It’s raining in Oregon. It’s raining in California. The states in which Rosemarie and Linda reside. Which brings up the motivation for gathering together friends or family for a warming cup of tea. If you have children or grandchildren, it’s a fun and participatory occasion that can bond you together and allow you to share some dining etiquette tips!
Brewed loose leaf or tea bag tea? For the purist, there is nothing like a fresh brewed pot of tea.
Tea brewing tips:
- Fill your teapot with hot tap water to warm it. This prevents the teapot from lowering the tea water temperature too quickly.
- Put a kettle of water on the stove top and bring to a boil.
- While the water is coming to a boil, measure out your loose leaf tea, one teaspoonful of tea per cup and an additional teaspoonful “for the pot.” This prevents a weak tea from being brewed.
- Dump the warming water out of the teapot and place the tea leaf filled infuser inside the teapot…doing this when the water kettle begins to “chatter.” This chatter tells you the water is about to reach the boiling point.
- Remove from the water kettle from the stove top the minute it begins to boil.
- Pour the boiling water over the tea leaves and place the lid on the top of the teapot.
- Set the timer and brew full-bodied tea for 5 minutes. No longer than 5 minutes or you will have bitter tea.
- Pour tea into a beautiful, china teacup taking care not to fill to the rim.
- Using sugar tongs, remove a sugar lump and place in the teacup.
- Pour a small amount – about a teaspoonful of milk, but never cream, into your teacup.
- Stir with a teaspoon in a back-and-forth motion, taking care not to bang the side of the cup.
- Place the used teaspoon on the right side of the cup, behind the handle. Never place it back on the tabletop or table linen.
Pssst…break off bite-sized pieces of the cookie, while it is resting on the plate. This prevents the crumbs from falling onto table linens or the tabletop.