Tea Connexions' Ginger Tea is an exceptional blend of Assam leaf tea and natural ginger root. This delectable tea provides relief against throat ailments, general malaise and it also helps ease stomach upset. Please visit Leaftea.com to learn more about our teas.
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 3. The Perfect Cup: 6 Steps to Brewing the Perfect Cup of Tea

Are you daunted by the thought of brewing loose leaf tea? Brewing the perfect cup is ease and simplicity itself:

1. Fill a kettle with cold fresh water.
2. Heat the water until it is almost boiling. At this point the water will be roaring, but not giving off a lot of steam.
3. Preheat your teapot by adding a small amount of boiling water or very hot tap water, swirling, and pouring out through the spout.
4. Place one teaspoon of loose-leaf tea in the teapot, infusing basket, or teaball for every cup of tea. Many people like to add one extra for the pot as well.
5. Pour the water over the tea leaves. Cover the teapot using a tea cozy to help retain heat. Recommended brewing times are included in all our varieties of gourmet teas, but on average 5 minutes will do.
   Note: Refer to the April Issue of Tea4Free News - Teazine for tips on removing caffeine at this point.
6. When using a teapot with infuser basket or teaball simply remove the steeped leaves and pour. If the tea leaves are loose in the teapot, pour through a cup strainer.
   
   **Try adding sugar, honey, milk, cream, or lemon to suit your personal taste.

To submit health news, e-mail us at tea4free@teaconnexions.com.

Smile! And Show Off Those Pearly Whites
Tea is a natural source of fluoride which helps fight plaque. One cup of tea contains 0.3 - 0.5 mg of fluoride. Science and News (July 2001) reported a study that found persons who frequently incorporated tea into their daily routine had an enriched store of fluoride in their plaque.

84% of Dentists attending a conference (Dentists 2000) agreed "patients gain oral benefits" from drinking tea.

The British Dental Association states that in some cases drinking tea may represent up to 70% of a persons daily fluoride intake!

Spice Up Your Health With Ginger
Your Mother Was Right All Along
Ginger is well known for its use in treating nausea and abdominal pain. Rember when you were young and your mother would give you flat Ginger Ale to drink? Ginger contains zingibain which is a more effective digestive enzyme than what occurs naturally in your stomach. Studies have shown that ginger relieved the symptoms in 95% of people who suffered from motion sickness, as well as 75% of those with morning sickness.

Ginger and Inflammation
A clinical study was performed in Denmark that illustrates the effects of ginger on inflammation due to rheumatic arthritis, asthma, menstruation, and migraines. During the trial, 56 patients suffering from these complaints were given fresh or powdered ginger, and more than 75% experienced relief from pain and swelling to varying degrees.

*The active ingredients in ginger remain in your system for several days after ingestion aiding in the absorption and utilization of other nutrients. Plus - ginger has no side effects!
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 5. Taste TEAmptations: Sensational Tea Recipes

* To submit tea recipes, e-mail us.

Spice up your life with these luscious libations and tantalizing treats using our distinct blend of Assam tea leaves and natural ginger root. (And yes, tea is edible, its leaves come from the Camellia sinensis plant.)

Be sure to adjust amounts to suit your taste. We'd love to hear your comments.

GINGER POACHED PEARS

Pears: 4 cups water 4 tsp. Ginger tea 1/2 cup granulated sugar 3 whole cloves 2 cinnamon sticks 4 firm but ripe pears

Caramel Sauce: 1/2 cup granulated sugar 1/4 cup water 1 tsp lemon juice 2 tsp margarine

In medium saucepan, bring water to a boil. Add tea; cover and brew 5 minutes. Remove tea. Stir in sugar, cloves and cinnamon sticks. Simmer, stirring occasionally, 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, keeping pear whole, peel fruit leaving stem intact. Using a melon baller, remove core from underside of pears. Add pears to tea mixture in saucepan and simmer, stirring occasionally for 8-12 minutes or until pears are tender.

To prepare caramel sauce, place sugar, water, and lemon juice in a small saucepan. Set over medium heat, stirring just until sugar dissolves. Continue to cook, swirling pan occasionally until mixture turns a golden caramel colour, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat and carefully stir in 3 tbsp (45 mL) of pear poaching liquid, and margarine.

Cool. To serve, place whole pears on dessert plates and drizzle with caramel sauce.
Makes 4 elegant desserts.
Tip: Combine chilled poaching liquid with carbonated water and pour over ice and lemon slices for a refreshing drink.

GINGER AND LIME LOAF

• 1 cup sugar
• 6 tbsp shortening
• 2 eggs
• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 2 tsp grated lime rind
• 1/2 cup cold, strong Ginger tea
• 1/2 cup chopped toasted almonds
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 2 tbsp lime juice

Cream 1 cup (250 mL) sugar, shortening and egg thoroughly.

Combine flour, baking powder, salt and rind; mix well. Add alternately with cold tea to creamed mixture, starting and ending with flour mixture. Fold in nuts. Turn into greased waxed paper-lined 8 1/2 x 4 1/2-inch (1.5 L) loaf pan. Level top.

Bake at 350ºF (180ºC) for about 1 hour or until cake tester inserted in center comes out clean. Leave in pan.

Heat remaining sugar and lime juice until sugar is dissolved. Pierce loaf all over top with wooden pick. Spoon syrup over bread slowly, letting small amounts sink into loaf before adding more. Cool loaf before removing from pan.

Makes one nutritious loaf.

SPICED ICE TEA
Bring 1/2 cup (125 mL) water, 3/4 cup (175 mL) sugar, 1/4 cup (50 mL) orange juice, 1/4 cup (50 mL) lemon juice, a cinnamon stick and 6 whole cloves to a boil. Remove from heat and let stand 5 minutes.

Use about 1 part spiced syrup with 6 parts strong Ginger tea.

Pour over ice in glasses.
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  6. And you said . . . What Others Are Saying About Our Tea

"Hello, my name is Tina Brown and i just wanted to let you know that I received my tea yesterday, and it is even more beautiful than I expected! I immediately tried the Darjeeling tea and it was the most smooth tasting tea I have ever tasted. Absolutely no bitter taste! I am looking forward to trying All of the teas. Thank you so much again for the tea!"
-- Tina B. of Montclair, California

"I am truly impressed with the way you do business and follow up on even the small orders. The quality of the product speaks for itself. It is a short trip for me to your local distributor in Indianapolis, IN. I will make sure to stop in every time I am in Indianapolis. Needless to say, I recommended your services to all my friends and family."
-- Slawomir G. of Fort Thomas, KY

"Thank you, the person to whom I gave the tea as a gift said that it was excellent."
-- Siddharth C. of Ann Arbor, MI

I just brewed my first batch of your Ginger Tea. I have to be honest, I have never been a fan of ginger tea, but I thought I would give your stuff a try. Most ginger teas are WAY too strong (I think it may be because they use powdered instead of chopped ginger). Your tea, however, has a nice moderate ginger aroma and mild ginger taste that complements the Assam tea. Basically, it's great!
--Paul C. of Saskatoon, SK

* To submit your comments about our tea, e-mail us.
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  7. TEA-mates: Members of the Tea Connexions Buying Group

Tea Connexions is dedicated to providing the highest quality gourmet teas. Packaged beautifully, they make an ideal gift for tea lovers, health enthusiasts, and connoisseurs of fine art. Our mission is to offer you beautifully packaged gourmet teas distributed by an elite group of independent distributors that offer you superior service and exceptional value. Your satisfaction is assured; all of our products carry a 100% money back guarantee

Over 50 distributors look forward to serving your tea and gift giving needs. For an updated list, visit TEA-mates. If a distributor is not in your immediate area, please choose the closest distributor. Please note, this list represents distributors whose online stores are live and active; missing are distributors whose stores are still under construction. To choose your nearest distributor, using a clickable image map, click here.
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  8. Tea Trivia

* To submit tea trivia, e-mail us.

India has approximately one million acres under tea cultivation which supports approximately 14,000 tea estates, with a total work force of about one million people.

Ireland boasts the largest tea consumption in the world per capita.

Your houseplants are also tea-lovers. Tea is full of nutrients that help plants grow, so treat them to a feast today.
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  9. QuoTEAbles: Favorite Tea Quotes
To submit a tea quote, e-mail us.

Whether it's childhood memories of granny's kitchen, mom's healing hands or toasts to success, each month Tea 4 Free News - Teazine features a favorite tea story. We would love to hear your tea stories. If we choose yours, we will send you a FREE carton of Darjeeling tea bags.

To submit a tea story, e-mail us.

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