The holidays are a time when most of us are spending a lot more time in the kitchen whipping up family faves and those special once-a-year treats. If you’re looking for a way to change it up this year, and if cooking with tea interests you, then you’re in luck!
We’ve brought out three recipes from The Tea Cookbook, authored by cookbook author and food writer Joanna Pruess along with my grandfather John Harney. These tea-infused dishes can be used anytime you’ve got guests coming, or you’re taking food to a gathering. (Gift idea: pairing a dish with a tin of the tea you used along with the recipe makes a great host/hostess gift!)
First up: a delicious party nibble made with our best-selling Hot Cinnamon Spice tea. Your family and friends will be NUTS about them!
Teasy Spiced Pecans
Ingredients:
- 1 tsp vegetable oil
- 1 egg white
- ¼ C sugar
- 2 tbsp Hot Cinnamon Spice tea leaves, finely ground
- ½ tsp salt
- Pinch of ground white pepper
- ¾ lb. pecan halves
Instructions:
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease a large, flat baking pan or cookie sheet.
- Beat the egg white in a deep bowl until frothy. Combine the sugar, tea, salt, and pepper in another bowl. Add the pecans to the egg white, turning to coat evenly. Transfer to the second bowl and toss to cover with the sugar mixture.
- Distribute the nuts evenly on the pan and bake for 15 minutes. Remove, turning with a spatula until cool; store in an airtight container.
Next, no brunch is complete without quiche! We read somewhere that “brunch without booze is just a sad, late breakfast,” but we’d change that to “brunch without tea!” This recipe combines two essentials – quiche and tea – into one wonderful dish.
Print the recipe card here.
Earl Grey Quiche With Sautéed Onions, Ham, and Gruyère Cheese
Serves 6 to 8
Crust Ingredients:
- 1 ¼ C all-purpose flour, plus additional flour to dust the pastry
- ½ tsp salt
- 7 tbsp cold unsalted butter, cut into pieces
Filling Ingredients:
- 1 tbsp oil or unsalted butter
- 2 large onions, thinly sliced
- 3 oz. ham, cut into small cubes
- 1 ¼ C light cream or half-and-half
- 1 tbsp Earl Grey tea leaves
- 3 large eggs, beaten
- 6 oz. grated Gruyère or other Swiss cheese
- ½ tsp salt
- White pepper
- Pinch of nutmeg
Instructions:
- To make the crust, combine the flour and salt in the bowl of a food processor and pulse a couple of times. Add the butter and pulse until the mixture resembles a coarse meal. With the motor running, add 2 tablespoons of water and process just until the mixture comes together into a ball, adding additional water by the teaspoon if the pastry is too dry. Do not over-process. Gather the pastry into a ball, flatten it into a disk, and dust lightly with flour. Wrap with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 1 hour.
- Preheat the oven to 350°F.
- On a lightly floured board, roll the dough into a circle about 11 inches in diameter. Transfer the pastry to a 9-inch pie pan, trim to within ½ inch of the edge and crimp the edges. Refrigerate for 30 minutes.
- Prick the crust several times with the tines of a fork. Lay a piece of aluminum foil on the crust, smoothing it against the edges, and weigh it down with dried beans or rice. Bake in the middle of the oven until the crust is set, 12 to 14 minutes. Remove the foil and weights and continue baking until the crust is golden brown, 6 to 8 minutes. Cool on a wire rack and then set it on a baking sheet.
- To make the filling, heat the oil or butter in a large, heavy skillet over medium-high heat. Add the onions and slowly sauté until golden brown, often turning, 10 to 12 minutes. Stir in the ham and scrape into the crust.
- While the onions are cooking, heat the cream in a small pan until small bubbles form around the edge. Stir in the tea and steep for 10 minutes. Strain the cream into a bowl, pressing to extract as much liquid as possible. Add the eggs, stir in the cheese, salt, pepper and nutmeg and pour it over the onion-ham mixture. Bake until the filling is golden and slightly puffed but still a little soft in the center, 35 to 40 minutes. Remove from the oven and cool on a rack for 15 minutes before serving.
Finally, what better way to finish off a holiday feast than with a light, refreshing, minty frozen yogurt! Mint is excellent for helping settle the stomach after dinner, and the raspberries give it a lovely pink hue; add sprigs of mint for a nod to holiday red and green. Want to add a little more? Pair this with Unna Bakery Raspberry Jam Drop Cookies, inspired by the baker’s Swedish grandmother’s recipe.
Print the recipe card here.
Raspberry-Chocolate Mint Frozen Yogurt
Makes 1 quart
Ingredients:
- ⅓ C Chocolate Mint tea leaves
- 8 oz. fresh or frozen unsweetened raspberries, defrosted
- 1 C sugar
- 1 qt. plain yogurt
Instructions:
- Bring ½ cup of water just to a boil; pour it over the tea leaves, steep for 5 minutes, then strain, pressing to extract as much liquid as possible. Set aside.
- Combine the raspberries and sugar in the bowl of a food processor and purée until smooth. Strain to remove the seeds, if desired. Stir the puréed raspberries, tea, and yogurt together, then pour into the canister of an ice cream maker and freeze according to the manufacturer’s directions.
- Enjoy!
Print the recipe card here.
