teapigs - Video Roundup

If you haven't been watching my recent videos on YouTube, you may not be aware of how generous the people at teapigs have been with me! They've been kind enough to send me tea to make videos on and give my opinions about it!

I received a Chai, Chilli Chai, Peppermint and Licorice, Lemon and Ginger and their new Matcha drinks! I can't believe how kind they have been!

It's not just me who benefits though, you all do too! If you use the voucher code "craft" in the promo code box when buying your tea, before the end of August 2014, you will receive a whopping 10% off!! Such generosity! http://teapigs.co.uk

Here's a recap of the videos that I've filmed so far, featuring teapigs tea.

First of all, I made chai cupcakes! These were delicious and had the gorgeous taste that the blended spices of chai provides.

My next video was showing how to make iced tea, using the Lemon and Ginger tea. It's so simple to make iced tea, and it's perfect for those (rare) hot days. I also made iced tea using the Licorice and Peppermint tea.

Finally (for the moment) I filmed a tea review for the matcha drinks. I did tea reviews on my old YouTube channel, but enjoyed making and filming them so much, I decided to transfer them over!

Be sure to head on over to http://teapigs.co.uk and check out their range of teas! They have everything for any mood or feeling. (They also make great gifts for tea-lovers ;) )

Chocolate Chunk Shortbread Recipe

So Sunday was stocktake day at the shop I work in. I work in a bead shop so this involves a lot of concentrating, counting and weighing. We knew it was going to be a long day, so it only made sense that cake should be there too!

My contribution to the sweet treats were some delicious chocolate chunk shortbread, which were cut out into adorable teapot shapes! (How cute is my crockery btw??)

To make, these cute shortbreads, you will need:
225g unsalted butter
110g caster sugar
110g corn flour
225g plain flour
1 pinch of salt
50g dark chocolate
50 milk chocolate


Method:

1) Line your baking trays, either with baking paper or grease with butter.

2) Whisk together the butter and caster sugar until the colour is a pale yellow. This should take a couple of minutes. Don't forget to scrape down the sides of your bowl with the spatula! Sift in the flour, corn flour and pinch of salt into the butter/sugar mixture and mix until combined. I found a wooden spoon easiest for this as corn flour will fluff up and go everywhere...

3) Cut your chocolate into chunks and add to the mixture. If you'd prefer to use pre-chunked chocolate or choc chips, that's also fine! Mix the chocolate in well.Bring the dough together and put it onto some baking paper. Put another piece of baking paper on top and roll out the dough until it is about 1cm thick. The baking paper will stop the dough sticking to your rolling pin!

4) Cut out the biscuits into the shape you want and pop them onto the lined baking tray. After you have cut all your shapes out, put them into the fridge for 30 minutes while your oven is preheating to 170 degrees celcius.

5) Put the biscuits into the oven for 20 minutes, or until the edges are golden brown in colour. Everyone's ovens are different so you may want to check frequently.

6) After cooking, leave the biscuits on the baking tray for a couple of minutes to cool before transferring to a wire cooling rack. I personally made a small tray out of foil to put until my cooling rack. This is because you now want to sprinkle sugar on top of the biscuits, and sugar will go everywhere unless it's contained! Then you're finished :)

Exploring Etsy: Tea Party!

For those of you who know me, you will know about my obsession with tea! I love the whole idea of a tea party, from the tea cups, to the little cakes. It just makes me happy thinking about it!

I know it's still January so an outdoor tea party isn't likely to happen for a few months, but that doesn't mean I can't indulge in a little indoor tea party! This EE will be looking at all the tea-related items that can be found on Etsy!

I suppose there's no point having a tea party if the tea isn't going to taste nice! Letteredandlined have made an amazing print to stop that problem! The teabags explain what temperature the water should be and how long the tea should be steeped for! This print is £14.67 and can be found here.

Oh if only I knew how to embroider! It would be amazing to make these! If you're fortunate enough to have this skill, Bumpkin has uploaded the PDF of  these three embroidery patterns! I love the stack of teacups :) £7.62 for the patterns for these three prints and they can be found here.

Can't bear to be too far from your favourite teas? Well eljahb has got that problem sorted for you! She has designed these cute teabag holders so you can take up to 4 teabags with you wherever you go! They're made to order therefore you can choose your fabric :) These delights are only £4.99 and can be found here.

Teaspoonsf has put together this amazing kit to make delicious teabag-shaped biscuits! I love this idea :) It would be great to make Earl Grey flavoured biscuits with this biscuit cutter! Definitely something I'm going to have to invest in... This kit is £8.43 and can be purchased here.

You know that I like my hair accessories, and what better than a teabag hair clip! PopandMoo have truly thought of everything here. Look at its cute, smily face :) This hair clip is on a barrette clip, which will be very secure in your hair. This little guy costs only £5.12 and can be found here.
 

Every tea party needs decoration! To be honest, this would be right at home in my kitchen. NerdThatDraws has crafted this amazing garland using card and vintage fabrics to give it a lovely, homely feel. This garland is £10 and can be bought here.

Do you have little ones who want to join in the fun? Dearmykids has kindly put up a PDF pattern to make this adorable teaset from felt, which even includes little sugar cubes! Because you have the pattern, you could make the teaset in your child's favourite colours! The pattern is £3.75 and can be downloaded from here.

This teapot isn't as cutesy as the other things I have posted! Bycandlelight27 has handpainted this amazing skull design onto a teapot. Perfect for the skull-lovers who also love a cuppa! There are also teacups available in the skull design, so you can have a matching set. The teapot is £16.00 and can be found here.

What's the point in having a teapot if the tea in it is just going to get cold? SimplyWestCoast has knitted this amazing tea cosy with gorgeous felt sheep appliquéd to the front! The tea cosy is made to order and will fit a one or two cup teapot. The tea cosy is £18.73 and can be found here.

FlyingSquirrelNest has created this gorgeous 3-tier cake (or biscuit!) stand using plates and saucers. A very creative way of recycling unused crockery! I love the colours and design of this stand, although there are plenty more to choose from in the shop! This cake stand is £31.85 and can be bought here.

So that's it for this EE! I hope that you enjoyed looking at all the tea-related goodies I found! No doubt I'll have another tea-themed Exploring Etsy in the future! There are so many amazing items on Etsy!