What are your favourite homemade tea blends?

Jocelyn Campbell wrote:

Montana Gold-ish
A lovely, warming blend, perfect for fall and winter. Though I actually like it year-round.
Also, I typically do not like rooibos, but I like it in this blend. Somehow, it's just the perfect base for these spices.
Note:  even if you don't like powdered or liquid stevia, you might like the dried *leaf* of stevia in this.

1 cup rooibos
1 cup cinnamon stick pieces (crush or break up cinnamon sticks)
1 tsp ground cloves
3 T. orange peel
1/2 cup stevia leaves

Optional
If adding both lemon flavored items, maybe use the lesser quantity of each.
I forgot to write down my quantities on these, so add to your taste or liking.
2 T. to 1/4 cup lemon grass, optional
2 T. to 1/4 cup lemon balm, optional
1/4 cup nettle, optional

Vida Norris wrote:

Right now I'm drinking nettles, lemon balm and oatstraw.

I love hibiscus, catnip and chamomile for relaxation.

That's cool Matu. I had to look up oatstraw, looks like a really interesting plant! What's the flavour of it like?

So far, and I only started last year, I've made red clover and catnip. I just pinched some and steeped. I can't say I enjoyed either one as a tea especially the catnip to me was undrinkable.

I know what you mean Aaron. I had a similar experience with St. Johns Wort. I harvested a bunch and it smelled soooo good, but when I made it into a tea it didn't taste like much at all. I feel like there must be a way to make it nice though, so have to keep playing with ratios. I haven't tried catnip yet, although I've got it growing in the garden. Will have to harvest that this summer. I did scoop up a bunch of red clover. It was okay, I can see it being really nice with honey.

I tend to just add mint to everything if I have any doubts, since I am a bit of a mint-o-holic and it's an easy win since the strong flavor takes over any not so fun ones.

Vida Norris wrote:

I tend to just add mint to everything if I have any doubts, since I am a bit of a mint-o-holic and it's an easy win since the strong flavor takes over any not so fun ones.

Try licorice root.  It's pleasant tasting, adds a natural sweetness, and imparts a very strong taste.  I usually use it very judiciously for that reason.  A slightly larger amount is guaranteed to dominate any other flavors you might wish to cover up!

Mary Cook wrote:I make a blend I call Hangover Helper, good for belly upsets of any cause: mint, chamomile, fennel seed and lavender. The last is not critical, I include it because of the old notion that it calms "a simmering braine" and sometime migraines are a reason I drink this. The fennel is important, I try to keep a fennel plant going all the time. They are hostile to other plants however, so ideally you keep them outside the garden. You can get a quart of seed off a good one and they are frost tolerant and don';t seem to mind wet or dry periods. If I go to bed with heartburn I might take a pinch of fennel seeds to just chew, never mind brewing tea. It's usually pretty immediately effective. The interesting thing is that all these stomach soothers (including caraway, a fennel relative) are tasty, pleasantly aromatic.

Joy Oasis wrote:
I read somewhere, that it took one lady 14 months of daily 2-3 feverfew leaf eating to fully eliminate migraines, although she could see reduction at a month or two. I never had enough patience to try. Migraine is tricky, you need to start taking things at the first sign of coming migraine. Ifyou happen to be asleep when that happens or do not have herbals with you, you might miss the window of opportunity.

Carla Burke wrote:

I'm not surprised her results were so poor. To make an effective medicinal tea, the ratio recommended (by well- known, highly reputable) clinical herbalists, is 1oz by weight of dried herb, to 1qt of water, at a near-boil, steeped until it cools. Strain, pressing all the liquid out of the herb. To use, drink 1C daily, sweetened with honey, monkfruit, or stevia.

Joy Oasis wrote:Thank you. I have known that 1 ounce dried herb per quart is used for nutritive infusions. But you are saying that it is ok for feverfew, but to drink only 1 cup instead of all four cups, and steep only until it cools instead of overnight. I will have to try that. I think fresh feverfew probably would be more effective for this tea. I find feverfew tincture made with fresh herb also effective (even stopping migraine if started in early satge and taken in teaspoon amounts), just never have enough patience to do it daily. I will try to make tea with dried and fresh separately and see how it goes. Thank you so much.

Carla Burke wrote:

I'm not surprised her results were so poor. To make an effective medicinal tea, the ratio recommended (by well- known, highly reputable) clinical herbalists, is 1oz by weight of dried herb, to 1qt of water, at a near-boil, steeped until it cools. Strain, pressing all the liquid out of the herb. To use, drink 1C daily, sweetened with honey, monkfruit, or stevia.