Cooking with Tea: Techniques and Recipes for Appetizers, Entrees, Desserts, and More

Robert Wemischner has created a cookbook that works. The recipes creatively use tea in an accessible form. This a a worthy successor to his "Vivid Flavors" cookbook. The author takes us beyond the standard fare, but in a way that a reasonable home cook can reproduce.

I am a big fan of tea. I also love meals that are both simple and elegant. I'm not your traditional "homestyle" cook. That said, I also hate fussy, pretentious food that requires a lot of time and fuss in the kitchen. This book was very much what I was looking for. The ideas presented here are flavorful and innovative. The presentations are simple, but lovely. The color photographs are plentiful, and beautiful. There is a photo of every recipe in the book. I don't know about you, but I love to see what the final product looks like. Some of the recipes are easier than others. None of them require hours of work and preparation. Also, some have a short list of ingredients. Finally, there are a variety of ideas here ranging from Asian and Thai inspired dishes to some more "fusion" cuisine. I highly recommend this book to anyone who enjoys cooking and is looking for something "different" but not too complicated.

While many tea cookery books focus on foods to serve with tea, this book shows you how to use tea as a basis for cooking a variety of foods. Beginning with a general introduction of tea, the book goes on to teach the reader about various types of teas, how to brew and store them, and then how to cook with them. This book is great for the newcomer or the experienced tea lover, the professional and not-so-professional cook. With beautiful pictures and recipes like Smoked Chicken Salad with Tea Vinaigrette, Tea Cured Salmon, (my favorite) Spring Rolls with Thai Tea Sauce, Tea Smoked Chicken, Earl Grey Truffles and Chai Ice Cream to whet the appetite, how could you go wrong?