How many times have I heard "Life is just a bowl of cherries"?

And sometimes it's true.  Life just couldn't be better!

Sweet and colorful, fresh and ripe....pleasant and perfect.

But like cherries in a bowl, I only have to wait a day or two and then, I find a cherry that is beginning to deteriorate...darkened skin...a little white place.  The rotting process has begun!

I pick through the cherries, discarding all the decaying ones. Once again my bowl of cherries is perfect. I am diligent in this ritual until all the cherries have been eaten or thrown away.

I wish the "rotten" things in life could so easily be detected and so easily amended! My attentiveness might avert one disaster, and in the next moment, I am in the midst of another crisis.

I just want to enjoy that bowl of cherries!

Fortunately, tea time gives me the break I need to take a moment, breathe, relax and choose a new perspective to view my "chair of bowlies"! ( A Mary Engelbrit saying)

I like to listen to this version of the song...."Life is just a Bowl of Cherries" while I drink my tea and reflect!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JqiqUeNyQyU&feature=related

Happy Infusions !

Kate

http://tea4kate.com

June is National Iced Tea Month. I have often wondered why July or August were not designated as the National Iced Tea Month. June's weather is often mild compared to July and August when temperatures rise and we are sweating profusely and seeking ice cold refreshments!

Staying hydrated in hot weather is important. Finding healthy beverages, besides water, that contain few additives and don't have a high sugar content, can be challenging. Iced tea meets this critieria!

Some of our flavored black and green teas make excellent iced teas; Cranberry Breeze, Arctic Raspberry, Shanghai Lime, Strawberry Cream Green. ( All them are so yummy!)

Most of us have made "Sun-Tea" without any issues, however, according to the Center For Disease Control, using the sun to make tea can promote bacteria growth. There are a few guidelines on the following website if you insist on making Sun-Tea. http://www.snopes.com/food/prepare/suntea.asp

Our Perfect Iced Tea recipe below uses boiled water which is a safer alternative to Sun-Tea. Brew and enjoy the summer months with the second most consumed beverage in the world...tea!

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Perfect Iced Tea

For 2 quarts (1/2 gallon)

In a 6 cup teapot, place an infuser filled with 12 heaping teaspoons of tea.

Fill the teapot with water heated to 195 degrees.

Steep for 5 minutes.

Remove the infuser.

In a 2 quart container fill 1/2 with ice

Pour tea over ice

Add cold water if needed to make 1/2 gallon of great iced tea !!

Happy Iced Infusions,

Kate

http://tea4kate.com

This is a subject I have avoided.  Most long time tea drinkers have their favorite brewing methods and it would be presumptuous of me to instruct them on the "How To's" of steeping tea! And I guarantee there are probably as many techniques for the "perfect cup" of tea as there are tea drinkers!

However, if you are new to the world of "loose" tea...tea that doesn't come in a bag with a little string and tag attached...then perhaps a few helpful hints will insure your success.

***Use loose tea*** Usually loose tea is better quality than tea in a tea bag.  Broken leaves or leaf "dust" is what goes into tea bags.

***Add tea to teapot***Using an infuser or tea filter measure about one teaspoon per cup into the teapot.  If you have a 4 cup teapot, you would add 4 teaspoons of tea.  I usually add a little extra because I like a full bodied tea. You will have to experiment and decide how you like your tea. In some tea circles the loose leaves are deposited directly into the teapot and a strainer is used when pouring the tea into a cup.  I prefer the filter or infuser method...much easier to clean and the tea doesn't become bitter.

***Water and Time*** Heat the water to boiling for black tea & steep between 3-5 minutes.

Cool water slightly for Oolong tea and steep between 2-5 minutes.  Oolong can be steeped again using the same leaves.

Cool water to about 180 degrees for green tea. Steep between 2-4 minutes.

If you are using a white tea you only need the temperature of the water to reach about 165 degrees and steep it  between 3-7 minutes.

If you use water that is too hot for green or white tea, it will become bitter.

Milk, lemon, or sugar can be added if you desire.  Milk is not generally added to green, Oolong or herbal teas.

Store unused tea leaves in an airtight container.

And now you have one method of making a perfect proper cup of tea!  Make a pot of your favorite tea and enjoy!

Happy Infusions,

Kate

http://tea4kate.com

Traveling north on I-5 we took a short detour into Central Point, Oregon.

Being a chocolate lover, it is difficult to drive past a sign like this without stopping!

The factory-retail store is an inconspicuous looking building.

Inside though, there is a multitude of incredibly finely crafted Artisian Chocolates.  Over 60 different flavors of caramels, truffles and bon-bons!

Owner and Master Chocolatier, Jeff Shepherd uses organic raspberries, strawberries and marionberries which are grown on his family's farm only a coulple of miles from the store.

We purchased several wonderful chocolates. My Sweet Husband chose a Chilpolte Ganache, a dark chocolate infused with smokey hot sweetness of chilpolte pepper.

I picked three little "chocolate cups".....

A dreamy Lemon Buttercup....tart fresh lemon buttercream in a white chocolate cup.

Maker's Mark Cup..................decadent cup filled with pecan butter, dark chocolate and Maker's Mark

Whisky ganache topped with a large caramelized pecan.

Margarita Cup........................margarita buttercream in a dark chocolate cup with "salted rim".

I managed to arrive home with the chocolates untouched.  But once I made a pot of tea....oh I savored every morsel of chocolate with every sip of tea!

Chocolates and tea are perfect companions!

If you aren't heading North any time soon, you can order these award winning chocolates on line.

http://www.lilliebellefarms.com/pilot.asp?pg=default

Happy Infusions.....enjoy with chocolates!

Kate

http://tea4kate.com