Hey y’all! I hope that everyone is doing well.
I thought I’d share a tea that I’ve been drinking since the summer of 2011. What 2011?!! This is 2013! I was reminded by a post from a wonderful friend of mine and health blogger Evelyn Parham last year I believe. Yeah, I’ve been holding out on y’all. Charge it to my head and not my heart as I really did forget to post about it.
So what’s in this tea? Here’s the rundown:
- Hibiscus Flower
- Elderberries
Ripe elderberries (Sambucus) in Rochester, Minnesota (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
- Elder Flowers
- Nettle
- Oatstraw Tops
- Lemon Balm
English: lemon balm officalis saint andrews sewanee school herb garden (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
- Red Clover Tops
Red Clover (Photo credit: MFCarter)
- Red Raspberry Leaf (I’ve been out of this for a while)
All are dried herbs except for the Lemon Balm which I have growing in a pot on my deck. If you’ve read some of my posts, you’ll notice that some of the herbs listed are herbs I use in my herbal hair concoctions. Yes, the very same herbs.
I put the herbs and water in a pot on low heat for min 30 min, sometimes longer. Now y’all know I’m not a stickler on measurements but I use the same spoon which is a little bigger than a teaspoon. I put in 4 parts (my teaspoon) of hibiscus, elderberries, and nettle, 3 parts of everything else and a few leaves of Lemon Balm. I let the pot cool down and place it in the fridge, straining the plant material out in the next day or two. The boiler that I use yields about 40 ounces of tea.
The elderberries have some sweetness to them so the tea is sweet enough for me therefore I don’t add anything like honey, agave etc. And of course I drink this as my cold beverage.
What herbal teas are you guys drinking?
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CeraIsis 
I grow my own herbs also. I love peppermint tea.
What other herbs are you growing and are they in regular beds or pots?
I love elderberries. I keep them in my pantry since they are great during cold and flu season. I just got some red raspberry leaf since it is good for female reproductive organs.
I’ve got to resupply my herbs. Been out of raspberry leaf for awhile. How do you use the elderberries?