Recipe: Steamy London Fog Kid-Friendly Tea

Steamy London Fog Kid-Friendly Tea

Happy & Healthy Cooking,

Fun-Da-Mentals Kitchen Skills

• measure :

  to calculate the specific amount of an ingredient required using a measuring tool (like measuring cups or spoons).

• pour :

  to cause liquid, granules, or powder to stream from one container into another.

• simmer :

  to cook a food gently, usually in a liquid, until softened.

• whisk :

  to beat or stir ingredients vigorously with a fork or whisk to mix, blend, or incorporate air.

History of Earl Grey Tea!

• The distinct taste of Earl Grey black tea is due to the addition of bergamot, a variety of orange native to southern Italy. Bergamot was first added to black tea in England in the 1820s to imitate highly expensive teas from China.
• Earl Grey is thought to be named after Charles Grey, 2nd Earl Grey, British Prime Minister in the 1830s.
• As legend tells it, one of Lord Grey's men saved the son of a Chinese Mandarin from drowning, and the father was so grateful he presented the tea blend to the Earl. However, other stories say that Lord Grey never set foot in China and that the use of bergamot oil was not known yet in China. Twinings Tea alludes to a version of the tale, proclaiming the tea as "having been presented by an envoy on his return from China."
• A blend of black tea, orange peel, lemon peel, and other citrus flavors is trademarked by Twinings as Lady Grey black tea.
• A "London fog" drink consists of Earl Grey tea, steamed milk, vanilla extract, and sugar (or vanilla syrup). Mary Loria invented the drink in Vancouver, Canada, in the 1990s, although she didn't name it. The name's origin is unknown, but it probably came from Earl Grey tea's association with England, London's fog, and the "foggy" steamed milk added to it.

Let's learn about England!

• England is ruled by a Monarch, a Prime Minister, and a Parliament. Windsor Castle is the oldest royal castle in the world that is still being used by the royal family.
• England is on the island of Great Britain, along with Wales and Scotland. It is also part of the United Kingdom, which consists of those three countries and Northern Ireland. 
• Did you know that there's no place in the UK that is more than 70 miles from the sea?! 
• Stonehenge is a construction of immense stones that the early inhabitants of what's now Wiltshire, England, began building around 3100 BCE. The final sections were completed around 1600 BCE. Scientists are still not sure how or why they built it. One theory for its purpose is an astronomical observatory. It is very popular with tourists.
• Other popular tourist spots in England include the Tower of London, Buckingham Palace, Windsor Castle, Westminster Abbey, Big Ben and Parliament (Palace of Westminster), the Roman Baths and the city of Bath, and the Lake District.  
• London, the capital city, wasn't always called that. In the past, its name was Londonium.
• England took part in the briefest war in history. They fought Zanzibar in 1896, and Zanzibar surrendered after just 38 minutes!
• There have been several influential English authors, but perhaps the most well-known is William Shakespeare, who wrote classics such as Romeo and Juliet, Macbeth, and Hamlet.
• English computer scientist Tim Berners-Lee is credited with inventing the World Wide Web.
• The British really like their sandwiches—they eat almost 11.5 billion a year!

What's It Like to Be a Kid in England?

• Most schools in England require students to wear a school uniform. 
• Sports kids play include football (soccer), cricket, rugby, tennis, netball (similar to basketball), and rounders (similar to baseball). They also play video games, watch the telly, and ride bikes or skateboards.
• Boxing Day is a unique holiday kids celebrate in England the day after Christmas, December 26. The official public holiday is the first weekday after Christmas if Boxing Day falls on a weekend. When the English created the holiday, it was the day to share the contents of alms boxes with the poor. Today, it is mostly a day off from school and work, although some small gifts may be given out to family and employees, or collected to give to the poor.
• English kids may have different names for everyday items also found in the United States. For example, a kid will call his mom "mum." Their backyard is a "garden." A big truck is called a "lorry," and the trunk of a car is a "boot." Biscuits in the US are closest to the British "scones," and cookies in England are "biscuits." A TV is usually called a "telly." Bags of chips are referred to as bags of "crisps." French fries, like those from a fast-food hamburger place, might be called "fries," but if they are thicker, like the ones typically served with batter-fried fish, they're called "chips" (fish and chips). Finally, kids call the fish sticks they might have for lunch "fish fingers.