Easy Lentil Soup + A Crispy Ricotta Italian Pastry
PLUS: A green tea that takes like a peach shortbread cookie and a new use for kombucha
Hey there! In this newsletter, I’ll share a tasty Lentil Soup, a deep dive on Sfogliatelle (visit the blog for deets on proper pronunciation), my new favorite tea and some fun food news from around the web.
But first, I want to hear from you! How’s your 2023 going so far?
Lentil Soup for a Long Winter
It’s been a wild winter in California, and there’s little that makes a cold, wet day better than a good cup of soup.
Let’s warm up with this quick and delicious Lentil Soup. Packed with protein and flavor, this has been a go-to weeknight dinner in my house.
Featuring sautéed leeks and onions, this soup gets a quick flavor boost that makes it come together easily. The real secret to any great soup is revealed in the recipe → hint: you can store it on your freezer, and no, it’s not veggie stock.
What is Sfogliatelle?
Italian pastries are one of my favorite areas of pastry to explore. Sfogliatelle are a flaky, sweet, creamy Italian pastry.
Not to be confused with “lobster tails” sfogliatelle are a special treat all their own. Learn their origins, what they taste like and how to make great sfogliatelle at home.
When made right, sfogliatelle crunch wildly when you bite into them, sending a flurry of powdered sugar and flaky crumbs everywhere. The filling is creamy, sweet and lucious in contrast. My favorite sfogliatelle outside of Italy comes from Claro’s Italian Bakery.
Nice Spice: The Best Peach Tea (that tastes like cookies!)
Looking for a great tea to ring in the spring? We found it! This Peach Cookie Genmaicha tastes great when brewed hot but is even better as an iced tea.
Aroma and Flavor This delightful blend smells sweetly of roasted grains, pistachios, and honeyed oats. The flavor is less intense than the aroma, which presents as slightly tart yet sweet with a mellow finish.
Brewing Suggestions Fill 1 tablespoon of tea in a cloth tea bag or mesh basket and place in your favorite mug. Pour 8 ounces of boiling water over the tea and allow to steep for 3-5 minutes or until desired strength is reached. This tea is delightful both hot and over ice.
Ingredients Organic genmaicha (organic green tea and organic brown rice), organic peach fragments, organic sweet cinnamon chips, organic ginger root, organic vanilla flavoring, and organic peach flavoring.
Want to learn more about Genmaicha and other green teas?
Check out the full post on Instagram below.
Food News: From Booch to (Circuit) Boards
Kombucha, a tasty fermented non-alcoholic beverage packed with antioxidants and probiotics, has gained recent recognition as the latest material in creating circuitboards. Yep, you read that right.
A small international team of engineers has been experimenting with using scoby (the starter ferment that creates kombucha) as a surface on which to build circuit boards. It worked so well they published a research paper on it.
Travel Tips: Eco-Friendly Hotels for a Greener Summer Vacation
Summer travel season is just around the corner. If you haven’t made your plans yet, now is a good time to start! Check out this international list of eco-focused, sustainable hotels from Ibiza to Brooklyn.