Peach Iced Tea

When I was in Tokyo I fell in love with peach iced green tea (well at least it tasted peach) it was lovely, so refreshing and tasty - but sadly it is not something served in our coffee shops and I have spent several years on a mission to reproduce it. Green tea is easy enough to come across as is fruit flavoured teas but nothing compares to the taste I was searching for.

So then I tried adding flavoured syrups - the kind of thing you put in coffee - nearly there but no cigar so it is time to try making my own syrup - there are some ideas on the internet but here is the one I have made

Ingredients:
1lb of fruit of your choice - I have used peach and apricot - stone removed and cut into chunks
1lb sugar
1 1/2 litre of water

Place the fruit in a large bowl and place in the microwave for 1 minute - at 20 sec intervals - this will help the juices to release.

Place the water and sugar into a heavy bottom pan and heat gently until the sugar has melted, bring to the boil and remove from the heat. Carefully pour over the fruit and cover with clingfilm. Leave for at least 1 hour. The longer you leave it the stronger the taste.




Once you have reached your prefered strength drain your syrup into the pan and discard the fruit (or eat with ice cream yum!)

Bring the syrup back to a boil for five minutes

Allow to cool and then bottle - store in the fridge


Boil kettle and brew some green tea - allow to seep for 1 hour
Allow to cool and refridgerate.

Combine a cup of the cold tea with 1/4 cup crushed ice and as much syrup as you would use to make a glass of cordial (more or less to taste as it is very sweet)

Blend well and enjoy - when you first blend it, it will turn white - allow to settle for a few minutes until it looks like a pint of shandy!!

Cheese and Tomato Eggy bites

Lunch/Breakfast on the run is a problem most of us face in our busy lives and I have been experimenting with my pastry free quiche to make a tiny version which I can put in hubby's lunch box or grab on my way out of the door - these are the result - you can put anything in them - just like the quiche - these ones are cheese and tomato and come out at 25 calories each and will live in the fridge quite happily for a couple of days - they taste great hot or cold!

Ingredients - make 12 in a little muffin tray
3 eggs
20g low fat grated cheese
60ml water (1/4 cup)
4 cherry tomatoes - sliced into 3
fresh herbs/salt/pepper

Grease the mini muffin tray and preheat the oven to 150C.




Whisk together the eggs and water and add in the herbs and salt and pepper - mix well
Divide the mix between the muffin tray - evenly in each one.
Place a slice of cherry tomato into the centre of each one
Divide the cheese between them

Put in the oven and cook for 10 - 12 minutes until set.

When you take them out they will be puffed up but as soon as you take them out they will shrink and flop - they are meant to do this.

Allow to cool in the muffin tray before running a knife round them and removing each bite - allow to cool fully and then put in the fridge or eat warm!