A few months back the Tea Council of USA awarded 26 year old Los Angeles based film student John Ford $20,000 for this fun video on the health benefits of tea. Out of  700 student entries that’s quite a feat!  Click here to read about it or check out the video. Congrats John!

Spring is right around the corner – at least that’s what the morning talk shows and colorful window displays would have you believe.  The sad reality is that most of the country is still enjoying temperatures in the 30’s, and if you live in Boston like I do, you’re still being subjected to “wintry mixes,” which is the weatherman’s poetic way of saying it will rain/sleet/snow and then rain again, all within a two-hour time period.

There is hope. As the winter wraps up (fingers crossed) both our bodies and our minds could use a good, healthy detox. Epicurious.com offers a wide variety of tea-based recipes that will help us all get our healthy on.

I thought I’d try Brian Preston-Campbell’s recipe for “Liquid Iron,” from his book, Cool Waters: 50 Refreshing, Healthy Homemade Thirst-Quenchers

I have to admit, I was a little intimidated by the name of the drink, but when I learned that cooking leafy green vegetables drains them of the powerhouse combo of iron and calcium, I was sold.  I prefer to enjoy my nutrients in their pure, unadulterated form – no wimpy greens for me, no sir.

The description of the beverage was equally appealing. Brian ensured me that the preparation of the drink would impart “an earthy green flavor that you will surely enjoy.”
Cheers to that.

The list of ingredients was simple (and a bit reminiscent of one of my favorite snacks, Veggie Booty) :

* 2 stalks red Swiss chard, chopped
* 1/4 cup chopped spinach leaves
* 1/4 cup chopped purple kale
* 1 teaspoon loose sencha green tea leaves
* 6 cups still water

I picked up the ingredients on my last trip to the grocery store, carrying them home in my eco-friendly reusable shopping bags while tromping home through a charming wintry mix.

Once home I followed the directions; blending the chard, spinach, kale, and tea leaves with one cup of the water.  Easy enough.  The result was visually disconcerting but looked very, very healthy. I strained the mixture to extract the juice, added the remaining five cups of water, and poured my beverage into a large wine glass over ice (never underestimate presentation – if I had a cocktail umbrella I would have added it too.)

I cautiously took my first sip and found the “earthy green flavor” to be pleasant and subdued.  Maybe it was all in my head but with each subsequent sip I found myself feeling stronger and healthier.  Now if I could just do something about this weather.

Meet Melissa Fielding, Spa Consultant at Creative Spa Concepts.  Melissa works on various spa projects throughout the world.  When she started in the spa industry tea became a small passion of hers.  We spent some time with Melissa getting her advice and feedback on integrating tea with spa programs.

Q: How did you get involved with the spa industry?

A: “My background is mainly in food and beverage.  When I entered into the spa world I noticed that a lot of spas were forgetting to include the food and beverage area as part of the concept and experience.  Tea is an easy affordable way to enhance the area.”

Q: So Melissa what are your top health tips with tea you recommend to your clients Condé Nast spas?
A:Here are my 5 detox and health tips
1.)     Tea is a great source of antioxidants
2.)     Tea is a wonderful appetite appeaser
3.)    The caffeine in tea is much healthier then the caffeine found in other beverages
4.)    Tea can help calm the mind and body after a stressful day
5.)    Tea is not only healthy when you drink it but also has benefits when used in face creams, body lotions, scrubs and wraps.

Q: Discuss the making of their custom Qua Tea Blend at Qua Bath and Spa Caesars Palace Bath.
A: When I was working as the Spa manager at Qua Baths and Spa, Art of Tea and I worked closely together to create the perfect signature blend.  We took all aspects of the spa into consideration, the concept of the spa, the size, the guest experience, the menu of services and the space available.  After looking at all of those aspects, Steve Schwartz, CEO of Art of Tea and I talked about what I wanted the signature blend to taste like. It was important to me that the tea could be served hot or cold and the flavor was so good that it would leave an impression with the guest.  Steve then sent various samples to us and I did tasting with myself and my management team.  I had everyone rate each tea based on look of the loose leaf, smell of the liquor and dry leaf, and most importantly the taste.  After I received the results I went back to Steve and we took the best of all blends to and created the Qua Signature Blend.

Q: What are your core concepts that you would recommend to people wanting to get into or more out of the spa and health industry?

A: As a global spa consultant I believe that serving tea in a spa is a must.  I believe that spa is a sensory experience and you must entice all 5 of your guests’ senses.  Tea is the perfect way to reach your guests sense of taste and smell.  A properly executed tea program can help you stand out in a unique way among the hundreds of spas.  Don’t be afraid to try something completely new and interesting with your tea program.  Have fun with the program and your guests will too.

Here is a great little recipe we adapted from Epicurious.com
Ingredients:
•    3 cups of water
•    2 1/2 tablespoons fine-quality Green Kukicha
•    3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar or 1 cup of Agave Syrup
Preperation:
In a small saucepan bring water to a boil. Add kukicha and remove pan from heat. Cover pan and steep tea 5 minutes. Add sugar or agave, stirring until dissolved, and strain tea through a fine sieve into a bowl. Chill tea, covered, until cold and freeze in an ice-cream maker. Sorbet may be made 1 week ahead.
Notes:
Yield: Makes about 3 cups

Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less but requires additional unattended time.

Share your feedback on making this recipe.

Who is this drinking Art of Tea’s Monks Blend??????
Can you figure it out?? What????
Thats right!! Its Tony Shalhoub the star of Monk and look he is drinking our fabulously rich and delicious black tea.

Why is he drinking Monks Blend?

Although the tea is not named after him or the show Monk, it is a blend of three varieties of select black tea traditionally suffused with special healing prayers to create a fusion from a whole other level!

Art of Tea recently participated in an event to promote the movie FUEL, which has been lauded as “Dynamic and persuasive…a must see, and not just for environmentalists,” by Tom Keogh of the Seattle Times.  The evening, which revolved around all things green, included green carpet arrivals followed by the unveiling of a big green energy bus. Art of Tea was lucky enough to serve up its organic libations with a zojirushi water dispenser fueled by a vegetable oil powered generator. The evening was chilly and our dessert teas helped warm the participants while they enjoyed the movie’s premier, which was shown on a blown up movie screen, also powered by vegi oil. The screening was held at a Conserve Fuel Gas Station, L.A.’s only renewable fuel station. It was an honor to support the film while fueling people with good tea and being a part of this fantastic movement.  We can only hope that this is the beginning of the remarkable things to come in the world of sustainable energy.