Review of Terra Coffee and Tea

Perfect way to start your day or get through a long afternoon!

Terra Coffee

When Terra Coffee asked if they could send me a sample of there coffee and tea, I was excited - coffee is one thing I just couldn't live without and my kids love herbal teas! I was even more excited when I opened the box - it was chock full of coffee, teas, and cocoa and hot chocolate. Over the past month, we've had a great time brewing and drinking all of the products.

There are so many great things to say about the company and its products.

The Company

Let's start with the company - Terra Coffee. It's Canadian! Based in Montreal, Terra Coffee roasts it's coffee beans to their own exact standards. In fact, over their 30 year history, they have created their own roasting method known as Torréfaction Artisanale Granito (T.A.G). It ensures that their beans are never be under or over-roasted and that the beans' "sugars have been fully caramelized in order to create the most body as well as deliver rich flavour notes."

I also love, love , love that they believe in giving back and being socially responsible to the communities and farmers where they buy their beans through the Humaniterra Foundation.

Coffee

Terra coffee have a variety of blends and single source coffees available. You can buy them online by the bean or ground. Over the past month we've enjoyed Terra's Gran Riserva - Cuba Caracolillo and Terra Classica - Le Montreal.

Gran Riserva is part of their exclusive estate, single origin coffees selected by their own Master Roaster. Cuba Caracolillo is described as "highly intense aroma with a delicate sweetness and unmistakable hint of chocolate." We found it to be our go to morning coffee - it's rich and full bodied - a perfect way to start a busy day.

We also enjoyed Le Montreal - a blend of beans from South America, Asia and Indonesia that are roasted in small batches. I prefer this blend in the afternoon - it's a bit earthy and still rich - a perfect pick me up to ensure you get through those long afternoon meetings!

Tea

The tea samples were abundant and included:

• Bursting Berries from their Spa Collection
• Vanilla and Pear White Tea
• Lemon Citrus Green Tea
• Moroccan Mint
• Masala Chai

Their Ariel line of teas is huge and available in loose leaf and biodegradable pyramid-shaped tea bags. A portion of their tea sales also go to charity.

Our favorite by far was Bursting Berries from the Spa collection which is caffeine free an dmade from herbs, spices and fruits. Bursting Berries is a fruit infusion of dried elderberries, raspberries and other mountain berries. This tea is so fruity, fresh and sweet - no bitter notes at all.  We had it hot and made another batch cold. It's now the kids favorite tea! I foresee us making this as an iced tea throughout the summer months.

Bursting Berries from the Spa Collection

We weren't big fans of the vanilla pear tea but a friend loved it so we sent it home with her. I think that's the great thing about this line of teas - there is something for everyone.

Vanilla and Pear White Tea - something for everyone.

Hot Chocolate and Cocoa

This brings us to the cocoa and hot chocolate. The hot chocolate is rich and chocolaty - perfect on a cold wintry day - especially when topped with a hand full of marshmallows.

This dutch processed cocoa is 100% organic, dark, and rich. Do you know what the difference is between dutch processed and natural cocoa? Dutch process cocoa is bathed in a potassium carbonate solution to neutral cocoa acidity. Dutch process cocoa usually has a pH level of 7 (same as water) vs natural processed cocoa that has a pH level of 5 or 6. Natural cocoa has a sharper flavour. Due to the neutrality of the dutch processed cocoa, it doesn't react to alkaline leaveners like baking soda. As a result baking powder is m ore common in recipes using this type of cocoa.

I've used the cocoa in my favorite brownie recipe with lovely results - deep, dark, fudgy.

If, like me, you live no where near Montreal don't despair - they deliver! If you sign up for their newsletter you will receive 25% off your first order.

*I was not financially compensated for this post. I received a sample for review purposes. The opinions are completely my own.

Cardamom Vanilla Tea

So simple, so good.

A former work colleague of mine would occasionally bring a cup of this delicious tea into work for me. Her husband makes her a cup every morning!

Makes 2 cups of tea.

Ingredients

1.5 cups water
1 cup milk
2 black tea bags
2-3 cardamom pods
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 vanilla bean pod

Instructions

1. Add all ingredients to a small sauce pan.
2. Simmer for 20 – 30 mins. 
3. Remove tea bags and pods.
4. You can also add a little bit of fresh ginger if desired. Enjoy!

Orange Spiced Tea Poppy Seed Loaf with OJ Glaze

I drink coffee. A lot of coffee. For the most part, I only drink tea if I'm feeling sick or my mom is in town. But baking with tea is something different - I love it. I didn't really think about it until I attended the IFBC 2014 in Seattle last September. There, I attended a session led by Cindi Bigelow, President & CEO of Bigelow Tea. I learned an amazing amount of facts and information about tea. We also tasted amazing baked goods with tea as a main ingredient. This what inspired this loaf. Bonus: My kids loved it!

Brush with tea glaze - poke holes in top of loaf to ensure maximum tea flavour.

Brush or pour the glaze on the loaf once loaf has cooled.

Let sit for at least 30 minutes to dry slightly.

Ingredients

Tea:

3 bags orange and spice tea

1 -1/4 c  boiling water

Loaf:

1½ cups flour

2 tsp baking powder

½ tsp salt

1 tsp cinnamon

3 Tbsp poppyseeds

3/4 cup plain yogurt

¼ c steeped orange and spice tea

1 cup sugar

3 eggs

2 tsp orange zest

½ tsp vanilla

½ cup vegetable oil

Orange Tea Syrup:

1 cup orange and spice tea

1 cup granulated sugar

Glaze:

1 cup icing sugar

1 Tbsp orange juice

1 tsp pure orange flavoring (optional)

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350°. Spray a 9x5 loaf pan with baking spray.

Tea

1. Steep 3 tea bags in boiled water.
2. Let steep 10 minutes.
3. Discards tea bags and let tea cool.

Syrup

1. Make orange syrup by placing 1 cup tea and 1 cup sugar in blender. Blend for 1 minute.
2. Set aside. Can be made ahead of time.

Loaf

1. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, salt and poppy seeds; set aside.
2. In a large bowl, whisk together yogurt and tea.
3. Add eggs and whisk until combined.
4. Add sugar, zest, vanilla and vegetable oil and whisk until combined.
5. Add in dry ingredients and stir until just combined.
6. Pour batter into prepared pan and bake for about 1 hour until a toothpick inserted into the centre comes out clean.
7. Let cool 10 minutes in the pan.
8. Poke holes over top of loaf.
9. Brush syrup over orange poppy seed loaf.
10. Wait 10 minutes and brush with more syrup. (you’ll have extra syrup – just refrigerate for future use)
11. Cool loaf completely.
12. Create glaze by whisking together icing sugar, orange juice and orange flavoring.
13. Gently pour glaze over loaf, let set till crust forms on glaze, about 30 minutes.