18 February 2016

Time for Tea with Henrietta Inman

Time for Tea - our regular chat with a fellow foodie.

This month we're delighted to chat to Henrietta Inman, who celebrates the publishing of her fabulous new cookbook Clean Cakes on Thursday 18th February. For some of her delicious recipes try her Chocolate & Hazelnut Torte with Honey Praline Ganache or the Rhubarb & Orange Polenta Cupcakes - all free from gluten, dairy & refined sugar.

What is your favourite tea to set you up for the day first thing in the morning?

detox-herbal-tea-loose-leaf-infusion First thing in the morning, even before tea, I have a glass of water to rehydrate and mug of hot water with lemon, a little apple cider vinegar, a pinch of cayenne and a little turmeric to cleanse my system and wake me up, I love it. With my breakfast, I love having warm water with some slices of fresh lemon, ginger and turmeric. If I have tea, I love Steenbergs’ Detox tea, a beautiful blend of dandelion leaves, fennel, peppermint, red clover and nettle.

What is your favourite tea to relax you in the afternoon?

I love Matcha green tea in the afternoon. It relaxes me but also gives a great energy boost to push me through to the end of the working day.

What do you like best about Steenbergs teas?

I adore Steenbergs teas because you have such an amazing array of them and your herbal infusions are like no other I have ever tasted. In supermarkets, one often finds quite similar blends of herbal teas, but Steenbergs are all so original and always contain those extra special ingredients; take Happiness, for example, you open the packet and you are hit by the most beautiful bright yellow marigold petals, gleaming red pieces of rosehip and shades of green from peppermint, lemon verbena and spearmint… it looks so pretty when it’s being brewed too and it tastes incredible with a delicate and soft floral flavour; it’s very calming and makes me smile as I drink it. One often finds digestive blends with peppermint and liquorice, but Steenbergs add anise seed and orange peel to their Digestive Delight making it so original and very good indeed… they all do what they say on the tin, so to speak, and that’s what I like best about them!

Which Steenbergs tea would you most like to try and why?

New Herbal Tea selection HR With my book coming out on Thursday 18^th February, I’ve had a lot of work on over the last few months with promoting it and building up a buzz. It’s been great and I’m so excited about its release, but after all this work during the day, as well as regular cake orders, I find it quite hard to switch off in the evenings and sometimes when my head hits the pillow it’s still buzzing with thoughts. So I’d love to try Steenbergs’ Dreamtime to help me sleep. As soon as I read the ingredients out to my mother who knows a lot about plants, she said, ‘That will knock you out!’, with St John’s wort, valerian, skullcap and oatstraw to name just a few of the sleep-inducing ingredients! How lovely!

Who would you most like to have a cup of tea with and why?

My granny because she didn’t get to see my book before it was Torte published. I’d like to have a cup of tea with her, I’d make her my hazelnut and chocolate torte, she loved chocolate cakes, and we’d sit, drink, eat and read my book together for the most wonderful afternoon tea party a deux.