I'd like to share with you a cooling tea that is full of health and vitality but before I do, I will share with you a little bit of good advice from a good old friend of mine from Yugoslavia. This particular friend of mine had fond memories of her father preparing Turkish coffee when she was a child. She withheld no secrets, as she was as honest as one could find and told me that the preparation of Turkish coffee required much attention to attain perfection in serving up the thick, sweet concoction. Unattended, coffee would invariably boil over the tiny, long handled copper pot (called a cevze in Turkey) and mess up the stove.
With her recommendation in mind, I've taken that warning as a lesson for me to hold off with that experiment for a while yet. When I am ready to share coffee or Kahve with you, we shall be ready to call upon our gypsy friends to do a little reading of the grinds as well, for that is an art in itself similar to those talented in the reading of tea leaves. Tea is another popular drink in the Middle East and a well known tea blend drunk by Middle Easterners consists of a blend of green tea and spearmint leaves. The tea is should be served very strong and very sweet, or actually syrupy. You can also use honey to sweeten the tea and preferably a honey from a fruit blossom source, such as orange blossom honey. My favorite tea supplier, "Stash Teas", sells this exact blend known as Moroccan Mint. If you are interested in receiving a catalogue, call 1-800-826-4218 or on the web they are at www.stashtea.com.
Well, ladies and gentlemen, here is a drink that will certainly cool and refresh you, but it won't let you suffer a brain freeze or the jitters, as its just a healthy, cooling drink. Put on some soothing Middle Eastern rhythms, take your turbans off, kick off your pointy boots and shed those layers of clothes, then slip into a blissful tub and enjoy yourself today by soaking away the sweat and worries in your private Hamam (Turkish bath), with a glass of Spiced Ayran at your side.
Whisk the yogurt until creamy, then whisk in the water a little at a time. Stir in the cardamom seeds. Serve at room temperature or over ice cubes.
Forever shimmying ~
Xenia Hurrem