Unless you have been living under a rock chances are that you are aware  that the launch of Tim Burton’s Alice in Wonderland is this weekend in theatres across Canada and the United States. I can’t go anywhere without hearing family, friends, strangers, or the guy at Blockbuster talking about this film. Not to mention the countless tv, radio, and billboard ads that have been flooding our homes as of late.

The media is already in a buzz about this movie, with newspapers and critics alike bestowing praise on Burton’s vision of Alice. If you want to check out a scene I’ve posted it in a previous blog.

Here at Herbal Infusions we’ve been buzzing about this movie too. And in fine tea fashion to celebrate we have blended up a fabulous Alice in Wonderland inspired blend called Mad Hatter’s tea. Its a wildly citrus blend of apple, pineapple, apricots, stevia, and either an orange pekoe oolong or black tea. It’s available right now on our website (while we have it in stock!) and also at our shop at Mapleview Mall.

Mad Hatter's Tea

Pick Up Our Flyer at Cineplex’s Silvercity Burlington

The Silvercity Burlington will be playing Alice in Wonderland starting tomorrow morning. We have teamed up to offer anyone in the area a fantastic deal: bring us a copy of our flyer (you can pick one up at the box office or print it out below) and get a free tea shot! You can also pick up some of our amazing Mad Hatter’s tea blend as we will have some on hand.

I absolutely love Tim Burton films and I don’t think we will be disappointed with the upcoming Tim Burton adaptation of Alice in Wonderland. We will be blogging more about this in the coming days but in the meantime check out this tea party scene from Alice in Wonderland!

So we are proud to announce that tea shots have been added to our online store. What exactly is a tea shot? Well i’m glad you asked! A tea shot is a sampling of some of our more popular blends of tea. They contain enough tea for a large teapot and is perfect if you want to test out a blend before committing to a larger quantity of tea. It’s been extremely popular at our location in Mapleview Mall and we will be expanding our selection of tea offerings in the near future.

Because the tea shots are so compact you can now easily carry some great loose leaf tea with you wherever you go- throw it in a backpack (they are made of food grade plastic so no worries of it breaking), in your purse, car, or take it to grandma’s house. I know that Grandma will absolutely love it.

We also have our matcha green tea powder available in tea shots. You get 6 grams of premium matcha tea. What exactly is matcha? It’s green tea that has been ground into a fine powder at a stone mill. Instead of making a tea out of green tea leaves you are actually ingesting the entire leaf therefore getting many more of the health benefits than you would from a cup of tea. For those that may not be familiar with the world of matcha, this is a great way to explore this great Japanese tea ceremony tradition.  Also because each shot is sealed you can pick up multiple matcha shots and only open as much as you need – keeping the rest of your matcha stash nice and fresh.

These days matcha can be found in a plethora of recipes. I’ve had matcha pancakes, matcha cheesecake, matcha muffins and of course my all time favourite: matcha green tea ice cream. Here are some ideas to get you started:

• Try adding a teaspoon of our matcha to some softened vanilla bean ice cream for an incredible homemade matcha green tea ice cream. Tip: I find using a spatula and folding over the ice cream and matcha works best.
• Make a hot (or iced) matcha green tea latte
• Add a dash of matcha to yogurt or your breakfast cereal
• Give your post workout smoothies a supercharged kick with a teaspoon of matcha
• Bake a matcha cheesecake
• Serve up some matcha pancakes
• And anything else you can think of!

Really the possibilities are almost endless with what you can do with matcha. Do you have any great ideas you want to share? Maybe a recipe that you tried and was fantastic?

 Respond and let us know how you are using your matcha and we’ll pick three random people to receive a free matcha tea shot! Our contest will close Feb 28th at midnight, so make sure you respond here by then!

It’s been a long couple of months but we are really excited to share this news with everyone. We have launched a tea cart at Mapleview Mall in Burlington, Ontario. That’s right tea fans – you can now get the very best in tea by dropping by our location at 900 Maple Avenue. We are located in the lower concourse close to the Coles bookstore so stop by and say hi!

Some things that you can find at our cart include:

• Contigo Stainless Steel Mugs (rated the best travel mug on the market by Men’s Journal)
• Bodum teapots and accessories (some of the finest European teaware on the market)
• Tea shots (you have to check these out in person! They are only $2 each)
• Pyramid tea bags
• Whole leaf teas
• And many more items!

So don’t be shy! We would love to chat with you and meet some of our wonderful online customers.

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Yeah I know, the title is a mouthful – but believe me it’s a fantastic mouthful! I was tasked this past weekend with bringing a dessert dish to our annual Thanksgiving dinner (for our American friends: here in Canada Thanksgiving arrives in October).

Since pumpkin pie is to dessert what turkey is to dinner the obvious winner here was pumpkin pie. I decided to get a little creative though. The result? Well lets just say the jury came back demanding seconds and even thirds (we won’t mention names)

The trick here is to use real chai tea

That’s right- use chai tea (not only the spices) to really make this dessert stand out. Oh and as an added bonus you get all the great benefits that are inherent in the tea leaf since its baked right into the pie.

For this recipe you will need:

• 1 pie crust (unbaked homemade or frozen pie shell)
• 1 egg
• 1 can of pumpkin filling or the real deal (pumpkin squash puree)
• 1/3 cup (75 mL) evaporated milk
• 2 tbsp vanilla chai tea (its gotta be loose leaf!)
• 1 vanilla bean or 1 tsp (5 mL) vanilla extract
• dash of cinnamon

Directions:

In a medium bowl beat the egg lightly.  Then add in your pumpkin filling and evaporated milk.

At this point you want to take your vanilla chai tea and grind it.  I used a hand coffee grinder and found it to work really and ended up smoothing out a few larger pieces with a mortar and pestle.  Either could be used to do the job, it just depends on how quick you need the pie (did I mention we were running late for dinner? ).

Add the cinnamon, ground chai tea and vanilla bean (scoop it!) or extract to the bowl.  Blend everything together really well and the pour your filling into the pie shell

Bake at 425°F (220°C) for 15 minutes.  Reduce the oven temperature to 375°F (190°C) and continue to bake for about 40 minutes.  I checked in on it every so often by poking a toothpick in the middle- if it comes out clean you’re all done!

Cool*

*while your pie is cooling this a great time to check out our other blog on how to make a London fog latte (popularized by Starbucks) or to whip up some whipped cream for your pie.  We ended up adding a dash of the ground chai to the whipped cream and it really went well with the pie.

Enjoy!

(Serves 8 so you may want to enjoy with some friends)

Weddings, Weddings, Weddings…

If I hear about ONE more friend of mine getting married this year, I don’t know what I will do with myself.  *Pictures herself running down the street pulling out her hair while screaming like a mad woman* There comes a time in everyone’s life when it seems like all of your friends are getting married.  In the last three years I have had 8 friends  ”bite the bullet”  and say their  ”I Do’s”.  I have worn four different brightly coloured bridesmaid dresses and danced to YMCA 8 times.  I’m not complaining. It all comes with ”this age”.. The age where if your friends aren’t getting married they are having their first child.  Besides… weddings are fun!

Planning for the big day

What isn’t fun is rushing around at the last minute trying to get things together for the ‘big day’. I’ve always been a planner. I organize my kitchen cupboard with labels so that my husband knows where to find the quinoa and doesn’t mistake the cassia bark for chocolate flakes.  My desk at work is usually impeccable.  The stapler, pen, and highlighter all have their place.  Sure, it’s a little bit OCD… but that’s ‘the way I roll’.

Plans. Nothing EVER goes exactly according to plan. (Just ask Murphy about THAT one!)… There is always something… But don’t fret! That is all part of the beauty of weddings, and the beauty of life. Full of surprises!

Over the last three years I have definitely fine tuned what I like to call my “wedding awareness”.   In general, you have the beautiful bride to be, who wants everything to be perfect; the groom who wants the bride to be happy but gets tired of the word ‘wedding’ a good three months before the date, and really doesn’t care if the place cards are  sage or mint green.  You have the parents of the happy couple who want to be involved in decision making that inevitably get on the nerves of the bride or groom, or both.  Let’s not forget the cute flower girls or junior bridesmaids, the groomsmen who look smashing in their suits, and the lovely bridal attendants who facilitate all of the brides plans. Plans. Nothing EVER goes exactly according to plan. (Just ask Murphy about THAT one!)  You have flowers that don’t match the dresses or that don’t show up at all;  someone who thinks it is funny to lick the icing off the cake on the way through the kitchen; the camera man accidentally keeps his lens cap on; one of the dresses doesn’t fit the bridesmaid; the groom can’t find his suit pants; the dog runs away with the pillow with the rings tied to it; and Uncle Bob gets so drunk that he insists on dancing with your father during the father daughter dance… There is always something… But don’t fret! That is all part of the beauty of weddings, and the beauty of life. Full of surprises!

Unique wedding favors will leave a lasting impression

About three years ago, when a friend of mine was getting married and was close to having a nervous breakdown because her overly priced wedding favours hadn’t made it in time, I decided that enough was enough. Being the co-owner of Herbal Infusions, I thought it was about time I used my business smarts to heal a heavy heart.  (Plus, I really didn’t want to have to piece back together a tattered wedding dress or a batty bride)  Tea favours! The ultimate wedding solution! After pulling an all night-er, I had 250 cute, classy tea wedding favors ready to go.  She still recommends them to everyone she knows.  This year, our best seller by far has been the Peppermint Dream Tea Party Favor with our new pyramid style tea bag.  But the wonderful thing about our party favors is that you can find one to please any wedding guest. Ice Wine for Uncle Bob, Buckingham Palace Garden Party for Aunt Eunice who flew in from overseas, Faerie Falls Herbal Tea for your flower girls, Kama Sutra Chai for your spicy bridal party… You get the idea. The options are pretty much limitless, which is great for both the bride who wants to plan out every single grueling detail and for the bride that just wants to “get ‘er done!”.

Many of us have been through the process of planning a wedding, and for those of you that haven’t… Don’t worry… Your time will come.

I have come across some very helpful websites for weddings that other people may fins useful while planning for their own wedding, helping a friend plan, or trying to find a last minute speech.  When it comes to white dresses and wedding messes, there are never enough resources.

• Everything About Weddings
• Canadian Weddings
• Toronto Weddings
• Destination Weddings
• Wedding Vows and Speeches
• Ethical Weddings
• Green Weddings
• Eco Weddings

I have always had a love of music, so when Herbal Infusions  got the opportunity to be an official sponsor for the 2009 Canadian Country Music Awards, it was thrilling.  Hosted in Vancouver, on September 13 at GM Place, the music awards will be a night of celebration and entertaiment for the who’s who of Canadian country music. The line up includes some fabulous icons and performers, such as Reba McEntire, Martina McBride, Jann Arden, Teri Clarke, Paul Brant, George Canyon, Doc Walker, Emerson Drive, and many more. With a line up like that, who could possibly be disappointed?

The gift lounge is presented by the Uptown Gift Box Company - an exclusive gift service based in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.  The Founder and CEO Gabrielle Durning is an absolutely wonderful woman to deal with, and our experience with her throughout the process of supplying the Uptown Gift Box Company with our as Green as can be Eco friendly tea chests, proved to be as smooth as a cup of our Caramel Kiss tea.

Eco Tea Chests made from Reclaimed Utilty Poles

Gabrielle also provided the swag items for the 2009 Genie Awards, and 2009 Juno Awards. She has made this an unforgettable experience for us and for anyone lucky enough to snag a swag bag at this truly exciting event. Other sponsors include:

• Planet Forward (Sustainable Products)
• Doi Chaang Coffee (Certified Organic)
• Buddha Board (Definately one of my personal favourites. You have to check this out!)
• Warm Buddy Co (The most interesting stuffed animals you will ever find… don’t miss out)

A recent study published in the July edition of the journal Cancer Prevention Research suggests that the  polyphenols found in Green Tea may prevent the cell damage that leads to cancer development and progression.

A clinical trial conducted in Italy with 26 participants showed that the consumption of green tea helped lower the likelihood that prostate cancer would develop over the course of the 1 year study.

So why not incorporate some green tea into your daily routine?  We have some great tasting green teas including a Strawberry Green Tea that is packed with polyphenols including ECGC.  This one is especially tasty as an iced tea too!

So here is a story you don’t hear about everyday:  It turns out that the Chinese Department of Health has been conducting under cover surveillance at herbal tea shops and found that some were lacing their tea blends with what they describe as ‘Western Drugs’.

Lab tests showed the presence of two drugs: Paracetamol and Chlorpheniramine

Paracetamol, or what we here in the West refer to as acetaminophen – aka Tylenol, a common drug available over-the-counter to help relieve pain and fever.  Although many people will agree that it is generally a safe drug for short term relief, over exposure has been linked to liver damage (since it is processed through the liver)

Chlorpheniramine is an antihistamine that blocks the naturally producing histamines in the body, and is used to control allergies and common cold symptoms (such as itching, sneezing, and runny nose).  It is also not recommended to be used by breastfeeding mothers as it can pass through the milk and harm the baby.

It’s a sad reality to see that even in China local shop owners are  trying to get a ‘heads up’ on their local competitors by trying to enhance their products.  Maybe they weren’t aware of the side effects or didn’t care if people were reporting illnesses.   Or maybe they were.  Reminds me a lot of a story I read where Red Bull was found to containe trace amounts of cocaine .

It goes to show you that regardless of what the product is the practice of trying to get a one up on competitors has been going on for ages.

Snake Oil Anyone?

Hey its been a wile since posting but we’ve got a whole lotta stuff in the works!

In the meantime I wanted to share a funny story that I came across today.  We’ve seen many unique uses for tea bags- to reduce eye puffiness, help fertilize gardens, heck even abstract art.

Well it seems that the Secret Service was called in to inspect a suspicious package that sent the White House in lockdown mode.  And yep, you guessed it…the package contained tea bags. 

Hmm I wonder if the Queen had anything to do with this? 

Actually, this has everything to do with the recent tea parties that were staged all over the US earlier this week in protest of President Obamas tax payer funded bailout packages for corporations.

You can find the rest of the story here:

http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2009/04/15/tea-bag-toss-ends-white-house-protest/