Lap Pat Dok ( Tea Leaf Salad)

“ I don’t think Burmese Food is a good idea.” -Is what the Tea Drinker moaned to me this morning, as he was lying in bed. That’s what he thinks- I had it all planned out. The “good idea” was already in my head, and I was eager to hit the road to Mingalaba Restaurant in Burlingame. The night before at a wine tasting I met a young couple who were vegetarian, and ate mostly ethnic food. Of course, I inquired of their favorite restaurants in the area. They immediately told me about Mingalaba. I asked them to write it down, since to me it sounded like- “Mama Mia”, and I was pretty sure that was not a Burmese restaurant.

We headed out, and using my nifty i-phone, I rattled the menu off to Dan while he was driving. “Don’t worry, we can order light”. “Look, they have Green Papaya salad”, and then, I sealed the deal with Lap Pat Dok (tea leaf salad). Whew. I was getting worried, that we would end up somewhere safe, like a café shop- sipping lattes, and eating west coast bagels. Enjoying a Tea Leaf Salad sounded like an adventure, and could surely transport us to another culture.

Burma, currently called Myanmar, shares borders with India, China, Laos, and Thailand. Burmese food pulls from each one of these culinary havens, bringing together a wonderful array of spices, and ingredients. Lap Pat Dok is a salad that is centered around Burmese tea leaves. Tea is not only drunk in Burma, it’s also eaten!

The tea is fermented or pickled, and the appearance is almost similar to a pesto or paste. The Lap Pat Dok is typically prepared table side by your server. With the Burmese tea leaves in the center of the plate, our server pointed out the other ingredients: tomatoes, green cabbage, dried grounded shrimp, fried garlic, sesame seeds, peanuts, split yellow peas, and chiles. She then proceeded to squeeze fresh lemon juice onto the leaves, and fold in the array of ingredients creating a delicious and delightful salad. It was a wonderful mixture of tangy citrus, highlighted by crunchy treats. We backed the salad up with House Special Noodles. One of the restaurants popular dishes- flat noodles that tasted homemade and melted in your mouth tossed with coconut chicken, shredded lime leaves, yellow peas ground to a fine powder, topped off with a combination of onions and thin noodles that were fried. Need I say more?

I would love to prepare Lap Pat Dok at home. Not sure, where I would find Burmese tea leaves, or how one would go about pickling their tea leaves. Maybe a vodka party? Okay, sorry. I am giddy from the all that caffeine in the salad. In any case, I have the Tea Drinker on the project.

Enjoy more Ethnic Food...

P.S.

By the way, the reason behind why the Tea Drinker felt that Burmese food was not a good idea was because he was still reeling from a food hangover. The night before after my wine seminar, we had dinner at the Ritz Carlton Half Moon Bay. No Burmese food in sight, but a setting along the coast backed by a multi-course meal perfectly paired with a different wine for each course. Dan’s menu consisted of an appetizer of Dungeness crab salad mixed with avocado cream, mid-course of glazed pork belly accompanied by creamy polenta, onto a very filling main course of braised short ribs alongside pureed Yukon gold potatoes and rainbow cauliflower. Dessert was chocolate upon chocolate. The wines consisted of a Pinot blanc from Alsace, a Crozes-Hermitage, a lovely Syrah based wine from the Northern Rhone, and a Banylus, a fortified French wine. Now, you can see why I had to work my magic to get Dan to go to out for Burmese food. He thinks that the tea business is exhausting, try peddling wine!

Honey, I am home!

Hello, and greetings from the road! I am in Orchard Park, NY, and am taking a "bye-week"- I believe that is a Football term?! Appropriate, since I am in the hometown of the Buffalo Bills. In any case, I am taking a pass on posting something brilliant today. The picture to the left was emailed to me by the Tea Drinker. Apparently, we have some visitors at our home in Napa Valley. Is Dan trying to tell me something? Is he now in the honey business, too? Well, it would be a perfect match with http://www.drinktheleaf.com/ teas. Stay tuned, as I may post later this week- Oh, the suspense!

How to Grill a Whole Fish, or Not

The Tea Drinker was quite adventurous this weekend. He began Saturday as suspected by making me a wonderful robust cup of Vithankande tea, and then he announced that he was willing to join me and 30 other campers for an early morning Boot Camp class. We ran, skipped, lunged, leaped, and shuffled our way to health. It’s a mysterious thing after boot camp, you are immediately energized, and feel like you can face the day, and tackle anything. That is until this feeling of "super human" powers wears off later, and you’re staring at your half-eaten meal. Now wait a minute, I am getting ahead of myself...

After Boot Camp, we trooped off to Model Bakery. Doesn't everyone reward themselves after strenuous exercise with homemade English muffins right out of the oven, slathered in butter, and apricot jam? No? Well, we do. It was the weekend, after all. We were headed home for a day packed with house cleaning, yard work, and menu planning for Easter, until the Tea Drinker declared that we were going to grill a whole fish! The euphoria was definitely running high. It sounded exciting to me. I was game. So, we set off to Whole Foods.

How hard can it be to grill a Whole Fish? Put it this way, we should have started with smelt, or maybe miniature sardines from Monterey bay. At Whole Foods, we talked to the fishmonger, and decided on a 3 pound black cod, gutted, and scaled. We put a few other things in our basket, such as broccoli rabe, olives, lemons, fontina cheese, Italian Peasant bread, and a nice Italian white wine. We had a theme, and we were running with it!

We started the evening by enjoying a watered down version of a Negroni, a refreshing Italian cocktail that consists of gin, campari, sweet vermouth, and lots of soda water. Next up, we steamed the broccoli rabe, then chopped the florets and stalks, tossed with fresh garlic, olive oil, dried oregano, and a splash of red wine vinegar. With grilled slices of the fresh peasant bread in hand, we topped it with the broccoli rabe mixture, and grated fontina cheese. This was all enjoyed while sipping a very nice dry Falanghina from the Campania region of Italy.

We pulled out Mario Batali’s – Simple Italian Food. We were off to a roaring start! We lit the grill, poured ourselves another glass of wine, took the fish out of the refrigerator, and then an odd feeling came over me. A daunting feeling, like the first time I cooked a Thanksgiving turkey. We had Mario’s book by our side, and the words jumped off the page at us -“to grill a whole fish requires confidence that only experience can bring….to over cook a whole fish is better than under cooking by a few seconds…” and “practice before serving it to the President’s wife…” Geez, now politics are involved!

Sprinkled only with salt and pepper, and brushed with olive oil, the whole fish went right on to the barbecue. We turned it every 3 to 4 minutes for a total of 14 minutes. We stared in agony as our fish withered, and fell apart before our eyes. The black cod came off the grill undercooked, and had to be finished in the oven under the broiler. Oh, heck. It did not look appetizing, and our confidence waned. So, we abadonded the grill, and dived into Kara’s Cupcakes, instead. Its at this point that the Tea Drinker decided to work off his sugar high by demonstrating his new found Boot Camp move- a version of a squat, push up, jump thrust into the air. Result: a broken big toe. No kidding.

To grill a fish, or not!

What’s all the flutter about Twitter?

That is what I am trying to figure out. So, I just dove in, signed up for a Twitter account, and began “tweeting”. Do I even know what tweeting is? Not really. I owned a parakeet once, but I feel that this may be a bit more profound. It certainly did not stop me from convincing the Tea Drinker to sign up, too. I am fascinated by social networking. There is so much information to be had by using the Internet. My number one goal is to help my husband get Drink the Leaf’s name out there. That’s my role as the Wife of a Tea Drinker!

As Twitter’s website states: “...a service for friends, family, and co-workers to communicate...stay connected...through quick, frequent answers to one simple question: What are you doing?” You have to answer this question in 140 characters or less. I love that. And as you type, the ticker counts down the characters. I love that pressure, too. You better be doing something interesting. Who wants to read that you are doing nothing? Or that you had Eggs Benedict for breakfast. People may want to know where you had those eggs, though.

To offer useful information is even better, yet. This is what sucked me into Twitter. You can follow individuals that have a wealth of knowledge, and the best part is that these people are are willing to share this information. It can also give you the objective to strive for something interesting to talk about -to answer that question-What are you doing???

How can Twitter help your business? The key is to “follow” other user’s tweets, which are text based updates. I typed in “tea”, and hundreds of names popped up, from business owners, organizations, tea enthusiasts, to tea bloggers. A great way to communicate and connect with knowledgeable people that share the same passion as you: loose leaf tea. These short messages are sent to you, and if something catches your eye, you can read that person’s profile, and learn more about them and their business. Reciprocating seems to be the protocol. If you follow someone, they follow you. Celebrities twitter, too. I heard recently that Kirk Douglas ( for crying out loud, he is 92 years old, and is using Twitter) is now using this social media.

Check it out, and sign up to follow us on Twitter. It's free. We promise to bring you interesting, and useful information. Hurry up, and join. There still seems to be plenty of room with only 5 million users tweeting up a storm. Now, that is social networking!

Camellia Sinensis Meets Master Gardener

Spring has arrived, and it’s that time of year when Dan & I stare at our yard, and discuss a game plan for the planting season. We yearn for a great looking yard- one that you can sit back and enjoy at the end of your day with a chilled glass of rosé in hand. Doesn't everyone strive for this? Wine time on the patio is just not the same when you are staring at dead plants, and weeds. A colorful array of plants or a patio that is tidy, gives you a sense of accomplishment. When your outdoor living space is not done, or overgrown, or “hodge podgey”- which is how I describe our yard- you feel frustrated, and grumpy!

This year instead of throwing plants at the yard, seeing what sticks, and what whithers and dies, we hired a Master Gardener to come over for a consultation. At 8am on Saturday morning, the door bell rang. There was Sue- with clip board in hand. My palms began to sweat; I felt like she could see through us, and peer into our souls. Thinking...these people haven't a clue about taking care of plants. But, she opened her mouth, and said, “Hey, you’re the tea man!” Yep, that’s right, we may not know diddly about plants, but we certainly know our Camellia sinensis, Drink the Leaf's mother plant. So, we offered her a cup of one of our best green teas- Organic Lu' An Melon Seed, and set out the front door.

Sue was wonderful. She complimented us on how our yard looked, and told us that the plants that we had were healthy and beautiful. She praised Dan’s pruning abilities. And then, she took out her pencil, tape measure, and got to work. With in an hour, she had helped us design our front and back yard. We will be removing only one plant, and moving two others to a more suited spot. She worked with what we had and inserted her recommendations, which resulted on paper ,a transformed yard, that we could not wait to see. The best part is that she gave us a list of plants that are easy to find at our local nursery, MidCity. I was impressed that Sue rattled off all of the plants by calling them by their Latin name. Thank heavens, she wrote them all down. And gave us a key of where each plant went in the diagram.


We spent the rest of the afternoon, researching our new plants on-line. This week, we hope to head to the nursery to view them in person. Next step, we need to convince someone else to plant them. No kidding, I am not doing yard work. Obviously, this is how we got into this predicament in the first place!

Check out our soon to be new friends in the yard:

Coleonema Pulchrum- An evergreen shrub with soft needles, pink flowers, that sways in the breeze.

Polygala myrtifolia 'Grandiflora' - Sweet Pea Shrub. -An evergreen shrub that grows 5 to 7 feet tall. Perfect for under our dining room window. Rich purple, pink flowers.

Escallonia Compacta- A small shrub with tiny pink flowers. We already have two of these, and we plan to plant a couple more to even out the landscape.

Viburnum Spring Bouquet- showy, clusters of pink and white flowers.

Lamium & Lithodora Ground Cover- Lamium is a low growing, trailing perennial. silvery white leaves, with pink flowers. Lithodora is low growing, with a beautiful contrast of bright blue flowers, and dark green foliage.

Gestrum Nocturnum- Night blooming jasmine. Need I say more? Perfect for under our bedroom window.

Gestrum Elegans- Same thing, but with stunning red flowers.

Sarcoccoca- low growing, with flowers, and stays green all year. This plant will brighten up our garden bed that is the veiw from our kitchen window.

P.S. Another great source and handbook is the trusty Sunset Western Garden Book. Ours is mostly circled and marked with the plants that did not make it through a growing season. Hopefully, we can can turn this book into a celebration of the "living", instead of an homage to all the plants that have been sacrificed in our yard.

Spring into Loose Leaf Green Tea Today!

I am exposed to a lot of teas on a weekly basis. I always seem to dodge green tea. Why is that? Is it because it’s good for me and a healthy substitute to for wine? No, I am assuming it’s because I prefer teas that fall under the following categories: black, brown, golden, earthy, nutty, complex, toasty, smooth, and packed with caffeine. Green tea on the surface seems to be the complete opposite. First of all, it looks green, and smells of freshly cut grass.

Maybe my wine palate has ruined me from enjoying green tea. I seem to have an aversion to red wines that show any “green” characteristics- read: unripe grapes. Maybe this applies to tea, too. However, I do love a nice glass of herbaceous Sauvingnon Blanc, especially if I am slurping down Hog Island Oysters with it. There is hope for me, yet.

It’s time to dispel this “green theory” and call in an expert, my husband, the Tea Drinker. By the way, he is now infamous in our hometown. Spread the word. I asked Dan to put together a tea tasting of his favorite Drink the Leaf loose leaf green teas. Besides, it’s seems to be a fitting time of the year to drink green tea. Spring is here, and with that comes plenty of fresh asparagus, artichokes, and peas which we look forward to this time of the year, anyways.

My Mission: The following teas were blind tasted, and I rated them in order of preference.

1) Curled Dragon Silver Tip, China -$10.50
I love the color of this tea. It just looks fresh, and inviting. The color reminds me of fresh squeezed limes, obviously without the pulp! The infused leaves are gorgeous, and give off a hint of fresh grass. On the palate- honey mingles with bright flavors. This is a lovely tea, and I can't wait to try it again. A fresh start.

2) Organic Lu 'An Melon Seed, China- $7.00

Wow. This tea is almost chartreuse in color! Should make some of my absinthe loving friends happy...Already I am having fun, and I haven't even tried it, yet. The aroma reminds me of cooked green vegetables, such as spinach. The palate is complex, and has weightiness to it. Clean finish, and the green factor on the palate tapers off into a nice buttery finish. Give this one a try.

3) Gyokuro, Japan - $ 10.00
Golden, yellow hue with hint of green. Aromas of fresh plucked spring pea tendrils. Rich flavors on the palate, but not too heavy. More clean and bright. Reminds me of a spring morning after it rains…smooth finish.

4) Kawane Sencha, Japan- $16.00

Lemon/Lime color. Fresh cut grass aromas. Light bodied & delicate. Your mom always told you to eat your vegetables. Have this tea, and you will make your mom proud.

5) Organic Kukicha, Japan- $14.00

Right off the bat, I knew this tea was different, and not like the others. Green/forestry color. The aroma was nutty. The palate was loaded with heavier green flavors, such as broccoli, asparagus, and even root vegetables- turnips. And most surprisingly, its had tannins. A grippy tea! Med- full bodied. Long finish- grassy… acquired taste. I discovered afterwards, that this tea is quite popular. It consists of broken leaves,stems, stalks and twigs- all giving the tea structure and depth of flavor. Venture out and try this.

Disclaimer: The key to enjoying perfectly brewed green tea is water temperature. Do not scald those poor little leaves. Yes, you can burn your tea. Follow the recommend temperatures, and steeping timing is equally important.

Verdict: I stand corrected. Green tea has a lot nuances, and its fun to try something new, and break out of my black tea rut. I learned that the primary difference between green tea and green wine, is that green tea is supposed to be green, through and through! What a relief. I think I can now safely put this hurdle behind me. I can sit back and enjoy a bright green tea packed with flavors of grass, peas, and asparagus, and enjoy it. Except now, I am craving grilled artichokes rubbed with garlic, lemon, olive oil and butter. Best served family style with a whole grain mustard aioli mixed with chopped parsley. Shoot, now I am craving wine again. This mission is turning around...

Find the above teas on-line.

A Tasty Brunch at Brenda's French Soul Food

What an enjoyable weekend, and it’s not over, yet. I am sitting here enjoying a cup of Drink the Leaf Keemun, a tasty, mild, but flavorful rich black tea. Willing myself to get up and go to the grocery store to complete the last item on the list for the “ Surprise Birthday Weekend”: Savory Bread Pudding (see previous post). However, my mind keeps traveling back to the amazing brunch that we had yesterday in the city. We love discovering new restaurants, especially when it’s at the last minute, and recommended by my new nifty device: the I-Phone.

To digress, this I-phone has become my latest obsession. I can talk, type, listen, view, and ignore all at the same time! The free applications are the best, and my favorite is Urbanspoon. Thank you to my dear friend, Pam, for introducing me to this informative tool. The Urbanspoon is an ideal application for any of the following reasons:

1)You are in food freak, and need to find a restaurant ASAP
2)You are lost, and you remember that there was this cool restaurant nearby
3)You are craving Italian, Indian, or whatever you fancy-
4)You want to find out how to get there
5)You are obsessed with researching restaurants
6)You travel frequently, and need to be in the know! The list goes on and on


Back to the brunch. We were in search of finding a restaurant near our hotel, and narrowed our quest by selecting Breakfast/Brunch. Viola! Brenda’s French Soul Food popped up. Three miles from our hotel on Polk St & Eddy- perfect. Urbanspoon also gives the user the ability to rate the restaurant with a simple: Like Or Don’t Like. (91% was the favorable score). Reviews, articles, and menus are also available. We headed out.

Brenda’s is owned by Chef Brenda Buenviaje, a native of New Orleans. This diner totes Creole food “with a French style and New Orleans Soul”. Only open for breakfast and lunch, and with a line out the door. It’s a postage size stamp of place, where we counted about 30 seats total. We put our name on the list – tacked to the outside of the building, and waited. About 30 minutes total. Not bad, because we were rewarded with a very flavorful meal. The menu ranges from Beignets to Fried Oyster Po’Boys. Sitting in this restaurant makes you feel like you stumbled upon something really special, and you can't wait for the chance to tell your friends about it.

We settled on the following:

• 2 cups of Café au Lait
• One Order of Beignets- Traditional- the dough, deep-fried, was hot and moist, with confectioner sugar sprinkled on top.
• Tea Drinker: Croque Monsieur with a side of French Fries: Baked ham, topped with Gruyere, and béchamel sauce on sliced sourdough. A great base for the rest of the day.
• Wife of Tea Drinker: Florentine Eggs Benedict- Today's Special- Oh my. Two perfectly cooked poached eggs with sauteed spinach sitting on homemade “cream” biscuits, all smothered with a delicious Cajun hollandaise sauce. Side of potato hash. Need I say more…Okay, I will. I will be thinking about this hollandaise until I can get back there for more.

Go to this place-you will not be disappointed. Other items that caught our attention were: Crayfish Beignets, Chicken, Sausage, & Okra Gumbo, Bacon & Egg Tartine, and Fried Catfish.

Well, my last sip of Keemun is getting cold. Time to go to the store, or maybe I can convince the Tea Drinker to settle on leftovers- Potato Hash from Brenda’s…..