shock the rest of the roots in tea infused water. Place 2 TBS of Harvest spice in cheesecloth and tie with string. In a large pot, bring salted water & tea to a boil. Place sweet potatoes in boiling water and let cook until slightly softened, about 15 minutes. Stain and immediately place in ice water to shock, stop cooking. Take out of ice water bath and strain to dry. Following the same process, blanch & shock the butternut squash (blanch about 8-10 min), rutabaga (blanch about 5 min) and carrots (blanch 3 min) all separately since they cook at different time.
3. In a large bowl, mix all the roots together. Place all the vegetables on oiled baking sheet and drizzle with maple syrup. Sprinkle tea-soning. Evenly place butter pieces on top of the vegetables.
4. Place veggies in oven and bake for 15-20 minutes. Rotate baking sheet and let cook for another 10 minutes. Season to taste.
5. Optional - Jack-o-lantern serving bowl: While the roots roast, hallow out a pumpkin and place it in the oven for 10-15 minutes to let it warm and soften. Place the roasted roots in the pumpkin and serve.

Steamed Mussel in Hojicha Wine Nage (Broth)

The perfect appetizer for two...

The wine infuses the dish with hints of sweetness, the Hojicha gives it a touch of earthiness, the mussels balance it with bits of saltiness and the butter brings is all together...

Steamed Mussels in Hojicha Wine broth

· 1-2 TBS butter

· 1 shallot, minced

· 2 garlic cloves

· 1/2 cup white wine

· 3/4 cup fish stock

· 1/2 TBS Hojcha green tea, loose leaf

· 1 bay leaf

· 1 lb mussels scrubbed & debeared (keep over ice)

· 2 TBS heavy cream

· 2 roma tomatoes, blanched & shocked, seeded and diced

· 1 poblano pepper, seeded & diced

· 1 TBS butter,

· Garnish: parsley, lemon (zest & juice)

· Season with salt, pepper, & cayenne pepper

· Toasted bread

1. Melt butter in pan over medium heat. Sweat shallots until soft, 2 min. Stir in garlic until fragrant. Stir in wine Hojicha tea, and bay leaf and simmer for 2 minutes.

2. Increase heat to high and add mussels. Cover and cook stirring occasionally until mussels open 3-7 minutes.

3. Using slotted spoon, transfer opened mussels to serving bowl, leaving liquid in pot, discard unopened. Remove bay leaf.

4. Toast bread.

5. Whisk in butter, cream and lemon until thickens about 1 minute. Stir in tomatoes, pepper and simmer. Garnish with parsley and season to taste. Pour nage (broth) over mussels and serve with toasted bread.

Easy to make and tea-licious to eat...

Tea Seasoned Goat Cheese, an easy and delicious appetizer

Ingredients: Tea-Sonings

Tea + Seasonings = Tea-Sonings

Mix the following ingredients

• BOULDER BLUES Teasonings (Tea + Seasonings = Tea-sonings)

Note: Tea-soning yields about 8 TBS: Use 2-3 TBS for goat cheese and store the rest in an air-tight container

•2 TBS BOULDER BLUES, finely ground


•2 TBS Chipotle Chile Pepper


•1 TBS orange peel, dried

•1 TBS salt

•2 tsp back pepper

•2 tsp cilantro flakes

•1 tsp thyme, dried

•½ tsp cumin, ground

• 4 - 6 oz semi soft Cherve (goat cheese)

Note: I recommend Haystack Mountain Boulder Chevre. This classic fresh semi-soft cheese is rich and creamy and is Haystack’s flagship product. 

Serving Suggestions: Serve with crostinis, or cut into discs and warm in the oven as a salad topping, add to pasta dishes, spread on sandwiches and served as part of a cheese plate with any kind of salty olive or sweet dried fruit. 

Complete this statement: If I were an ingredient I would be _____________...

Hint: My answer is below...

Why would you be that ingredient? 

After water, Tea is the world’s second most popular beverage. Legend has it that tea was discovered in China in 2737 BC by the Emperor Shen Nung, when the leaves of a wild tea bush accidentally fell into a pot of boiling water. By the time of the Tang Dynasty tea had become China’s national drink. This legend sounds like many of my recipes, accidental yet amazingly flavorful and resilient.

Almost all countries have their own tea culture just like all cultures have their own style of cooking. The ability to use tea as a culinary ingredient allows me to honor and unite the world in my individual way while incorporating the healthful benefits of tea into any meal.  

Tea, a frequently overlooked cooking ingredient, is one of infinite flavor profiles. Tea should play a role in everybody's kitchen as a teasoning, marinade, sauce, smoking agent, braising, poaching and brining liquid. Tea enhances the flavor of a dish in a totally different way than any other spice in your cupboard. Chances are you probably already have a full cupboard of tea that is going stale; just cook with it.

How do you pair tea with an ingredient?

The first step is to smell the tea. Close your eyes and let your senses lead you . What foods would taste good with that tea? What flavors would complement or contrast the flavor profile of the tea. The next step is to decide how to use it. Will you grind it for a rub? (Tea should have its own grinder, so it won't pick up notes from coffee or other spices.) Or would it work better in a brine, as a smoking agent, in a marinade, etc?  For example, you can take almost any recipes and substitute brewed tea for any liquid (chicken stock, veggie stock, veal stock, water) or you can throw in the pot of water when cooking a starch. 

The Following recipe uses tea as a base for a seasoning and to flavor the quinoa as it cooks. 

Corn off the cob Quinoa Salad

Serves: 4 - 6

For the teasoning:

1/2 tablespoon Mate Limon Chai, finely ground

1/2 tablespoon sugar

1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper

1 teaspoon salt

For the quinoa:

3 cups red quinoa

2 tablespoons Mate Limon Chai

6 cups water

For the sauteed vegetables:

3 tablespoons canola oil

1 red onion, sliced

1 pound shiitake mushrooms, sliced

5 ears corn, roasted and cut off cob (of 1 can of corn, drained)

1 red pepper, chopped

2 cups edamame

1 pound cherry tomatoes, cut in half

1/4 cup basil, thinly sliced

Salt and pepper to taste

For the dressing:

1/2 cup apple cider vinegar

2 tablespoons agave

1 lime, zest and juice

1 cup olive oil

13/4 teasoning

Directions: For the teasoning: Mix tea and spices together.

For the quinoa: Place quinoa in medium pot. Sprinkle Mate Limon Chai over quinoa. Add 6 cups water to pot. Bring to a boil and simmer for 15 to 20 minutes. Cook until soft but still a little crunchy.

For the vegetables: In a sauté pan over medium--high heat, add the canola oil. When the oil is hot add the onion and sauté for 2 to 3 minutes. Add the shiitakes and cook for another 2 to 3 minutes, until soft. Add the red pepper, edamame and corn and cook for another 4 to 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Turn stove off and mix in cherry tomatoes.

For the dressing: In a mixing bowl, whisk the agave, apple cider vinegar, lime zest and lime juice. Slowly add the oil whisking vigorously to emulsify the dressing (may be done in a food processor). Sprinkle in 1 tablespoon of the teasoning and mix to combine. Add more to taste

In a big serving bowl, coat the quinoa with half of the dressing. Add the sautéed veggies and mix to combine. Add more dressing to taste. Add salt and pepper to taste. Garnish with fresh basil.

What ingredient would you be?

By the way, I didn't have time to cook Lenny Martinelli's Lapsang Souchong Braised Lamb, which is why I didn't write about it. I promised my husband that it will be Sunday's night dinner so stay tuned to hear how it comes out...

Contest: TEAS Your Favorite Recipe...

Your challenge: Take one of your favorite recipes and 'TEAS IT'. 

Winner of the most creatively tea-licious recipe posted here before September 15th 2009 receives a $25 gift certificate to theteaspot.com.

Why TEAS your recipe?

• It enhances the flavor of almost any recipe            
• It provides health benefits                     
• It's a unique culinary ingredient         
• It’s already in your cupboard, loose leaf or tea bag

 How to TEAS a recipe?

• Make a tea seasoning, finely grounded tea leaves blended with herbs and/or spices               
• Use it as a smoking agent              
• Make a tea concentrated broth                        
• Use it as a meat tenderizer                       
• Make a glaze, dressing or marinade                                                    
• Cook grains in tea infused liquid
• Make an ice cream

For more on how to TEAS a recipe, check out Tacoma's Tea Examiner, Casie Swanson's, recent article. 

You can also visit The Tea Spot Chef's blog and The Tea Spot.

Looking forward to testing your recipe. Let me know if you have any questions.