The Daily Steep

The Red Velvet Cocktail

Here you’ll find a recipe for the most delicious cocktail. I made this before sitting outside in the sun with a book and this drink was just what I needed during my relaxing afternoon. It would also be a great cocktail after dinner! 

Here’s what you’ll need:

• 2.5 Perfect tsp of Red Velvet Cake Tea
• 1/2 tsp Peppermint Amour tea (if you want a little minty taste)
• A little bit of vanilla soy milk
• 2.5 tsp sugar (add more/less if you want or skip altogether, the Red Velvet Cake tea is already sweet with chocolate bits!)
• Boiling water
• Ice
• 1 oz. Rum (or more depending on your taste!)

Directions:

1. Add Red Velvet Cake to steeper, then add water + sugar and mix. Steep for 5 minutes. (this is where you can also add Peppermint Amour if you want it to be minty)
2. Fill your glass with ice and add that ice to your blender, then add the rum & soymilk
3. Now add your tea from the steeper and blend
4. Pour your drink into your glass and enjoy!

Note: I added more ice cubes to my drink, then added leftover tea from the steeper to my drink for a macchiato look!

Have a beau-tea-ful day!

-Jess D.

Kanpe Pop! Cocktail

Some of us at the shop had a girls night in last night and of course we brought tons of tea. I brought some of my favourite Organic Kanpe with the intention of brewing up a little sangria however we soon discovered that our hostess’ mom had a soda maker! This cocktail turned out to be refreshing and delicious and subtlety sweet. Ohhh the possibilities of tea soda pop!! This recipe can be used with any of our favourite teas to either make a cocktail like we did, or to inspire some fun pop infusions! This can also be used without carbonating the tea itself. Add in a little ginger ale for some fizz!

What You Need:

• 4 tsps of Organic Kanpe
• The Steeper
• Soda Stream machine
• Bottle of fruity wine
• Ice!

How To Make It:

1. Steep 4 tsps of Kanpe for about 20 minutes so it gets nice and strong.
2. Pour the infusion into the bottle and top off with wine.
3. Make the soda! Get carbonated! (Ours actually exploded everywhere but that was another story.)
4. Toss in some ice and top it off with more wine.
5. Fruit pieces to garnish.
6. Drink and enjoy!

The possibilities were are endless with different types of tea infusions. I love Kanpe because it’s perfectly sweet and tart and I didn’t have to add any sweetener!

Happy steeping!

-Katrina

Anonymous asked: Just found this blog and so glad it exists because it's my local DAVIDsTEA! If only you guys could post more? :) P.S When are you guys gonna have some job openings?!

That’s wonderful! We definitely plan on posting a lot more in the near future. We have some recipes up our sleeves!

For hiring information visit the DavidsTea website and check out the careers page. Also, you can always bring a resume to the shop :)

Anonymous asked: How do I make the perfect cup of tea?

Greetings anonymous! The perfect cup of tea does not have to be an elusive thing. Here at the shop we drink tea pretty much constantly throughout the day.

The steps to make the perfect cup of tea involves a few things:

1.  Measurement. For example, all of our teas come with a recommended amount per cup (typically a teaspoon and half). However if your cup is smaller or bigger (i’ve seen some huge ones!) this can be adjusted to your preference. Experiment!
2. Steeping time. They also each have a recommended steeping time. Typically different types of teas will have different times. Green teas for example taste best with a 3-4 minute steep whereas teas such as rooibos can be steeped forever without the taste becoming bitter. Oversteeping a sensitive leaf will create a bitter tannin flavour that is not really pleasant. However, different people have different palettes! So my advice is to experiment! Like your tea lighter? Steep less. Like it a little bitter? Whatever floats your boat!
   Pro Tip: use a timer!
3. Water: Temperature and type. This is the key difference in tasting tea in our shop and at home. We are lucky enough to have temperature controlled taps in our store. One is at 75C for green/white teas and the other is at 95C for everything else. Our water is also filtered. No peasantly tap water for us!
   If you’re lucky, you already own a temperature controlled kettle. If not, you can pour boiling water into your cup then let it sit for a few minutes before immersing the tea leaves. Another option is boiling your water the old fashioned way on the stove and watching for the pre-boil stage where tiny little bubbles (known as fish eyes!) cover the bottom of your pot.

I hope this helps in your journey to find that perfect cup of tea.

Happy steeping!

Katrina

The Cocoa Copabanana Latte

People are just cuckoo for cocoa! Add a little copa in the mix and you’ve got quite the cuppa ;)
This sinfully delicious latte will delight your taste buds. Try it at home, use chocolate milk or request this special latte in store!

What You Need:

• 4 tsps of Copabana tea
• Your choice of milk/milk substitute (and frother!)
• 2 tsps Cocoa powder
• 1 tsp agave nectar
• Cinnamon/Cocoa powder to garnish/to taste

Et voila! Let this beautiful concoction steep the recommended amount of time. Toss the cocoa powder into the milk and froth away.The ideal latte will be 1/2 tea infusion and 1/2 milk/froth.

Try it iced for a sweet treat on a hot day.

Happy Steeping!

-Katrina

theirmadiaries asked: Thanks for answering me. I tried the matcha cookies and everyone at work(I work at David's Tea Mont-Royal in Montreal) loved them. I used yogurt instead of egg yolks and it worked well. Thanks again :) Irma

That’s awesome!! We’re so happy they worked out for you, they’re definitely super delicious :) Thanks for the tip, that’s a really good idea!

CAFFEINE-FREE ICED COFFEE.

Whaaaat?? You say!? How is this possible?? You say.

At DavidsTea anything is possible.

This drink has been a staff favourite since it’s inception a few months ago. One of my favourite parts of summer is iced coffee, unfortunately buying an iced coffee on the go also means syrups, tons of sugars, calories and caffeine jitters before bedtime. ENTER HEROICALLY FROM STAGE LEFT: Chickory Dickory Dock.

CDD is a roasted chickory root based herbal tea with almonds and vanilla beans. Steeped a short time, it’s a light coffee. Steeped an extended time, it’s a punch-you-in-the-gut espresso. Iced? It’s perfect.

What You Need:
Two perfect teaspoons of chickory dickory dock
Hot Water
Steeper
Ice
Milk of your choice
Sweetener of your choice

Directions:
1. Brew your tea to taste in about 8oz of water. Longer = darker “roast”. Shorter = Average “roast”. Add your sweetener at this stage.
2. Fill your cup up with ice.
3. Pour the tea over the ice, it should fill about half the cup and add your milk.
4. Sip and relax! Kick back and watch fireflies dance from your back porch.

Happy steeping!

-Kat

Matcha “Matsu” Pancakes

We all love pancakes! So this recipe was created to add a little bit of healthiness and awesome energy to that breakfast we all love so much. Adding matcha to your pancakes can also replace that cup of coffee you make every morning. It’s awesome because it’s green tea leaves ground into a fine powder so instead of just steeping the leaf, you’re consuming the entire thing! Think of all the antioxidants and benefits you’re getting with a cup of matcha! Not to mention, some much needed caffeine for those mornings! So here’s a really simple recipe that doesn’t really add any extra time to your pancake routine:

Ingredients (for 4 small pancakes):

• Pancake mix of your choice (I used a buttermilk pancake mix)
• Water (you can also substitute it for milk, depending on the mix you’re using)
• 2.5 tsp of Matcha “Matsu”(equivalent to 1.5 perfect DAVIDsTEA spoons)
• Oil or butter to line the frying pan
• Maple syrup

Directions:

1. Add 4 big spoons of pancake mix to a bowl
2. Add the Matcha “Matsu”
3. Now add enough water for a semi-thick consistency and mix ingredients together
4. Now line your frying pan (with oil/butter) and cook the pancakes on medium heat
5. Once they’re done, add some maple syrup to the pancakes and ENJOY!

(The picture of the finished product does not do justice to how it actually looks since I burnt them a bit by spending time taking pictures of them on the saucepan haha!)

These pancakes are absolutely delicious, especially with maple syrup! Let us know how yours turned out in the ask box! Now eat up!

Happy eating!

-Jess D.

Want to cool down on a hot summer day? Why not try a TEAlightful slushie!

I made mine with:

• Japanese Sencha
• strawberries
• raspberries
• blueberries
• some of my dad’s homemade brown sugar syrup
• a couple hands full of ice

Just put the steeped tea in a blender with the other ingredients and you’re ready to go! My mom and I found this one slightly tart without the syrup, but use your own discretion.

Feel free to experiment!

Have a lovely day!

-Em

theirmadiaries asked: For the matcha matsu cookies, do you think it would be possinle to omit the egg yolks? Thanks :)

Absolutely! However since eggs are typically used as a binder in baking, try out another egg substitute.