Dehydrated Fruits & Veggies

Well the other day my mother in-law who has become a food dehydrating queen gave me some of the fruit and veggies she had dried. They included some dried strawberries, rhubarb, chard, and some tomatoes.  All I can say is wow the flavours just stayed so true and pure.   I made a smoothie this morning with some of the strawberries and the rhubard she had done with a couple of good handfuls of spinach and a little of the dried chard and some warm water to help rehydrate needless to say it was a little on the tart side less rhubard next time but talk about a refreshing and powerful energy packed delight maybe I could have used a little honey or agave or even just a banana.  So many people need to consider getting a dehydrator these work awesome for seasonal fruits and veggies like mangoes for instance when they are in season dry a bunch and you have mangoes year round or any fruit or veggie really even the greens.  The strawberries were a little crisp but my mother in-law said maybe cut them thicker or just do not dry so long but in truth you want them dry so they do not go moldy.  I have seen many people make dips and such from dried fruits and veggies. I think I will make a hot pepper dip with the dried tomatoes MMM just the thought of that makes me salivate. 

God Bless, Peace, and Joy. 

P.S. There are more informative videos in a series based on the one above just search for them if your interested this is part 1

David's Tea a Taste & Scent Experience

Well as you know I love David's Tea and they always have some great teas to try as each month goes by and also seasonal blends.  Well the one I have fallen in love with lately is yes a black tea
but a little caffeine in moderation is not that bad if it involves other flavors and ingredients that can be considered healthy I'm referring to there fall collection and in particular the Pumpkin Chai
this tea is awesome with bold pumpkin flavor and incredible black tea essence that just makes you wanting more.  Seriously have a cup of this or make some at home add a little almond milk or Soy milk and a little sweetener like agave or organic honey and it is like drinking a piece of pumpkin pie and whipped cream.  Another tea that I have to recommend because it truly lives up to the name that it has been given is an incredible green tea blend MMM antioxidants and it is called Mom's Apple Pie.  The first time I tried this I was literally blown away I thought I was having a piece of apple pie enter my mouth then simply taking a sip of a green tea.  What can I say there are so many great tea blends at this shop you will be hooked on going there all the time.  Personally I would recommend taking an hour out of your day and just find one of these establishments and just have a smelling time.   Seriously the fragrance's coming off of all of these teas, of course some better then others is well intoxicating and it can make choosing one a little easier.  They have every kind imaginable and then some you would not even consider they have your ultra high antioxidant rich White Tea Blends, then a step down to the Green Tea Concoctions which will still give you a decent dose of antioxidants yes white and green teas do have some caffeine but when you consider the health benefits associated with both of these teas like for instance they are both great for immune system boosting during a cold, they help to detox and flush free radicals hence the antioxidants and they are also known to help lower blood pressure, cholesterol levels. One huge fact for green teas in particular they also help in the form of weight loss due to them helping with appetite suppression & metabolism why do you not think many drug and pharmaceutical companies place green tea extracts in weight loss and fat loss pills. Then of course any fine tea place is going to have a huge assortment of your traditional black teas and some bizarre twisted blends to choose from.  Then of course you have your Rooibos blends both Green and Red varieties which are caffeine free and are also super rich in antioxidants,  they end it off with the Herbal blends not only are 98% of these caffeine free they can steep forever and the flavors just get more rich and robust but not bitter.

My favorite in the Herbals is Forever Nuts-Warning once you have one you'll be hooked!  In the Rooibos I love the Green and Fruity, Black Teas right now it is a toss up with the Pumpkin Chai and the Organic Buttered Rum.  Green Teas well they have so many great ones I would say Toasted Walnut or Lime Gelato. 

Oops I almost forgot the Oolong blends which are your hand rolled green tea leaves they are the greatest since many of them you can re-steep up to 5 times and some even up to 20 times, My favorite Oolong I would also give it a toss up between the Long Life Oolong or the Vanilla Oolong. 
and also have all the benefits of green tea.  The other varieties I have tried are the mates and the Puerh's the selection for these is small but they taste great you can also find these at David's Tea.

Not only does this "David's Tea" bring you the best tea blends from around the world they also bring some of the coolest gadgets around for making the best tea every time. 

For the gadgets I would totally recommend the unit they call "The Steeper" this little gadget that works great for making iced tea concoctions also makes an awesome hot tea as it allows the tea leaves more room to expand compared with a tea bag or a simple infuser like a tea ball or even a tall cup size variation,  and NO more bags so your also helping the environment what an awesome win win they will run you around 20.00CA.   Since I own one of these myself I will tell after you make your first cup of tea with this little unit it will have paid for itself.  Really would it not be great to have an awesome cup of tea and know your not cutting down trees to make more tea sacs P.S. these are the same units the company uses to make iced teas/lattes etc.  so you can buy with the trust that they can stand up to some abuse and work time after time.

God Bless and Best Wishes.