The reason I love the REPUBLIC of TEA brand so much,  is not just because the variety of flavors, or the high-end quality of the tea itself. Primarily, I am a fan of this brand because of its packaging. The canister of tea itself is a well made cylinder with an air tight lid that is easy to remove and replace without too much pulling or puching. Once, my grandmother was “helping” my 4 year old with an alternate brand of herbal tea, and when the lid FINALLY came off, it was with sufficient force, that the canister flew out of their hands and onto the floor, spilling most of the contents.  This would happen in a similar fashion with most other brands almost each time. This has never happened with any of the REPUBLIC of TEAs. In addition to this, the packaging is decorative enough to be placed on a table with h’ors d’oeuvres-ready for company,

My sister has been on a green tea kick for a while, since she turned 35, and moved to a new house.  I was trying to decide whether to buy her the BONJOUR ZEN TEA KETTLE, or the BONJOUR TEAR DROP KETTLE. The Tear Drop Kettle was a pricier unit, so I assumed it was bigger or more durable; but this is not the case. The ZEN allows you to make up to 42oz of tea, whereas the TEARDROP makes only 27oz at a time. As the product description states the TEARDROP is good for the green tea or white tea enthusiasts as it has a double wall glass design versus the single glass wall design of the ZEN. Also, the design of the tea infuser of the TEARDROP allows the steeping process to maximize retention of the antioxidant properties as well as flavor and color. Even though I really liked the novelty of the ZEN, I decided my sis would appreciate the TEARDROP functionality for her new health kick.

The Fruit Tea Blast is a such a smart product that I don’t know how I ever made fruity drinks without it. These various flavors work well for making fast drinks for sleepovers for my kids, and great mixers for dinner parties. They are made with real juice and green tea. I don’t feel guilty serving them to the kids, as they have a significant amount of Vitamin C in them.  Personally, my favorite is the LEMON. The bottle has a recipe for Granita, but these brilliant drink mixers let you make ANY drink you want in your blender SO easy and fast.

Mom runs a catering business and is always looking products that are fast, easy, delicious and can insure that her signature foods stand out from any other local option her potential customers can find in town.  Also, it is important to find cost-effective ingredients that won’t jack up the catering fees. She does a lot of weddings, luncheons and official meetings. I found the Invisible Chef products on JLHufford’s website and asked her to try them. Initially she employed the assistance my nine-year-old daughter to make the Chocolate Truffle Coffee & Tea Cake  item; which attests to the ease of making. She divided the batter into individual cheesecake pans (about 4” diameter). After cooling, she stacked them two-up , used chocolate-cherry frosting in between and a cherry sauce on top. They were VERY beautiful as the cherry sauce looked striking against the almost black hue of the base.  Tastewise the batter merited a very rich and moist cake. The result was - ultimately – a remarkable addition to the usual dessert fare commercially purchased by the church ladies.

Easy, delicious and cheap- task complete!