Posted in Tea

Green Tea Sandwich Cookies with Honey Cream Cheese Filling ♣

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I like St. Patrick’s day because it gives me an excuse to make and eat green food. Other than that, I don’t really celebrate it — in fact I’ve never even seen a green beer! These cookies are naturally colored with some beautiful sencha green tea powder gifted to me by Sugimoto America. This sencha powder had a nice strong earthy taste that paired naturally with the honey cream cheese filling.

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The recipe for these cookies came from my co-worker who had brought them into the office but I never got to try them. I usually avoid making sandwich cookies since they’re twice the amount of work for one cookie, but these just might be worth it. Not as much work as linzer cookies, but a little more work than whoopie pies. I also got to try out my new rolling pin so that I could make sure the dough was uniform in thickness.

If you’re in the mood for a seasonal treat that isn’t tooth-achingly sweet, these are right up your alley. I’ve stuck a few in the freezer to give to my friend this weekend when we meet up for the NYC Coffee & Tea Festival; I’ll report back on how they fared.

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This recipe is very easy and has a limited number of ingredients. I added heaping tablespoons of green tea powder because I had only a little left in my container (total amount = 227 grams). The cookie is a little dense, but lighter than shortbread. When eaten fresh, the filling will ooze out a bit. I stuck them in the fridge overnight and the filling firmed up for easier chomping.

Sugimoto America: Gyokuro 玉露

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Description

Gyokuro is green tea that was cultivated in the shade and is considered one of the finest green teas in Japan. It has a unique sweetness since the shade allows the tea to retain a high Theanine content. Only the first flush tea leaves are used for Gyokuro.

Available through: Sugimoto America | Facebook

Tasting Notes

This is a very typical green tea. Smelling it is very buttery and then a hint of grassiness. The butteriness is missing almost completely from the tea when drinking and is instead replaced with a slight bitterness at the end.

The leaves are a very pretty blue-green color and are smaller than most other leaves, brewing up like spinach. The packaging suggested 140 degrees for steeping but I think this would have done better at either a lower temperature or lower steeping time since it did have a tad of bitterness.

Flavors: Butter, Grass, Spinach
Preparation: 2 minutes, 15 seconds @ 140 °F

About sa

Sugimoto America is a complete supplier of Japanese green tea and a subsidiary of Sugimoto Seicha, a Japanese green tea company founded in 1946. They have been awarded both the Green Tea Connoisseur Award as well as the prestigious Prime Minister Award for its superior quality of tea leaves.

Tea quality is determined by tea farmers. Our Tea Maestro has selected 11 artisan farmers in his local area of Shizuoka prefecture. He and his farmers work toward the same goal — to produce the highest quality green tea possible using the traditional Japanese steam processing method (Fukamushi), and without using large machines to harvest from their farms located on mountain slopes.

Product provided for review.  All notes & opinions are my own.

Simple Loose Leaf Tea: Insomniac’s Dream Herbal

Description

This dreamy tisane blends five calming herbs into one delicious tea. Catnip and Chamomile Flowers lure the drinker into a mellow, relaxed mood, while the bright flavors of Peppermint, Lemon Balm and Lemongrass dance around their palate, resulting in a tea that is at once effective and unforgettable. But drinker beware- you may hit the pillow before finishing your cup!

Ingredients: Catnip, Chamomile, Lemon Balm, Lemongrass, Peppermint

Available through: Simple Loose Leaf | Facebook

Tasting Notes

The scent of this tea is much stronger than the taste. Has aromas of grass, mint, hay, a hint of citrus and a heavy dose of honey from the chammomile.

The taste is smooth, light, and sweet with a hint of floral honey on the finish. I thought it would be a lot heavier tasting after smelling, but it wasn’t too rich.

Flavors: Grass, Hay, Honey, Mint

About logo

Simple Loose Leaf is not just another simple tea club that uses its members to get rid of spare inventory that is about to expire. We are a Subscription Box company dedicated to enriching people’s lives through the love of tea. Tea is the world’s most consumed drink, behind water, for a reason. The variety of tea and the beautiful nuances of tea rival the great wines of history, and we are just at the beginning of the tea revolution here in the United States.

Product provided for review.  All notes & opinions are my own.

Fashionista Tea: Creamy Earl Grey

Photos by Fashionista Tea

Description

Organic, high grown estate black tea hand blended with cornflowers, fragrant oil of bergamot and a touch of French Vanilla.

Ingredients: Organic black tea, Organic Cornflowers, Organic Oil of Bergamot, Natural Flavor

Available through: Fashionista Tea | Facebook

Tasting Notes

The smell of the dry leaf is strong with bergamot and finishes with cream. The taste when brewed is creamy and floral with a slight hint of pepper. This is a great, smooth and flavorful tea.

Flavors: Bergamot, Cream, Pepper

About Fashionista Tea

Fashion & Tea meet to create the 1st company to blend the two worlds together with a collection of gourmet teas crafted to impart a unique taste and an aura of sophistication featuring its signature “Fashionista” Blend created specifically for the line.

Product provided for review.  All notes & opinions are my own.

Nepali Tea Traders: Everest First Flush

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Photo by Nepali Tea Traders

 

Description

Our Everest First Flush tea is hand-picked in April from the tender buds of the tea plants that emerge after several months of dormancy as the days turned crisp, sunny, and bright. This unique, artisan tea is a vibrant expression of the fresh Himalayan spring. Its beautiful, long leaves reflect the subtleties of the season. Upon delivery of the freshly picked leaves to the Sandakphu factory, it is processed initially by hand by gently rolling the leaves, then allowed to wither overnight. The following day, the leaves are mechanically rolled to achieve natural oxidation while preserving the fresh, spring green color. The liquor is pale and pure. The tea’s gentle, aromatic profile features floral and lilac notes. The first sip reveals a smooth, sweet tea, with refreshing spring astringency. This tea finishes with crisp vegetal notes and hints of roasted corn. Like Nepal’s famed peak, this is the pinnacle of our first flush teas.

Available through: Nepali Tea Traders | Facebook

Tasting Notes

Very clean, buttery and naturally sweet. This tastes more like a green tea than a black tea and has a nice, clear broth. Absolutely no bitterness or astringency and sips very smoothly. This tea seems like a great beginner point for unflavored teas, but nothing jumps out at me.

Flavors: Sweet, warm grass

About logo

Nepali Tea Traders is inspired by the Nepalese people, who live in one of Asia’s poorest countries and have few resources but are incredibly warm and generous with what little they do have. Nepalese farmers work hard, carefully handpicking and crafting premium teas, but buyers have often paid them below market value and sold their teas as fine Indian Darjeelings instead. They want Nepal to gain the recognition it deserves as a world-class origin for tea and are committed to paying fair prices and helping build a sustainable tea economy that can improve quality of life.

Product provided for review.  All notes & opinions are my own.