This week was heavy on traditional publishing tasks and business side of things. We needed a merchandising contract. We needed a lawyer to look it over. We had some IP questions regarding the audio books. We did some writing.
I’m a bear of very little brain at the moment.
I decided to bundle all of the recipes from the blog into a small cookbook. Surprisingly, we posted quite a bit over the years and people kept losing the recipes as the posts are archived.
Posts are archived and deleted for a reason. They become obsolete or we might have said something that now isn’t accurate because situation changes. When the posts are gone, it’s because we want them gone. Anyway, a cookbook would preserve the recipes in a single convenient place.
Unfortunately I’ve discovered that I’m terrible at food photography. Things I can do: make delicious food. Things I cannot do: photograph it.
I’m not sure if the cookbook will have pictures. I will try my best. I’m testing every recipe to make sure I can include actual ingredient quantities rather than a dash of this and a pinch of that.
On the plus side, I have been approved for a purchase of a massive air fryer. We will probably charge a couple of bucks for the cookbook to recoup editing and production costs, and the air fryer came in handy. This particular model has a shallow and wide basket. I stuffed 24 drumettes into it. It took a while for them to crisp because of the mayo coating, but Gordon, as the official sampler, pronounced them delicious.
I do not understand the deep air frier baskets. Nothing crisps for me in those.
Today might be pork carnitas day. I’m not sure.
Someone asked about my favorite tea. As you probably know by now, my blood is 78% tea water. I used to lean heavily into oolongs, but now I mostly drink black tea. Since we established that I take terrible food pictures, I will be stealing images from Harney & Sons. All teas will be linked below.
All teas were consumed without milk or lemon, although sometimes Splenda was added. We receive no compensation from the tea providers below and these are not affiliate links.
Russian Country
To no one’s surprised at all, this is my go to. My first cup of tea in the morning is usually Russian Country. It’s a smoky tea, strong flavor, blended from several tea varieties. It’s probably an acquired taste, but it reminds me of my childhood.
Harney & Sons: Russian Country tea.
Celebration
This is a milder black tea, and the lighter flavor lets the other ingredients shine: it has apricots, blue cornflowers, hazelnut, plum, and cinnamon. I will be honest, I can neither smell nor taste cinnamon in this, and I don’t miss it. This tea smells amazing, its taste is complex, and it makes you think of fruity desert.
Harney & Sons: Celebration tea.
Valentine’s Day
This smells amazing. The vanilla is strong and there are hints of chocolate. This is another milder tea with chocolate nibs and rose petals, and it’s Chinese black tea base allows those flavors to come through. Gordon bought this in bulk for me and I drink it when I want a treat during the day.
Harney & Sons: Valentine’s Day Tea.
Vanilla Comoro
Vanilla Comoro is a decaffeinated tea, and it is amazing. It tastes rich, with a strong hint of vanilla, and if you would like an evening or late afternoon tea without the caffeine spike, this is an excellent choice. I drink massive quantities of this and restock frequently.
Harney & Sons: Vanilla Comoro.
Vahdam Spiced Turmeric
The last tea on my list is an herbal tisane. When my primary doctor looked at my latest blood results, she saw some inflammation markers and she suggested turmeric to lower it. Not in a pill or supplement form. Apparently, turmeric is the latest “miracle” fad. Supplements are very loosely regulated in US and some people became sick taking them.
My doctor was very clear: turmeric consumption had to come in a way of actually consuming the spice itself, and this tea was my answer. It is spicy and strong, with turmeric, lemongrass, and ginger, and I honestly thought I would hate it, but instead I look forward to it.
It is a very acquired taste; however, so I would recommend sample size to try it out. It does help with inflammation, but I also drink a lot of it.
Vahdam: Turmeric Spiced Herbal Tea.
I am now going to brew myself a cup from this selection, check on my friend, and then dive back into work. we have some fun stuff coming down the pipeline, but too early to talk about it. More to come.
Eeee
Merchandising and cookbook!! So much to look forward to ☺️
Also also!! First?? It’s either me or Gordon 🤣
Don’t count him. He cheats.
Certified first 🥇
Thank you so much for the cookbook. I am looking forward to it and I am sure I will be one of many to order. Thank you for your blog post as well. This is a stressful month and your posts give me a small break.
I occasionally go on a tea kick – Lady Grey mostly, a Korean Sencha also features quite often, or one memorable couple of weeks full on brewed sweet Indian chai from scratch – and then leave it again for ages. Not sure why, but it doesn’t bother me or anyone else, so I just go with the flow. I did totally splurge on getting a whole collection of brightly coloured and patterned tea canisters to store all the many different teas. The look of them all together makes me happy 😊
Yay cookbook! Forget photos, just have some fantasy illustrations made for it. 🙂
Love the tea recs. Always on the lookout for more tea.
Now I’m picturing illustrations showing Orro demonstrating the recipes.
That would be funny if she wrote the cookbook in Orro’s voice.
I brew powdered tumeric in milk with some ginger, sweeten with honey. it’s called “golden milk”. very similar approach. I have systemic inflammation issues and I enjoy this drink as a supporting tool in my toolbox.
Asd pepper. It hugely increases the bioavailability of Tumeric.
yes I forgot the black pepper. recipes are easy to find online for golden milk.
I love golden milk! It’s especially nice as a before-bed hot drink on chilly nights. So cozy and satisfying. ☺️
My husband and I took a tea factory tour yesterday and sampled a dozen different flavors. I won’t name that brand but Harney & Sons is still the clear favorite in our household. Their flavors & aromas are just delicious. We go through Paris, Queen Catherine, Milky Ooling, and a variety of greens every month. Now we must try all of the ones you recommended!
Cookbook would be great. Will you include a recipe, or at least some sort of general instructions, for sbiten? I’ve made it from the YouTube link you shared, but recognize that there are all kinds of variations. We’re heading toward the season where it will be more and more welcome.
+1
There will be an Ilona version in the book 🙂
Yup now I’m buying a cookbook!
You are the one to actually get me to try Harney and Sons and I will say it is the best tea around!
I love Harney and Sons peppermint tea.
I was born, raised and still live in eastern North Carolina and was mainlining sweet iced tea practically from the cradle. I honestly didn’t know that people drank their tea hot until I started reading Phyllis Whitney and Daphne Du Maurier books as a pre-teen. Now, I enjoy the occasional cup of hot tea in the colder seasons, but I’m far from a connoisseur. I drink the various Stash teas because Fresh Market has them. I have no idea if they’re considered good teas or a travesty to the name.
Not chalant at all. So excited for cookbook! Also what type of air fryer. We’re not happy with ours, but haven’t started looking yet.
So I broke down and bought an expensive one. We’ve had our old one for 5 years and the non stick coating wore off on the basket, etc. If the cookbook sells, I am planning to write this off as a business expense.
https://www.typhur.com/products/dome-air-fryer
If you are considering it, the video that they have on the site is helpful. Their 14 minutes for wings is wildly off – I did drumettes for 30 minutes, but they were delicious.
I drink the Vanilla Comoro most days. It’s delicious!
Love Harney and Sons Teas! Paris is my favorite, but like you, most black tea is acceptable to me. I’ll certainly be giving Russian Country and the Vanilla Comoro a try! Good luck with the cook book. I just used several recipes from The Lucky Gryphon which has no pictures, just drawings, so don’t feel like you must have pictures. 🍀😄
I don’t know if you have read the Obsidian Trilogy by Mercedes Lackey and James Mallory but the elves in this series have very discerning tea tastes and they describe tea to such detail that when I first read them years ago, it got me into drinking tea! I love fruit based teas and trying different kinds if tea and don’t typically put anything in my tea. I also love a good spiced tea so I appreciate your recommendations!
Your description of Russian Country tea makes me think it is what I’ve had that was labeled as Russian Caravan. Smoky, very different taste for a tea. I haven’t had—or found—any in years for for quite a while in my 20s and 30s (soooo long ago) it was one of my favorites. My complete favorite tea is Kensington Estate Ceylon, but I haven’t had that in a while either. Mmmmm, tea!
Thank you Ilona for all the effort you’re putting into a cookbook for the BDH, that is very generous of you.
Pictures! Oh yes, pictures would be very helpful. Apparently, I must be a visual person.
I definitely would buy a cookbook in e form if possible. Food photos is an art, so unless you want a pro photographer just get 1 good pic for the book cover. Most cookbooks I have do not have pics.
The teas sound really interesting!
+1 on the cover pic, although I would prefer a print version to cook from, if possible.
Tea!! Soothing, warm, delicious!! My mom gave us tea with a touch of honey when we were kids, from the first day of the winter or summer “icks” (not the flu or a cold, just “ick”), to keep us hydrated and fix the sore throat.
Sleepy Time peppermint tea got me through college – not a coffee person. A good cup of Irish or English Breakfast tea is high on the list, too! 🫖
A recipe collection sounds like fun but please do it as you happen to feel like it. As an aside, your carnitas recipe is delightful with beef too, just takes a bit longer 😁
I agree, the deep basket air fryers just don’t work as well as flat tray ones. Our Covid pod is still going strong for cooking together and frankly I prefer cooking fries in the oven over using the deep basket fryer. Plus it’s a pain to pull out, clean and put away.
Have a great weekend!
There’s no rule that cookbooks need to have photos! I found imagine some fanciful or cartoon style illustrations of ingredients, recipe inspiration, or finished result instead.
Have you picked a title for the cookbook yet?
“Sweep of the Spoon”
“Magic Recipes”
“Cooking from the Edge”
“Cooking with Kinsmen”
Oreo and Elara are both addicted to cooking shows.
What about a fictional cooking show, the ‘House Andrews baking show ‘ for example?
Orro * autocorrect*
I like Sweep of the Spoon or Cooking from the Edge
I grew up drinking black tea with milk and sugar, which I thought was common, but when I would ask for milk for tea when I would go to coffee shops when I was older, the baristas looked at me like I had two heads (I’m in the U.S.). I think luckily tea lattes have become more common so people don’t think that’s as weird anymore. I was much older by the first time I tried an herbal tea. I do like them, but usually as an extra thing to drink after I’ve already had my black tea or coffee for the day. I love a strong black tea from the UK and Ireland. My go to is Barry‘s Tea. My one concession now, besides having to switch to soy milk from regular due to an allergy, is that I use a non-calorie sweetener cause my system can’t seem to take the sugar. I’m very intrigued by that Russian tea.
We love our air fryer! The only way my husband does steaks anymore….and I love WF kabobs in it!
Thanks for the tea reviews and a cookbook!!
Have a great weekend!
Lol I would love to have a cookbook with “bad”, aka REALISTIC photography.
What I make never comes close in looks to what the photos are like and it drives me nuts trying to figure out if I did the recipe right.
That brings up the scene with Orro at the taping of the cooking show, when they added soy sauce to the roasted turkey. Fire!
My poor efforts never look like the pics in cookbooks or online recipes.
😆
Yayyy cookbook! I don’t care about pictures, just the recipes would be a marvelous thing. Is it rude to request specific recipes be included? I have drooled over Martha’s honey muffins and Meli’s passion cones every time I read about them, but I don’t think they have ever been posted.
Yay! Recipes and tea (and the weekend, so hopefully the Bear of very little brain can relax and recover.)
HS cinnamon tea is my go to. Along with a few others – especially now that fall is peaking around the corner! After years of drinking my morning tea with a little sweetener I’ve started adding milk – game changer!
Thanks for sharing!
Before I forget, a quick thank you again to Gordon: I added two of the Wons Phreely songs to my 5k playlist and tried it out at the gym yesterday: they’re perfect! 😁👍
So, cookbooks: I am sure we will all love a cookbook, with or without pictures! If it helps, I’d like to offer an idea (use it or don’t, makes no difference to me, just offering this in case it makes your life easier!)😁
One of the employee groups in a company I used to work for decided to create a cookbook of employee-submitted recipes. They didn’t want to spend a lot of time or money creating it, so there were no pictures.
Instead, they just had a one-page drawing (I think they used plants?) prior to each section (appetizers, salads, bread, desserts….whatever.)
The drawings were unrelated to the section content, making it easier and quicker to create the cookbook, and they added some interest to the content.
Anyway, just an idea. I for one would love a cookbook….I’ve enjoyed so many of the recipes discovered here!
I found out that my tea has been trying to murder me for a while now. I took all my loose leaf teas, one of the loves of my life, and gave them to a good and deserving home with 2 tea lovers. I will miss my tea but I am not missing being nauseous all the time and that is a good thing.
Love Harney and Sons tea! I buy it by the truckload. Have you tried Malachi McCormick?
After reading this, was delighted to discover that iherb delivers Vanilla Comoro to the Philippines, and now happily awaiting my order.
Beta cookbook readers and recipe triers could send you photos!!!
I actually use tumeric in egg drop soup so if you like it, it may be another source to use it
The turmeric-ginger-lemongrass tea sounds delicious. I routinely drink a turmeric-ginger blend tisane from Rishi Tea&Botanicals.
And a cookbook?! Woot! ❤️