Forget the flowers, jewellery and expensive gifts and instead show your mum love by spending quality time with her over a cup of tea and and some home made treats.
New research by tea company Dilmah shows that 68 per cent of Australian respondents think mums deserve to be thanked everyday but most of us just don’t get round to it.
The same research says all that Australian mums want for Mother’s Day is a simple thank you, and what better way to say thank you than making your mum a fabulous high tea spread.
You can turn the tables and repay years of care by rustling up some tea-infused treats using these recipes for cupcakes, scones and truffles from Dilmah.
If you enjoy making tea-infused treats, why not enter Dilmah’s Real High Tea challenge? The search is on for chefs and tea enthusiasts in Australia to enter the Dilmah ‘Real High Tea Challenge’ 2013. The national gastronomy competition invites entrants to create a tea-infused culinary masterpiece, using the finest selection of Dilmah products. The winner will receive an opportunity of a life time, an all-expenses paid VIP trip to spectacular Sri Lanka, the home of Dilmah tea. Entries close May 20, 2013. Head to www.realhightea.com.au to enter.
White Chocolate Rose and French Vanilla Cupcakes
Ingredients:
300 g chocolate
200 g butter
250 ml milk
165 g caster sugar
2 tspn Vanilla
2 x large eggs 59grams lightly beaten
100 g self-raising flour
150 g plain flour
10-15 Dilmah Exceptional Rose with French Vanilla tea bags with the tags cut off and tied in bunches of five
Method
1. Put chocolate, butter, milk and sugar in a med pan on low heat. Stir frequently. When the butter is nearly melted, add the tea bags and push them into the chocolate mix. Leave the mix to cool for 15 minutes. Stir the mix every few minutes. Squeeze the teabags with a teabag squeezer a few times. When 15 minutes are up, extract as much from the teabags as you can by squeezing. Stir through. The mixture should be a pale tan colour.
2. Add vanilla and eggs to the chocolate mix and stir until combined. Sift both types of flour into a med bowl. Add one cup of chocolate mix to the flour, stir until it forms a paste. Repeat with half of the chocolate mix, stir then finish with the last of the chocolate mix. Stir until smooth.
3. Dollop out using a quarter cup measure for each cupcake. Bake at 160-165°C for 17 minutes.
4. When the cakes are cooked through, remove from the tray immediately. Cover with a clean tea-towel and leave to cool on a wire tray.
White chocolate icing
Ingredients:
200 g of white chocolate
1 tbsp of butter/margarine
400 g of icing sugar
milk
Method
1. Melt 200grams of white chocolate in microwave with 1 tablespoon of butter or margarine for 35 seconds. Stir until smooth. If chocolate hasn’t melted, microwave in bursts of 10 seconds.
2. Place in a med bowl and add 400 grams of icing sugar. Beat with an electric beater and add milk, a small amount at a time, until it becomes the consistency of meringue.
3. Pipe a small amount onto the cooled cupcakes and decorate.
4. Cupcakes can last up to 1 week in an airtight container and suitable for freezing.
5. Icing can be adjusted to suit the taste, more or less
Earl Grey Scones and Berry Sensation Tea Jam
Scones
Ingredients
500g self-raising flour
1 egg
50g caster sugar
60g butter
200ml Dilmah Earl Grey brewed tea
50ml milk
Method
1. Mix well all the ingredients together, roll in to 1 inch thickness and use round cutter to obtain scones shape, brush with milk and dust with bit a caster sugar.
2. Bake at 180°c for 12 minutes.
Jam
Ingredients
500g berries
1 lemon, juiced
500g caster sugar
120ml strong brewed Dilmah
Exceptional Berry Sensation tea
1 packet fruit pectin
Method
1. Brew 4 Berry Sensation tea bags in 1 litre of water and reduce it to 120ml.
2. Add all the ingredients and simmer for 1 1/2 hour. Pour into sterilised jar.
Dilmah Earl Grey-Infused Chocolate Truffle
Ingredients:
2/3 cup heavy cream
2 tbsp unsalted butter, cunt into 4 pcs and softened
2 tsp loose Earl Grey Tea leaves
6oz fine quality bittersweet chocolate, chopped
High quality salt flakes, preferably pink salt
Method:
1. Bring the cream and butter to a boil in a small heavy saucepan and stir in Dilmah Earl Grey Tea leaves. Remove from heat and leave to sit for 5 minutes
2. Meanwhile, finely grind chocolate in a food processor and transfer to a bowl. Pour cream through a fine-mesh sieve onto chocolate, pressing on and discarding tea leaves, then whisk until smooth.
3. Cover and chill the ganache for two hours (or until firm)
4. Roll each piece of ganache into a ball and top with sea salt flakes.