Tag: green tea

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How to Make Kombucha

 

what you’ll need:

  • 8 tea bags (green or black, I use green)
  • 16 cups of filtered water
  • 1 cup white sugar
  • 1 gallon glass container
  • 4 glass jars
  • 1 unflavored kombucha from the store
  1. to form a SCOBY (symbiotic culture of bacteria and yeast), buy an unflavored kombucha from the store, I used GT’s, it’s the blue one
  2. pour 2 cups of the kombucha into a bowl and cover with a dishtowel so no bugs can get in, but air still can. set in a cool, dark place and let sit for seven days. at this point a disc should have formed, it looks kinda like a jellyfish
  3. if someone gives you a SCOBY or you buy one somewhere that’s cool too
  4. from here, retain 2 cups of the unflavored kombucha (so you will still need to buy one even if you obtained your SCOBY from another source), put it in the gallon glass container that you’re going to use to ferment your booch. add the SCOBY too.         **make sure your container is CLEAN
  5. boil 16 cups of filtered water then add 8 teabags and 1 cup of white sugar
  6. let cool, this takes a while! you can remove the tea bags when it looks nice and saturated, like a strong cup of tea. I like to save the tea bags and use them throughout the week
  7. when the big batch of tea has cooled add that into the 1 gallon glass container and you’re all set! cover with a cloth that again, doesn’t let in any critters but does let in some oxygen. store in a cool, dry place and wait about two weeks. the process will go faster when the weather is hotter and slower when the weather is cooler
  8. TWO WEEKS LATER – when it starts to smell slightly vinegary it’s ready! you can bottle and drink as is, or you can flavor your bottles with fruit and spices. I like to use my vitamix to blend up whatever fruit we have on hand and usually some ginger root to spice it up. some people like to filter their juice so that their kombucha is clear and pure but we don’t mind a little pulp so I don’t filter our juice
  9. place SCOBY in a bowl and clean any weird stuff off of it gently, it’s important not to tear any holes in it
  10. keep two cups of kombucha from the previous batch in a cup or bowl
  11. start making your big batch of tea (16 cups boiled filtered water, 8 tea bags, 1 cup sugar), and let it cool
  12. disperse the prepared batch from your 1 gallon glass container into 4 glass jars (or more if your bottles are smaller), I like to use a fine mesh colander here to strain out any weird stuff
  13. add a couple tablespoons of your fruit juice to each jar, gently shake, then refrigerate the bottles and enjoy at your leisure!

*stay tuned for a video tutorial!*

© 2018, domenicadreamsofcalamari. All rights reserved.

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Greenies (Matcha Blondies)

Not blondies, not brownies but GREENIES! I love love love matcha and I have a bunch right now so I’ve been trying to come up with some healthy-ish desserts to use it. I found a recipe for some super healthy matcha blondies but they had all these ingredients that I didn’t have/ didn’t want to buy so I substituted and simplified and cut out a lot of sweetener. Matcha isn’t sweet at all, actually it’s kind of grassy but I like to taste that flavor and not overpower it with excess sugar.

These came out a bit crumbly but very tasty and they’re healthy!

{makes 9}

  • 1 cup almond meal
  • 1/2 cup coconut flour
  • 4 tsp matcha
  • 1/2 tsp baking powder
  • 1/4 tsp salt
  • 1 1/2 tsp stevia
  • 1/3 cup toasted coconut milk -or just regular coconut milk
  • 1/4 cup coconut butter
  • 1/4 cup coconut oil
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • 1 container apple sauce (about 3/4 cup)
  1. pre-heat oven to 350º F and line a 9″ 9″ baking pan (you can use smaller if you want them to be thicker, you could also do it in muffin tins just adjust the cooking time)
  2. in a large bowl mix together almond meal, coconut flour, matcha, baking powder, salt and stevia
  3. in another bowl, stir together coconut milk, melted coconut butter, melted coconut oil, the vanilla extract and the apple sauce to your best ability
  4. then pour the wet mixture over the dry mixture and incorporate thoroughly
  5. then spread it into the pan and bake for about 20 minutes or until a toothpick in the middle comes out clean and the edges are starting to brown and you’ve got some greenies!

© 2017, domenicadreamsofcalamari. All rights reserved.

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Matcha Pound Cake with Orange and Coconut Glaze

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I don’t know when I discovered matcha but I’ve been hooked ever since. When I visited my cousin in Vienna last summer, there was a traditional Japanese tea house that specialized in matcha. They would make each drink by hand with a whisk in a delicate little china bowl. It was always the same three women working, wearing beautiful silk and you could watch them, expertly whipping up the frothiest, creamiest matcha lattes I’ve ever seen. My mom made matcha shortbread cookies for Christmas for a couple years and they were delicious. Recently I saw this Food & Wine article about all the things you could do with matcha and it’s been on my mind ever since. Luckily, my mom’s friend owns a specialty tea company that carries some incredible matcha powder and she shared some with me for experimentation. This is my version of the Food & Wine pound cake recipe. I used coconut oil, coconut milk and coconut sugar to make it a little healthier and give it a coconutty twist. It is very dense, I’d recommend enjoying it with tea, white wine or a hoppy beer.

  • 2 cups flour
  • 1 tsp kosher salt
  • 2 tbsp matcha powder
  • 1/4 cup butter
  • 3/4 cup coconut oil
  • 1/4 cup sugar
  • 1/4 cup coconut sugar
  • 3 large eggs
  • 2 tsp vanilla extract
  • 3/4 cup coconut milk

glaze:

  • 1/2 cup powdered sugar
  • 5 tsp coconut milk
  • 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
  • shredded coconut (for sprinkling)
  • 1 tsp cardamom (optional)
  • 2 tsp orange zest
  1. preheat the oven to 350°F and line a 9-by-5-inch loaf pan with parchment paper
  2. in a small bowl whisk together the flour, salt and matcha powder and set aside
  3. melt the butter and coconut oil then beat in the sugar, don’t worry if it doesn’t completely emulsify, it will when you add it to the dry ingredients
  4. add the eggs one at a time and the vanilla extract, beating after each addition
  5. beat in the dry ingredients and the milk in a few additions; scrape down the bowl as necessary
  6. pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake for about 30 minutes or until the top is golden and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean
  7. let it cool in the pan for 10 minutes
  8. to make the glaze, pour milk into a small bowl and slowly whisk in powdered sugar as needed, until it is a glaze consistency, add orange zest, cardamom and vanilla extract. Pour the glaze over the warm cake and sprinkle the coconut on top

IMG_2369

© 2015, domenicadreamsofcalamari. All rights reserved.

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Green Tea Ice Cream in Oatmeal-Nut Cookie Bowls

It was really hot for a few days and I made an executive decision that we would need a cool dessert.
summer bulgur-heirloom tomato salad

For Ice Cream:

  • 3 egg yolks
  • 1/4 cup sugar
  • 3/4 cup whey/milk
  • 2 green tea bags
  • 2/3 cup heavy cream
  • 2 tsp cinnamon
  • 1 tsp powdered cardamom
  • 1 tsp powdered ginger
  1. In a large bowl beat egg yolks and sugar
  2. scald the milk/or whey whatever you’re using, then remove from heat
  3. cut open tea bags and steep for four minutes
  4. strain through a find mesh sieve into a clean pot
  5. add heavy cream and bring to a simmer over medium high heat
  6. ladle 1/3 of the cream mix into the eggs and whisk well to combine
  7. add all of the egg mixture to the cream and cook over low heat, stirring until thick enough to coat the back of a spoon or somewhat close, about five minutes
  8. let cool in the fridge for about two hours
  9. put in ice cream maker and follow instructions

summer bulgur-heirloom tomato salad
For Oatmeal-Nut Cookie Bowls:

  • 1 1/2 cups oats
  • 1/2 cup golden raisins
  • 1/3 cup pepitas (pumpkin seeds)
  • 1/3 cup ground walnuts
  • 1/2 cup unsweetened coconut
  • 1/4 cup sunflower seeds
  • 3/4 cup hazelnuts + 1/4 cup almonds and  a little water ground into paste OR 1 cup almond or hazelnut butter/spread
  • 1/4 cup unsweetened apple sauce
  • 1 tsp vanilla
  • 1/3 cup honey
  1. mix all dry ingredients (oats, raisins, nuts and seeds) in a large bowl
  2. then mix in all wet ingredients (nut butter, applesauce, vanilla, honey) until gooey
  3. mold into whatever form you wish. i did some into cookie bowls and the rest into a loaf pan for protein-energy bars for my dad’s surf trip

 

© 2014, domenicadreamsofcalamari. All rights reserved.

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