Merry Christmas to my favorite bunch of foodies!

This year, I thought I would take our edible gifts into the blogosphere.  I will be making posts on some sibling birthdays, with greetings and recipes to use some of the ingredients provided in your baskets.  And it also gives me a chance to use some of the photos Sam digitized years ago. 

Stay tuned for more recipes and a tour of fashion and haircuts through the years!

Porcini Mushroom Powder

I discovered porcini powder in this yummy recipe.  Here are some simpler uses:

• Mix some into soups or your hamburger patties
• Put some in your scrambled eggs or omelet
• Mix it with coarse sea salt, black pepper, and sugar to make a great dry rub for meat
• Sprinkle it on mashed or roasted potatoes

I will make a post with some other recipes later in the year.

Blackberry Black Tea

This tea has caffeine.  You can brew it by tying it up in a bit of the cheesecloth.  Or you can make a rub for pork or chicken as follows:

• 2 part curry powder
• 1 part  blackberry tea
• 1 part turbinado or other sugar
• 1 part sea salt
• 1/2 part chives or green onions
• 1/2 part  lime zest

Citrus Grove Herbal Tea

I started with some herbal tea from Etsy, and extended it with other teas to bring in some other flavors such as ginger.

To brew it, wrap some in a couple of cheesecloth squares and tie it up with string or a twisty tie.

To cook with it, crumble some as a dry rub for pork, chicken, fish or shrimp.  Or add that to some olive oil and citrus juice or wine, and use it for a marinade.