Settling down with a fragrant cup of hot tea is among my top daily pleasures. Brewing a cup of tea is a ritual that feels relaxed and familiar. You can’t hurry the process, each step takes the time it takes.
Recently a new book coaxed me to explore tea not as a beverage but as an everyday recipe ingredient. At first the concept of recipes with tea seemed strange, but the nuance of each variety has so much flavor to offer. It now seems like the sky is the limit for ways to cook with tea.
Last year I learned a friend of mine, Annelies Zijderveld, was finishing up a cookbook of recipes all featuring tea. I was so excited to read her ideas to take my favorite flavors from cup to plate. I also knew I would be ordering a copy for my mom, a life-long tea drinker. Zijderveld’s book, “Steeped: Recipes Infused with Tea,” came out last month and it is a joy to thumb through. Written with the home cook in mind, they are easy to follow and use mostly familiar ingredients. She has included savory and sweet recipes for every meal of the day.
After ordering copies of the book, for myself and to share, I learned Zijderveld was bringing her book tour to Seattle and leading a cooking class at The Pantry in Ballard. I was lucky to snag the final two spots in the class — Pantry classes are small and fill extremely fast — and was able to treat Mom to a new cookbook and a night out.
We had a great time previewing the book’s recipes. In the class we were able to try both cooking and baking with tea. Our tea-infused menu included samples of sweet tea jelly (made with English Breakfast), and hands on experience making chamomile buttermilk pudding (Buh-bye boxes! Who knew homemade pudding was so simple?), spinach salad with masala chai maple pecans (those chai pecans will have people doubling up on their greens), and green tea sesame shortbread cookies (bright green and perfect to pair with, yep, a cup of tea). I enjoyed everything we tried, but the recipe that blew my mind to the possibilities of cooking with tea was a simple tomato soup.
Smoky tomato soup is made with a broth of lapsang souchong tea. This variety was new to me. I stuck my nose over the leaves and breathed in a scent unlike any tea I have encountered before. The leaves are smoked over fir tree roots giving them a shockingly distinct campfire aroma. Honestly, I am not sure I would want to drink it, though many do, but cook with it? Oh, heck yes!
Imagine keeping a small pouch of loose leaves in your cupboard so any time a recipe calls for broth (chicken, beef, or vegetable) you simply scoop a few out and brew them up. In little more than the time it takes to boil water you could have an intensely flavorful broth with no calories, no salt, no fat, and none of the additives found in packaged broth. Not to mention, cup for cup, tea is pennies to the dollar compared to buying broth. Are you picking up what I am putting down?
I have already repeated the smoky tomato soup for my family. To increase the heartiness, and make the soup an entree rather than a light course, I added ½ cup of dried French lentils and simmered the soup for 10 extra minutes then served each bowl with scoop of Greek yogurt and a sprinkle of feta cheese.
The new but oddly familiar flavors were a huge hit. Mike was shocked at the amount of depth the tea gave to the soup. My toddler ate three helpings and even our increasingly fussy 5 year old admitted it was “pretty good.”
I can see so many possibilities for using tea broth in cooking. It could easily become the next greatest asset to the flavor driven home cook.
My husband’s eyes flicker at the mere mention of tomato soup with grilled cheese. So when the idea of adding tea fell on me, it felt like the apple tagging Newton. The elegant Parmesan thyme crisps concentrate cheese flavor into delectable morsels.
Smoky tomato soup
1 tablespoon safflower, grapeseed, or other neutral oil
1 medium white onion, finely chopped (1 cup)
1 medium red bell pepper, peeled, roasted, and finely chopped (1 cup)
3 cups lapsang souchong tea, brewed (2 bags or 1 tablespoon loose)
1 cup water
1 28-ounce can whole peeled tomatoes (I use San Marzano), with the liquid
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/8 teaspoon red pepper flakes
½ teaspoon dried thyme
Place an 8-quart stockpot over medium-low heat for 1 minute. Swirl in the oil to coat. Sauté the onion, stirring occasionally, for 5 minutes. Add the bell pepper and cook for 1 minute. Pour in the tea, water, and the liquid from the tomatoes. With your hands, break up the tomatoes over the pot and drop them in. Stir in the salt, red pepper flakes, and thyme. Turn the heat up to medium and cook, uncovered, for 10 minutes. Purée or blend until almost smooth with some chunks. Serve with Parmesan Thyme Crisps.
Parmesan thyme crisps
½ cup shredded Parmesan
½ teaspoon thyme leaves (from 2 sprigs)
Preheat the oven to 275 degrees. Line a 13-by-9-inch sheet pan with parchment paper. Sprinkle shredded Parmesan in a thin, even layer on the pan. Polka dot the cheese with the thyme leaves. Bake for 18 minutes, or until the cheese is golden brown and baked through. Cool for about 10 minutes and snap into segments.
Makes 4 to 6 servings.
From “Steeped: Recipes Infused with Tea” by Annelies Zijderveld.
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