My Drink Obsession

Wow!

2010-02-06T20:02:00.000-08:00

Its been a while.

How have you been?

Pretty sure no one checks this blog anymore...I guess 3 posts in a year will do that to someone.

Don't worry, it wasn't you, it was me.

I needed my space.

Now, I have a year of travel under my belt, and a million drink recipes I'd like to try.

so get ready...

I"M BACK!!!!!!

2009-06-17T03:35:00.001-07:00

My first post with ping.fm ... check it out, it's made my day!!!

An Avocado Shake With a View

2009-03-16T19:12:00.000-07:00

Cafe Pho Co.

A.K.A. The Secret Cafe.

While Cafe Pho is located in one of the thickest tourist areas in Hanoi, It can still be hard to locate. Even armed with the address, 11 Hang Gai, you might still have trouble.

The reason, the cafe entrance is down an alley that begins within another shop. You might walk around for 20 minutes looking for the entrance, and still never find it. The best advice is to just go to 11 Hang Gai...and don't be deterred by the lack of a cafe looking entrance...push forward.

Once you get to the cafe, go straight to the top of the building. Don't stop one floor short...go all the way...even if you think you are not allowed...you are allowed...i'll try to stopp with the ...'s ... but I can't promise anything...

Once on the roof, enjoy your sucess at finding the secret cafe with an ice cold drink...or piping hot drink...whatever you fancy. Also, you can laugh at all the idiots packed into Highland Coffee...you have the perfect vantage point to watch them overpaying for coffee...crazy Lonely Planet toting tourists.

As for the actual coffee...its not that great...marginal at best...but thats not why you searched for Cafe Pho...you came for the views...Init?

Oh yeah...the reason I'm posting this...the Avocado Shake!!! Once again, it's not the best avocado shake I've ever had, but it is marginal. Like much with Cafe Pho, the avocado shake was not the reason for going...the views of the lake and the Lonely Planet drones was my reason for coming.

Ciao.

Lemongrass Tea

2009-01-21T01:10:00.000-08:00

My wife and I had a bunch of lemongrass leftover from a Thai soup we made. Trying to stick to my mother-in-law’s “no waste” philosophy…as seen on her blog…I decided to find a drink recipe.

After only a few minutes of internet searching, I came across a recipe on one of my favorite drink recipe sites…Indian and Southeast Asian Beverages, a site by Nancy Freeman.

The recipe is called Lemongrass Tea.

Just like the name, the recipe is very simple…but takes a few weeks to complete.

For this recipe, you will need a bunch of lemongrass (8 stalks) and water.

The first step is to chop-off the bottom of the Lemongrass stalks…now throw it in the trash.

Second, you’ll want to wash all the dirt from the stalks.

Finally, chop the stalks into 2” sections and julienne those sections as well. Once you have all the lemongrass cut up, you want to throw it on a cookie sheet for a few weeks…or until it has completely dried out.

Once you have the dried lemongrass, the process gets very easy.

Grab a large sauce pan, and fill it with 2 cups of water and a handful of dried lemongrass.

Bring the water to a boil, then lower the heat and simmer for 15 minutes.

Now, the tea is ready. Simply pour the liquid into cups (minus the lemongrass stalks), and enjoy the fruits of your labor.

Blas Meala

2008-11-13T13:41:00.000-08:00

While thumbing through Celtic Folklore Cooking, by Joanne Asala, I came across a recipe for a drink called Blas Meala. While I enjoy all the ingredients alone, I wasn't sure how I felt about them all being thrown into one drink. So, I put off making the drink for almost a year.

Then, one night, the urge to make Blas Meala hit me like a bolt of lightning. I jumped up, went to the kitchen, and began assembling all the necessary ingredients...Fresh squeezed orange juice, clover honey, Irish whiskey, whipped cream, and toasted oatmeal.

1.5 Cups Fresh Squeezed Orange Juice
3 Tablespoons Clover Honey
2 Shots of Irish Whiskey...I prefer Powers
Whipped Cream
Toasted Oatmeal

Serves 2

First, pour your fresh OJ into a sauce pan and heat on medium heat. You'll want to bring it just short of a boil.

While the OJ is heating, you'll want to toast your oats.

Once the OJ has heated just short of a boil, pull the pan off the heat, and add the honey. Stirring till the honey has fully disolved in the juice.

Now, pull out two coffee cups and pour a shot of Irish whiskey into each cup.

Then, pour the juice/honey on top of the whiskey and stir.

Finish off the drink with a healthy portion of whipped cream and a handful of toasted oats.

Finally, sit back and enjoy the fruits of your labor.

Let me just say, after tasting this drink, my wife and I were upset we hadn't tried it sooner. It is amazing! Even my wife, the whiskey hater, enjoyed the wonderful taste...and that is saying something.

NOTES:

The best way to toast oats is on a greased jellyroll pan in the oven at 300 degrees...make sure to keep an eye on the oats, they tend to burn very easily.

While you might not think the fresh orange juice seems like that big of a deal, it makes a huge difference when it comes to the final taste and texture. I honestly think fresh OJ is better for this drink...trust me, using packaged juice would make my life easier.

The toasted oats also add a very subtle taste to the drink, you might think about leaving them out, but they can make or break this drink.

Salabat (Fresh Ginger Tea)

2008-11-11T12:19:00.000-08:00

My wife really enjoys Ginger. Actually, that is a bit of an understatement...If we go out to sushi, I rarely get to the ginger on my plate before she plucks it out from under my chopsticks.

So, Since I love her, I decided to make her ginger tea.

I searched the internet for a recipe, and found a great page of Indian and South-East Asian beverages.

The recipe has a very simple ingredient list...ginger, brown sugar, and water.

3 Inches of Crushed Fresh Ginger
2 Tablespoons Brown Sugar
5 Cups of Water

First, skin and finely chop the ginger.

Then, bring the water to a boil and add the ginger and brown sugar.

Let the mixture cook for 10 minutes, and then strain out the ginger.

Now, serve the beverage hot and enjoy!!!

I prefer my salabat with a squeeze of lemon, but my wife likes hers straight up...have fun, experiment with different additions and strengths of ginger.

Note: A great way to skin the ginger is with a spoon. Simply scrape the spoon along the skin, and it peels away very easily.

Authentic Thai Iced Coffee (Oliang/Oleang)

2008-10-31T12:03:00.000-07:00

After extensive internet research, I found that Thai iced coffee is not just espresso and sweetened condensed milk...rather, a special blend of coffee mixed with sugar and sweetened condensed milk. This might seem like a snobby splitting of hairs, but I assure you, there is a huge difference.

The special blend of coffee is called Oliang powder mix...which is a mixture of coffee, corn, and soya beans. You can find this mix at pretty much any Asian store...or on the internet at this site.

In addition to the special blend of coffee, you'll need a muslin filter...a reusable cloth filter for brewing the coffee. The muslin filter can be found here.

To make Thai iced coffee you will need water, Oliang powder mix, sugar, sweetened condensed milk, crushed ice, a muslin filter, 2 sauce pans, a tall glass, and a straw.

10 oz Water
2 Tablespoons Oliang
3 Tablespoons Sugar
3 Tablespoons Sweetened Condensed Milk
1 Glass Full of Crushed Ice

Serves 1

The first step is to start boiling the water.

While you wait for the water to boil, scoop the Oliang powder into the muslin filter.

Once the water has boiled, hold the muslin filter over an empty pan, and slowly pour the hot water through the filter.

Now, reposition the filter over the other pan, and pour the liquid through the filter a second time.

Then, reposition the filter again, and pour the liquid through a third time.

Once all the liquid has drained from the filter, your coffee is ready.

Now its time to sweeten the coffee.

Stir the sugar and sweetened condensed milk into your coffee. Because the coffee is hot, they should dissolve pretty quickly...leaving you with a tan colored liquid.

Then, let the liquid cool. I like to but the pan in the freezer for about 15 minutes...this gives me time to wash the dishes while it gets nice and cold.

Now that the coffee is cold, its ready to serve. Simply fill a tall glass with crushed ice, pour in the cold coffee, serve with a straw, and enjoy!!!

NOTES:

Since I never have crushed ice lying around, I just wrap cubes in a towel and whack em' with a kitchen hammer...instant crushed ice.

If you love this drink, but don't want to go to this trouble every day...just make a pitcher every few days.

Spike SHOTGUN Energy...So Hardcore!!!

2008-10-28T12:19:00.000-07:00

So, I just realized that I tend to rate energy drinks quite often. I jump around from Kronik to Amp...and now, I'm on to Spike Shotgun Energy. I apologize if this has gotten a bit annoying...I just like energy drinks.

I Promise that my next post will be an actual recipe...probably Thai Iced Coffee.

While Kronik Energy is the ULTIMATE product for grammatically incorrect douche-bags, Spike Shotgun Energy is the ULTIMATE drink for "HARDCORE" idiots.

Remember the days when a company could just make a tasty drink? Remember when the only thing you could read on the can was the name of the company? Well, my friend, those days are over...and they have been replaced with the days of so much print that the company looks like a squad of jack asses...especially when they write directly on the can, and I quote, "READ ENTIRE LABEL BEFORE DRINKING."

For the sake of saving my time, I'll list a few of the choice blurbs on the can:

"Not to burst anyone's bubble, but there are no such things as monsters - and bulls really can't fly...so if you believe in these fictional characters, you need not apply."

"SPIKE Shotgun...It's as REAL as it gets and it's Hardcore to the Bone."

"GET SPIKED!"

As far as I can tell, Spike SHOTGUN is going for the No Fear wearing, raised truck driving, farmer tanned, goatee having, weekend at the lake market sector. Which seems to be the market for pretty much every other energy drink out there. I'm pretty sure I can name off at least five energy drinks that market to the same crowd...NOS, Kronik, Krunk Juice, Xenergy, Amp, and Lost...that was six, and I'm not trying that hard.

So, in a world filled with energy drinks marketed to douche bags, why in gods name would you decide to create a new company to market to the same crowd?

I guess their first company meeting went a little something like this..."the other 500 energy drink companies seem to be doing really well with this "Hardcore" marketing...lets do the same thing. Lets completely stay away from anything original. Lets be like everyone else in our industry...that's the way to make money."

It doesn't even bother me that they are nothing more than a cheap knock-off of 10 other companies....the thing that pisses me off are the shots they are taking at Monster Energy and Red Bull directly on their can.

Red Bull seems to be the only company that hasn't gone the Douche-Bag route, and they are making a killing. Why aren't there more companies trying to be like them? Why aren't there more companies holding an annual Flugtag? Why isn't Spike SHOTGUN holding airplane races? I'll tell you why, because they are a fly by night company that won't even be around in a year.

As for the taste, its not completely bad. It tastes like a Minute Maid orange soda...with a bit of an energy drink bite.

The can says that it has no calories, no sugar, no carbohydrates, no cholesterol, and 350 mg of caffeine...which seems too good to be true.

I' d definitely reccommend this drink to people looking for a no carb energy drink.

I'd just prefer the can not be marketed to goobers.

I apologize for my rant about the marketing of energy drinks. I really love the taste of energy drinks, and they are easier on the stomach than coffee. I think that the energy drink market could be doing even better than they currently are, if they would just stop marketing their drinks to the idiots of this planet.

I'm sure Starbucks will make a coffee-free energy drink soon, and the market will completely change. But until then, I guess I'll just have to live with the idiotic cans that hold my beverage of choice.

Amp Energy

2008-10-22T11:01:00.001-07:00

This morning I felt myself craving a Mountain Dew...which never happens. I actually can't remember the last time I had a Mountain Dew. It was probably in junior high, during one of those all-night NBA Jam playing sessions...you know, the Super Nintendo game.

So, instead of going for the genuine article, I decided to give the Mountain Dew's Amp Energy a try.

Amp comes in a very dramatic looking can...it is entirely black, with a few highlights of "Mountain Dew" green. Just one look, and you are thinking, "This can looks EXTREME!!!" While carrying the can back to work, I actually thought about skydiving a few times...not to mention the 4 times I contemplated extreme downhill mountain biking.

Once I got back to work, I sat down and opened the can. I took my first sip anticipating the signature Mountain Dew taste...but was sadly disappointed. Amp Energy tastes like nothing more than watered down Mountain Dew. Though I'm sure it contains more energy-giving substances than a normal can of Mountain Dew, I would have preferred the real thing.

So, if you ever come across Amp Energy, go for the Monster Energy instead...or a real Mountain Dew. Amp seems like a great idea, but it falls very short of being a tasty energy drink.

NOTE: I apologize for my repetitive use of the phrase "Mountain Dew." Though, it might be too late to 'pologize...too late.

Agua de Cantaloupe

2008-10-15T11:47:00.000-07:00

Sticking with my Mexican drink making craze, I've decided to make Agua de Cantaloupe.

My main reason for making this drink is my wife's melon obsession. I don't think I have ever opened our fridge without seeing a half eaten melon covered in saran wrap. Sometimes there are even two, one watermelon and one cantaloupe...one can never have too much variety.

So, being the great husband I am, I decided to make her drink dreams come true...actually, she would have preferred watermelon, but I'm actually not that good of a husband.

The hardest part about this recipe has got to be finding the ingredients...cantaloupe, water, and sugar.

Armed with my exotic ingredients, I set forth on my quest.

(adapted from recipe on MexGrocer.)

1 Whole Cantaloupe
6 Cups Water
3/4 Cup Sugar

If you're thinking "Deja Vu," like Keanu in The Matrix...that's because the recipe for any Agua de... is pretty much the same. Fruit, water, and sugar.

The first step is to cube the cantaloupe.

Next, you place the cubed cantaloupe in the blender with the water and sugar. Depending on the size of your blender, you might have to do this step in two parts.

Blend!

Once you have fully blended the ingredients, pour the mixture through a mesh strainer.

Then, chill and Enjoy!

I did not enjoy this drink; however, my wife said that it was very refreshing and tasty. I'm pretty sure you can chalk my lack of interest in the finished product up to my lack of interest in cantaloupe in general...see above picture which illustrates my dislike of cantaloupe.

Note: Chilling this drink is a must!!! The colder, the better.

Hot Spiced Cider w/ Rum

2008-10-11T10:59:00.000-07:00

I've always loved spiced cider, but rarely find an opportunity to enjoy a cup. The process is not that hard, but it always yields way more than I could ever drink in a short amount of time.

However, an opportunity presented itself in the form of a pumpkin carving party. And, being obsessed with drinks and my blog, I had to craft the perfect seasonal beverage...and it had to contain alcohol, of course.

So, armed with an idea, I got on the old WWW and searched around for spiced cider recipes. After a few minutes of searching, I found a great recipe on cooksrecipes.com.

The recipe called for oranges, cloves, cinnamon sticks, apple cider, and rum. Though I really wanted to make my own cider, I was under time constraints that had me shopping the aisles of Trader Joe's.

However, I do promise to eventually make my own cider for the blog.

3 Small Oranges
3 Tablespoons Cloves
2 Quarts Apple Cider
3 Cinnamon Sticks
1 1/2 Cups Gold Rum (Half Dark, Half Light)

The first step is to cut the oranges into wedges.

Then, you push the clove bases into the oranges...otherwise known as studding the oranges. This will keep the cloves from floating around, and eventually making their way into your cup. However, if you plan on straining the liquid before consuming, you can completely skip this step.

Next, you put your apple cider and cinnamon sticks into a large pot and heat the liquid just short of boiling.

Once you have the cider to your desired temperature, take off the heat and drop in the oranges, cloves, and rum.

Let the mixture brew covered for about 5 minutes.

Then you are ready to serve, and enjoy!

REQUESTS

2008-10-10T12:36:00.000-07:00

If you have a drink you would like me to research and make, feel free to send me any requests.

Coco King Coconut Juice w/ Pulp

2008-10-10T12:01:00.001-07:00

Having passed this drink several times at the 7-11, thinking it was coconut w/ Lime...which is disgusting, I decided to have a closer look.

Upon further inspection, the section that I thought said "With Lime," actually said "With Pulp." So, I gave it a go.

I got it back to my office, popped open the can, and had a sip.

This has got to be the best canned coconut juice I have ever tasted! It equals the taste of a fresh Thai coconut. And, upon further inspection, I found that the product is actually made in Thailand.

Give Coco King Coconut Juice w/ Pulp a try, you won't be disappointed.

Kronik Protein Energy

2008-10-08T10:39:00.000-07:00

During my morning walk to 7-11 for an energy drink, I decided to try something different today. I usually go for the blue Monster Energy drink, lo-carb, but i decided to switch it up today.

While I was looking through the case, I came across Kronik Protein Energy. I have always made fun of Kronik, seeing it as nothing more than a knock-off energy drink marketed to "Extreme" athletes...a.k.a. moto cross. I decided to give it a try, so I could blast it on the blog.

However, Kronik Protein Energy is really good...there goes my plan.

It isn't carbonated, so you can really enjoy the Dragon Berry flavor...which tastes a bit like guava. The texture is a little chalky, due to the protein, but I expected it to be much worse.

The only thing I didn't like was the can. You can really tell that Kronik markets their drink to bone heads. The can is emblazoned with idiotic text such as "OK, so we ain't got PhD's. In Fact we struggled through grade school. So kickin' science on why Kronik Protein Energy is mind-blowing and all...Just not our style."

Though I ain't no bone head, I unexpectedly enjoyed Kronik Protein Energy. It just goes to show...never judge a book by its cover.

Fresh Mint Tea

2008-10-07T12:19:00.000-07:00

I've always loved fresh Moroccan mint tea, but never thought to make it. Instead, my wife and I always walked over to the local Moroccan restaurant for a fresh brewed cup.

The great thing about this blog is that I'm always on the lookout for new drinks to make...so, when mint tea came to mind, I jumped right to it.

I found a recipe for Moroccan mint tea on Recipe Zaar.

10 Sprigs Fresh mint
3 Green Tea Bags
3 Tablespoons Sugar
4 Cups Water

The ingredients are very simple, mint, green tea, sugar, and water.

First, you boil the water.

While the water is boiling, put the mint into a tea pot with the green tea bags, and sugar*.

After the water has boiled, pout it into the tea pot, and let it brew for about 5 minutes.

Then...enjoy!

*If you don't want to chance the brew being gritty from the sugar, you can always use simple syrup instead. You just need to mix water and sugar in equal parts over heat. I usually mix 3 cups water with 3 cups sugar over heat, and then save the extra for future simple syrup needs.

Agua de Pina

2008-09-30T11:52:00.000-07:00

After making Horchata and Agua de Jamaica, I decided to round out my Mexican drink trilogy with Agua de Pina.

While searching the internet, I found quite a few recipes for Agau de Pina, and most of them used way too many ingredients, or required some ridiculous mix. So, I decided to compile a few recipes into one, and experiment with proportions on the fly.

Here is what I came up with...

To make this very simple drink, all you need is a pineapple, sugar, and water.

1 Whole Pineapple
2 Cups Sugar
8 Cups Water

First, skin and cut the whole pineapple into small wedges.

Then, place half the pineapple wedges into a blender with 1 Cup of water and 1 Cup of sugar.

Blend the ingredients until you have a smooth and frothy liquid.

Then pour the liquid through a mesh strainer and into a pitcher.

Repeat above steps with the rest of the pineapple, sugar, and water.

Once you have the pineapple liquid in the pitcher, pour in an additional 6 cups of water and stir.

Then, all that's left to do is chill, serve, and enjoy!*

*If you want to spice this drink up, you can add a little light rum for good measure.

Mango Lassi

2008-09-29T11:51:00.000-07:00

For my wife, A trip to an Indian restaurant is not complete without a fresh mango lassi. Though I tend to be more of a salty lassi man, I decided to give her favorite Indian drink a go.

After searching through the internet for an authentic recipe...one that didn't have ridiculously bourgeois ingredients...I finally came across a good recipe on one of my favorite sites, IndianSnacks.com.

So, I went about compiling the ingredients: Plain Yogurt, Milk, Water, Mango, Sugar, and Pistachios.

3 Cups Plain Yogurt
1 Cup Milk
1 Cup Water
3/4 Mango
1/2 Cup Sugar
1 oz. Ground Pistachios

In a blender, mix the yogurt, milk, water, mango, and sugar.

Blend the ingredients for about a minute...or, until you have a smooth, frothy liquid.

Pour the lassi over crushed ice, and sprinkle with ground pistachio.

Serve with a straw, and enjoy!

Agua de Jamaica

2008-09-23T12:16:00.000-07:00

Addapted From A Recipe On MexGrocer.com

Since I loved the horchata so much, I decided to continue down the path of aguas frescas. As a kid, if a resaurant was ever out of horchata, I would always go for the jamaica. Partially because of the name...as a kid, I always wanted to visit Jamaica. The sandy beaches, the warm surf, and more importantly, reggae music. Any drink with the name of the travel destination of my dreams was alright by me.

However, recently I learned that the drink was not named for the island...like I'd previously thought. Rather, it is the Mexican name for the Hibiscus Flower...Jamaica being pronounced (HA-MIKE-AH).

So, a little embarrassed about being wrong about the name of the drink for so long, I set out to make my own HA-MIKE-AH.

2 Cups Dried Hibiscus Flowers (Jamaica)
12 Cups Water
3 Cup Sugar

For this recipe, all that is need are Hibiscus flowers, water, and sugar.

The first step is to boil 6 Cups of water in a medium sized pot.

While the water is coming to a boil, rinse and drain the hibiscus flowers in a mesh strainer.

Once the water is boiling, add the flowers and sugar. Stir a bit, then reduce heat, cover and simmer for 15 minutes...be careful that it doesn't boil over.

After 15 minutes, remove the pot from the heat, and let cool for another 15 minutes.

Once the mixture has cooled a little, pour the contents into a pitcher through a mesh strainer.

Then add the other 6 cups of water, and stir.

Now, all that is left to do is chill and serve over ice with a twist of lime. Enjoy!

Addis Tea

2008-09-19T14:28:00.001-07:00

I found this great tea while browsing the aisles of an Ethiopian grocery store in Portland, OR. I'm usually not that big of a straight tea fan...usually requiring lots of milk and sugar...but Addis Tea is different. The flavor is very subtle, and intriguing. Since breaking into the box, I've had an average of two cups a day.

If you don't have an Ethiopian grocery store near you, check out this website:

http://www.mulumart.com/product_info.php?cPath=23_35&products_id=89&osCsid=e7467a971df14e285350eed89dcba289

Horchata, It Makes Me Want To Sing

2008-09-18T15:13:00.001-07:00

Horchata, a drink any kid growing up in California will surely know and love. My love of horchata goes back to the beginning of my life. I remember walking into Mexican restaurants and seeing those irresistible looking jugs lined up on the back wall...and wondering to myself, What are those? Most things in our culture are covered by labels. Its hard to find a beverage that doesn't have the company name on it at least 5 times. However, these beautiful jugs said nothing about their contents. As my mind ran through thousands of possible answers, I settled on the most interesting...the water of life!

Though I was wrong, the horchata did taste amazing.

After many years of enjoying the wonder that is freshly made horchata, restaurants rained on my parade. Instead of making it themselves, they began buying a commercial brand horchata that doesn't taste as good. My love for horchata waning, I decided to do something about the terrible turn of events...and make my own horchata.

After an extensive Google search, I found a great recipe on mexicangrocer.com.

2 Cups Long-Grain White Rice
2 Cups Water
2 Quarts Low-Fat Milk
1 Cup Sugar
2 Tsp. Vanilla
1 Tsp. Ground Cinnamon

I began collecting my ingredients, which were remarkably simple: rice, water, milk, sugar, vanilla, and cinnamon.

The first step is to soak the rice over night. You put the rice in a bowl and cover it with water. Then you cover the bowl with cling wrap...and wait.

The next morning, you throw half of the rice into a blender with one quart milk and 1 cup water.

After you have blended the mixture to submission, you pour the liquid through a mesh strainer and into a large jug.

Then you repeat the same step with the other half of the rice, milk, and water.

Once you have all the liquid in the jug, you add the vanilla, sugar, and cinnamon... and stir.

After chilling, its ready to serve and enjoy!

Krating Daeng

2008-09-16T22:24:00.001-07:00

Krating Daeng's popularity grew in the 70's among the truck drivers, construction workers, and farmers of Thailand. The working class found that this ultra-sweet, uncarbonated predecessor to Red Bull gave them the energy needed to complete a hard days work.

These days, the beverage is higly famed amongst the backpackers of the world. Krating Daeng is a tastey treat...whether its consumed straight up, or served in a bucket with a flask of vodka. It has fueld many explorations of cities, temples, and even the occasional red light district.

After one taste of this amazing beverage, you will never be able to enjoy the over-carbonated sham that Americans call energy drink. Rather, you will drive 200 miles to the closest Asian food mega-store to stock up on the real deal...or maybe that's just me.

Masala Tea

2008-09-15T18:01:00.000-07:00

A few months ago, my wife and I ate dinner at an Indian restaurant called The Jewel of India. Upon sitting down at our table, I ordered a tea...being that I'm obsessed with drinks and all. After waiting a few moments, and listening to some wonderful Bhangra music, a tan milky substance arrived. Seeing as I'm not that picky, and I'm always happy when i see new liquids, I gave it a sip...and that was the night I fell in love with Tea Masala.

Being a guy, and not wanting to appear too eager, I waited a few months before calling on Tea Masala. Today, I finally worked up enough nerve to Google the love of my life, and the result was an Indian recipe site called indiasnacks.com.

Upon reading the recipe, I fell in love again...13 sticks of cinnamon...13 sticks. Not even Horchata has 13 sticks of cinnamon. Tea Masala, you had me at 13 sticks...so i made a date for tonight.

I immediately got to work compiling all the needed ingredients...cinnamon, green cardamom, cloves, black peppercorns, loose leaf tea, sugar, water, and milk (Yeah, that was an oxford comma...I give a F***).

Here's the recipe:

6 Cups Cold Water
1/3 Cup Milk
13 Cinnamon Sticks
6 Green Cardamom Pods
4 Whole Cloves
12 Black Peppercorns
12 Teaspoons Sugar
6 Heaping Teaspoons Loose Leaf Tea

The first step is to combine the milk and water, then bring it to a boil.

After the mixture reaches a boil, you add the sugar and spices...and everything nices...sorry, I just couldn't resist. You stir everything around a bit, and take the pot off the heat.

You then cover the pot, and let everything marinate around for about diez minutos...or ten minutes for you folks north of the border.

After the ten minutes has passed, you add the loose leaf tea, and bring the mixture to a second boil.

Once you've got it boiling again, you reduce the heat to a mere simmer for five minutes. Then remove pot from heat.

When it comes time to serve this nectar of the gods, all you need to do is pour it through a mesh strainer....and enjoy.

Notes:

I seem to be color blind, and used regular cardamom in stead of green cardamom. The taste came out quite smokey...but not all that bad. However, next time around, I'll use the green.

The cinnamon flavor was quite powerful in my initial brewing. Next brewing, I will be using 10 sticks instead of 13.

The clove flavor was standard. Being that I love the taste of cloves, I'll be upping the ante from 4 cloves to 5 on the next brewing.

My Drink Obsession

2008-09-15T12:37:00.000-07:00

Due to my overwhelming obsession with drinks, I have decided to create a blog. My aim is to create a platform to share my thoughts, rants and recipes on all things drink. Whether i'm complaining about the lack of taste in the tamarind flavored Jarritos drink, or breaking down the recipe for boba milk tea, this site will forever be about drinks, those that make them, and those who love them.