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Herbal Teas
Kool-Aid, soft drinks, instant tea, pekoe tea, coffee and canned juices are not your only options! Try making unique herbal infusions (herbal teas) that are fun and easy to make as well as extremely inexpensive!
To make tea from leaves: Simply measure 1 tablespoon of leaves for every cup of boiling water. For example, place 4 Tablespoons (1/4 cup) of dried leaves into a quart jar and cover with hot/boiling water. Let steep for approximately 20 minutes and strain. Then you can add your choice of sweeteners, essential oils or extracts. For example, vanilla or almond extract added to tea infused with lavender flowers is delicious. Orange oil orange peals and Nettle leaf, or peppermint oil can be added to a number of different herbal teas.
Double the amount of leaves you use for a stronger tea. Once you have experimented with the teas of your choice you will know which leaves give you a stronger tasting tea and which ones are too light. In addition, do not be afraid to mix herbs and make combination teas. For example: Peppermint lemon balm go well with other more "green tasting" herbal teas because they add nice flavors. Nettle leaf makes the tea darker and stronger tasting (it has more of a black tea taste though it has never been cured), so I often add nettle leaf to alfalfa leaf, oat straw and raspberry leaves. Another combination I like is Chamomile flowers with Catnip leaf and flowers. It is both smooth and relaxing.
To make tea from roots, seeds and inner bark:
As a general rule, use 4 tablespoons (1/4 cup) of chopped, dried root, seeds or bark with 1 ½ quarts of water. You may want to first soak the roots for a few hours prior to heating. After soaking you may want to "wiz" the softened seeds or roots in a blender for a stronger tea. This is not necessary, but it helps to get more of the properties of the herb into the tea. Now, turn on the heat under the pan and bring to a boil. Once the tea is hot enough to boil, turn down the heat to a light simmer and hold it there for 20 minutes. Strain. (you should have about 1 quart of tea after straining).
Almost all herbal leaves and roots can be used in teas. Below are those I personally have used for teas.
Leafs and Flowers:
Alfalfa Leaf - Bergamot Herb - Bilberry Leaf - Boneset herb - Echinacea angustifolia leaf - Echinacea purpurea leaf - Feverfew herb - Gotu kola leaf - Hibiscus flowers - Hyssop herb - Lavender flowers - Lemon Balm - Lemon Verbena - Nettle leaf - Oat straw (green) - Papaya leaf - Peach leaf - Peppermint leaf - Raspberry leaf - Red clover leaf - Sassafras leaf - Senna leaf - Shavegrass - Sheep sorrel - Spearmint leaf - Stevia herb (a little goes a long way with this leaf) - Strawberry leaf - Uva Ursi - Yerba santé leaf
Roots, Seeds and Bark:
Black Haw bark - Burdock root - Astragalus root - Dandelion root - Echinacea Angustifolia root - Echinacea Purpurea root - Ginger root - Hydrangea root - Licorice root - Lemon Peel - Marshmallow root - Nettle root - Orange peel - Pau d' Arco bark - Pleurisy root - Quassia chips - Queen of the meadow root - Rhodiola root - Rhubarb root - Sarsaparilla root - Senna pods - Slipper Elm bark - Yellowdock root
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-- Category Best Sellers --
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Tea, Green, cut, cultivated, 1 lb.
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Tea, Jasmine, cultivated, 1 lb.
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Tea, Irish Breakfast, cultivated, 1 lb.
Price: $12.24
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Tea, Nettles-Clover Herb Plus Bulk, wildcrafted, 1 lb.
Price: $9.50
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How to make Sun Tea:
In most areas of the country, this summer has been too hot to boil water, but it has been great for
making sun tea! You simply steep tea using energy from the sun.
To do so you will want to follow these 7 easy steps:
You will need
- 4 cups of cold water (1 quart)
- 4 tablespoons of tea leaves (Green Tea, Nettles-Clover Plus, Raspberry Plus, etc.) or 5 teaspoons of any variety of black tea (Darjeeling, English Breakfast, Oolong, etc.).
- A wire mesh strainer with small enough mesh to strain out tea leaves or a pasta strainer with cheese cloth.
- A glass jar with fitting lid (1 quart, ½ gallon or gallon depending on how much tea you wish to make) Keep in mind that this tea will not keep in the refrigerator and needs to be consumed within 12 hrs.
Steps
- Wash and sanitize a clear glass container. Sun tea steeps at an ideal temperature for bacterial growth, so it's important to sanitize the container before you start.
- Fill the container with 4 cups of cold, purified water.
- 4 tablespoons of tea leaves (Green Tea, Nettles-Clover Plus, Raspberry Plus, etc.) or 5 teaspoons of any variety of black tea (Darjeeling, English Breakfast, Oolong, etc.). Cover the container securely.
- Place the container in direct sunlight for at least two hours (mid-day is best). Check the tea periodically to see if it's ready.
- Leaving the tea leaves in the tea too long can make the tea taste bitter. Once the tea has reached its maximum darkness and has a nice "tea" flavor it is ready
- Strain the tea leaves. Pour into ice filled glasses. Any natural sweetener, lemon, fresh mint leaves, fresh lemon balm leaves, fruit juice or milk may be added.
- Drink all the tea within 12 hours. Sun tea does not keep well in the refrigerator.
Notes
Some people recommend that you only make sun tea with black such as Oolong tea, Irish Breakfast, English Breakfast, Darjeeling tea, Earl Grey, Jasmine, etc. This is because these teas are processed with heat and contain lower bacterial counts. If you are concerned about bacteria, you may steep tea leaves in the refrigerator, but this will take at least 8 hours to overnight.
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