cooking

Tea from Adagio!

For the past 15 years, I’ve been a loyal customer of Adagio Teas.

Adagio has enabled me to become somewhat of a tea connoisseur, in that they tell you not only what country your tea is from, but (usually) which estate, the time of year it was picked, how many leaves were picked from each branch, how it was processed, and more.

I also love how they share stories of the actual workers and farmers who harvest and process the tea and that they buy straight from the origin, not through middlemen.

Add that to outstanding customer service, and it’s a huge “win” all round.

Here is the formula for my own custom blend:

8 parts Darjeeling Rhapsody No. 22 (aka Darjeeling Sungma Summer)*

4 parts Assam Harmony*

2 parts Ceylon Sonata*

1 part Keemun Encore*

Brewed up in Adagio’s IngenuiTEA Pot, it’s DE-lish!

And even though my blend is made of top-quality gourmet tea, each cup costs only about 25 cents!

If you’re looking for a tea supplier, you can do no better than Adagio.

* (The lovely tea images above are from Adagio’s site!)

kim’s Tasty Turkey Meatloaf

This meatloaf tastes like turkey and stuffing at Thanksgiving dinner – yum! At least half the volume is vegetables. Enjoy!

  • Recipe serves: 4+
  • Oven Temp: 375F

Meat loaf ingredients:

1 lb ground beef

1/4 teaspoon poultry seasoning

1/4 teaspoon Beau Monde seasoning

1/4 teaspoon garlic powder

1/4 teaspoon ground sage

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon pepper

Couple dashes Worchestershire sauce

1/2 cup chopped onion

1/2 cup chopped bell pepper

1 stalk celery, finely chopped

1/2 cup matchstick/julienned carrots, parboiled

1/4 cup finely diced water chestnuts

1/4 cup dried cranberries

1 apple, diced fine (or 1/2 cup applesauce)

1 zucchini, coarse grated (shredded)

1 egg, lightly beaten

1/2 cup seasoned stuffing mix, crushed (no big pieces)

Topping ingredients:

1/3 cup ketchup

2 tablespoons brown sugar

1 tablespoon dark mustard

Directions:

  1. Mix all meat loaf ingredients well.
  2. Place in a loaf pan (or several small loaf pans).
  3. Mix topping ingredients.
  4. Spread topping on loaf.
  5. Cover pan with foil.
  6. Bake for 45 minutes (or 30 minutes for small pans) at 375F; thermometer inserted in center should register 165F. Optional: Remove foil for last 5 minutes of baking time.

kim’s Tasty Beef Meatloaf

At least half the volume of this meatloaf is vegetables. Using oatmeal keeps it gluten-free. Enjoy!

  • Recipe serves: 4+
  • Oven Temp: 375F

Meat loaf ingredients:

1 lb ground beef

1 teaspoon Montreal Steak seasoning, crushed fine

Couple dashes Worchestershire sauce

1/2 cup chopped onion

1/2 cup chopped bell pepper

1 stalk celery, finely chopped

1/2 cup matchstick/julienned carrots, parboiled

1 zucchini, coarse grated (shredded)

1 egg, lightly beaten

8 ounces canned diced tomatoes, drained (for tomato-free, substitute 1 yellow squash, grated)

1/2 cup steel-cut oatmeal

Topping ingredients:

1/3 cup ketchup (for tomato-free, substitute peach butter or sugar-free peach preserves)

2 tablespoons brown sugar

1 tablespoon dark mustard

Directions:

  1. Mix all meat loaf ingredients well.
  2. Place in a loaf pan (or several small loaf pans).
  3. Mix topping ingredients.
  4. Spread topping on loaf.
  5. Cover pan with foil.
  6. Bake for 1 hour (40 minutes for small pans) at 375F; thermometer inserted in center should register 160F. Optional: Remove foil for last 5 minutes of baking time.