Easter Eggs au Naturel

Holidays are serious business at my house (and for the record, they were BEFORE the arrival of my son). Now I use the fact that I have a 3-year-old as my holiday-insanity-excuse. People that know and love me accept me for who I am; they are fully aware that when "Holiday Susie" arrives on the scene that craziness shall quickly follow. Fool? Maybe. All I know is that I happily cling to that bit of magic from my childhood...and you should, too.

Easter egg time is here. Yes, I know Easter isn't necessarily about eggs, but let's face it: making Easter eggs is fun. This year I decided my son and I would do something different. With all the fantastic herbs, teas and spices around me, I figured it'd be fantastic to make NATURALLY DYED Easter eggs - and WOW...SO. MUCH. FUN!!! Besides, is it just me or are those crummy Easter dye kits at the supermarket getting cheaper and cheaper? That's a different blog. I know. So, I thought I would share my Natural Easter Egg Wisdom with the world - it is less harmful all 'round and as it turns out, it ends up being a pretty fun time spent with the kidlets. Here's what we learned:

WHAT YOU'LL NEED:

White eggs (quelle surprise!)
Egg Cartons (for drying)
Alum Powder (found at the grocery store, probably near spices)
White vinegar
Dye materials (more on this below)
Stovetop
Saucepans
Measuring Spoons
Wooden spoon & slotted spoon
Vegetable oil
Optional: rubber bands, stickers, etc. (for making 'fancy-schmancy' eggs)

DIRECTIONS

STEP 1: Choose which colours you'd like to dye your eggs:

a. BLUE: Hibiscus Tea (ya, you'd think the eggs would turn red, but they don't!)
Red Cabbage
b. RED: Whole beets
c. TAN: Strong black tea
Cumin (Ground)
d. YELLOW: Turmeric
Chamomile Tea
e. PURPLE: Frozen Blueberries
f. GREEN: Spinach Leaves or Fresh Herbs
g. ORANGE: Chili Powder
Paprika

Step 2:

For each colour, fill a saucepan with at least 3 inches of water. Add in your vegetables, spices or teas. It’ll take a lot…around two cups, packed (for veg) - not as much for spices (we used 3 tbsps of spices/teas) - you'll have to play to get it to the colour you want.

Step 3:

Bring the water to a boil, and add 2 tsps. alum powder (this allows you to get deeper colours).

Step 4:

Boil for 30 minutes.

Step 5:

Remove the pan from heat and allow it to cool slightly. You don’t want to add the eggs to boiling water, because the shells will likely crack.

Step 6:

Return to heat, and stir in two tbsps. of white vinegar. Add the eggs and bring mixture back to a full boil. Reduce heat slightly, and cook for 10-12 minutes. Take the pan off the heat, and let the eggs cool in the dye.

Step 7:

Remove the eggs from the dye. If you’re satisfied with the color, then allow them to dry. For deeper, richer colors, strain the liquid, and allow the egg to continue to soak for up to eight hours. (Any longer, and the vinegar will start to disintegrate the shell.) If you plan to eat the eggs, put them into the refrigerator. We used the egg cartons as drying racks!

OPTIONAL STUFF:

• When the eggs are dry, you can use a cotton ball to rub a little vegetable oil over the eggs for added sheen - pretty!
• If you want a striped look, wrap your egg in rubber bands before dying - when they are dry remove the bands and voila!
• We got cute little Easter stickers from the dollar store and fancied up a few eggs
  

We really had a lot of fun making our Easter eggs. We are going to make a batch this week to keep in the fridge..and we can eat them without fear of turning flourescent green! There's something extra satisfying about using what Mother Earth gives us to make these...and somewhere in here was a lesson for my son. I'm sure of it. Happy Easter to all my tea and spice-adoring friends. May you be surrounded by friends, family...and naturally-dyed Easter eggs, of course!

Gimme Garam Masala

I think this might be my desert island spice (er, well...blend, actually). It's a tough choice for me because I love so MANY spices...but when daydreams take hold, I drift to thoughts of Garam Masala (yes, I'm well aware that makes me weird).

Sit down - I'm about to tell the tale of this lovely spice blend from India (I really have to visit there). Forgive me in advance, it's not just the taste of spices that enthrall me, but also their history - it's just so colourful. I figure people that continue to follow this blog share the same obsession, so it's all good! Again - my reward for diligent readers: a great recipe at the end! Susie's OWN recipe!

Let's get the easy stuff out of the way first, just what IS Garam Masala? Why, it's a spice blend - and a hypnotic one at that. Common in India and other South Asian cuisines, garam ("hot") masala ("mixture") is not a spicy-hot spice, but is indeed intense. The word "hot" in this instance refers to the blend's ability to 'heat' the body, thus raising one's metabolism. I'm pretty sure that every household in India boasts a different recipe for Garam Masala (just like their lovely chai). Experts could probably taste a blend and identify what region it comes from just by the ingredients. I'd like THAT job, please! Sigh, that was a nice little dream - but back to reality! Common ingredients used in the making of garam masala include (but are not restricted to): black and/or white peppercorns, cloves, long pepper (aka 'pippali'), black cumin, cumin seeds, cinnamon, black/brown/green cardamom, nutmeg, star anise and coriander seeds. You see?! You see why it's so delicious?!??

I recently learned that a rite of passage for Indian cooks is to become a 'masalchi' or master spice blender (um, sign me up for THAT, too). There's good reason for this: a single dish in India can call for as many as a dozen individual spices to create its unique flavour profile. In the words of Alannis Morissette: thank youuuuu, Indiaaaaa! I digress. So, the brave home chef can most certainly take up the challenge of making his or her own blend, but beware: it's a tedious (but beautiful) process. You begin with quality whole spices, you'd need a good quality mortar and pestle (I'd recommend granite), and you need to know how to toast spices to coax out their gorgeous flavours. If you're beginning, there are some fanastic ground blends at the ready for you (I'm addicted to the one I have here at my shop). The things to be careful for if buying a blend: buy from a reputable seller and buy in small quantity to maintain freshness. Store your garam masala blend in an airtight container away from light, heat and moisture.

So, what does one DO with garam masala, exactly? Let me pleeeeeeease demystify for you (because seriously - you have to use this blend, you do!). I pretty well think it pairs with EVERYTHING beautifully - it's great in tomato-based dishes to give Indian flare, it's lovely with chicken, lamb, snacks (think oven-roasted garam masala chickpeas) - I even make garam masala cookies (such an exotic, unique taste for a sweet dish). Anyway, to get the ball rolling, I'm giving you my SUPER DUPER easy recipe - this is made once a week at my house and even my 3-year-old son devours it. Happens to be healthy, too. Bonus! Enjoy, thanks for reading...and now you understand why I say, "GIMME GARAM MASALA!"

Susie's Chana Masala (Chickpea Curry)
This is a vegetarian dish...nice served over a bed of Basmati rice and topped with fresh cilantro. You may play with the quantities of spices used here, I always eyeball it...

Ingredients
1-2 tablespoons oil (any oil with high smoke point will do fine)
2 onions, diced
2 garlic cloves, crushed
1 tbsp. Charmed Spices Cumin Seed
1 tbsp. Charmed Spices Garam Masala
2 (19 oz.) cans of chickpeas (drained and rinsed)
3/4 cup plain yogurt (can be low-fat, but not no-fat)
1/2 cup tomato sauce
1 tbsp. tomato paste
Cilantro, chopped (for garnish)

Method
1. Heat oil over medium heat in a large pan;
2. Add in chopped onions and garlic. Saute until onion is translucent.
3. Add in both your cumin seed and garam masala. Stir well and continue to cook for 1-2 minutes. You will notice a lovely fragrance at this point!
4. Add in your remaining ingredients (minus the cilantro) and stir really well. Reduce heat a beat and allow everthing to heat through.
5. Serve over basmati rice and top with chopped fresh cilantro.

SO EASY, SO DELICIOUS. And that's all I have to say about garam masala (for now!). Thanks for reading!

Oolong "Slimming" Tea: Fact or Fiction?

Once upon a time there lived an old tea farmer. Every day, he'd go to his fields to pick tea where he'd place his leaves to dry. One day, the farmer was going about his usual routine when he got frightened by the appearance of a black snake - he ran away, leaving his leaves in the sun. Several days later, the tea farmer cautiously returned and found that the leaves had been oxidized by the sun and gave a delightful brew.

Oolong (meaning "black dragon" or "black snake") is the source of many legends. It is more likely that the name came about due to the fact that as the tea steeps and the leaves unfold, they resemble the long, winding body of a dragon. Oolong is the subject of much discussion, but I know one thing for SURE - it's a treasure to behold.

Native to the Fujian province of China, oolong tea is partially oxidized and therefore falls somewhere between a green and a black tea. Superior oolongs are also produced in Taiwan (formerly known as Formosa) - it is often referred to as the 'champagne of teas'. Originally produced in the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644), the tea has been a favourite with tea lovers for centuries due to its floral aroma and long lasting aftertaste. The oolongs I like best have a really nice orchid undernote and are of high enough quality that I may get multiple steeps (bonus!).

Then there's milk oolong. Sigh. Milk oolong. I don't like to share my milk oolong...it's THAT good. You know how ice wine is produced...how it needs very specific weather conditions? Well, milk oolong follows suit. It can only be produced at a specific time of year when the temperature shifts in juuuuust the right way...it is a rare occurrence. The result is an otherwordly experience: sweet, creamy, delicate...pure bliss. Because of its rarity, milk oolong is (or SHOULD be) expensive. It's not a hoax, folks....it really is so dependent on the temperature shift that some years, there's no yield. This drives price up. If you are getting what seems to be a 'deal' on milk oolong, all I can say is BUYER BEWARE.

While I'm on this 'buyer beware' subject, I should mention something the REALLY bugs me about some purveyors of tea. If you see oolong being touted as weight loss tea, or 'slimming' tea and along with it comes a crazy price tag...again I say, BUYER BEWARE. People come in ALL the time saying they've heard about the miracle benefits of "WU YI TEA" (which, by the way, is the EXACT same thing as OOLONG - they are synonymous). Please, don't buy into this propaganda. Let me separate fact from fiction so that you may make an informed choice:

1. WuYi tea is the SAME as oolong (don't let people tell you otherwise) - Oolong is grown in the WUYI mountains - SAME THING. Don't pay a higher price tag on "WUYI" tea, ok?

2. It is unfair to sell oolong tea under the guise of "SLIMMING" tea. Here's the skinny on oolong: yes, it boosts metabolism and yes, it can help to block fat absorption somewhat...HOWEVER....you would need to drink a BOATLOAD of it to make a true difference. Seriously.

3. Make oolong a part of your daily HEALTHY living habits and it will support you in your healthy lifestyle - this much is true. But don't eat a large pizza alongside a cuppa oolong and expect miracles. It is not my intent to offend anyone, it IS my intent to inform you so that you are not taken advantage of.

4. Oolong is indeed a healthful drink: it is antioxidant rich, it can help lower cholesterol and risk of stroke, and these are just a few of the benefits.

5. Quality oolongs are always from China and Taiwan. And they're divine. 'Nuf said.

Phew. Ok, I went a little crazy there for a minute, but it seems almost every day someone comes in to buy oolong for weight loss - and I don't want people to feel disappointed. What people should be drinking oolong for is its delicate nuances and lovely aroma. Hmmm....off I go to dig up some of my coveted milk oolong (no one is home and therefore no one can see where I hide my stash - seriously, I really do hide it). I shall raise a cup to this old tea farmer AND that black snake that scared him off - without him, there may be no oolong! See, I knew snakes had a purpose. ;) Until next time....