Getting Back to Basics

Generally the first thing in I consume in the morning and the last thing I consume before bed, is a mug of hot water with a wedge of lemon, a slice of raw ginger, and a fresh sprig of mint.  It's a subtle flavor but very relaxing.  The aroma is organic, if an aroma can be described that way, and the pairing tastes fresh and natural and good for me.  It's a great way to ease my digestive system into the day and a good way to round out its daily working process.  Both mint and ginger are natural digestive aides and lemon, with it's alkaline properties, is good for overall wellness.  You can also try just a mug of hot water with lemon and incorporate the other ingredients when and if you have them.  I personally can never keep enough mint, ginger, and lemon in the house, they have become among my staple purchases.  I also use lemon in my water throughout the day when I can and I always request it at restaurants.  It's amazing how such a little thing can be so good for you and make such a difference in your health and energy.  See what I found:

From www.energiseforlife.com

• Lemons are antiseptic
• Lemon water has excellent digestive properties and can ease heartburn, bloating, and other digestion problems
• Lemon water cleanses and stimulates the liver and kidneys
• Lemon juice has been known to relieve asthma
• Lemon water (hot) offers relief from cold and flu symptoms while providing much needed vitamin C
• Lemon juice is a great skin cleanser

Peppermint Hibiscus Disaster

I recently had a guest for tea and decided to break out the hibiscus.  I really should just go with a trusted stand by for company, but feeling cocky about peppermint and feeling adventurous about the hibiscus, I just kind of went for it.  Hibiscus is a dried flower, similar to jasmine and chamomile, and feeling I'd mastered those, figured hibiscus must be a no-brainer.  Wrong.  I put in about a tablespoon of peppermint (my now go-to dose) and I must've thrown in 8-10 Hibiscus buds.  My little glass pot almost immediately turned a bright shade of red.  This may not have caused such a stir for me had my guest not mentioned earlier that he preferred a mild, lightly steeped tea.  It was very strong and very colorful, but he was a sport and sang its praises like any polite houseguest would and should.  I learned my lesson though; this evening I revamped my recipe using the tablespoon dose of peppermint and 2 hibiscus buds.  MUCH better and even still a little pink.

In retrospect, I suppose I may have done both of us a favor with my full flavored tea.  Apparently, hibiscus has health benefits that aid in lowering blood pressure, lowering cholesterol, and is high in vitamin C and antioxidants.  A study actually found that participants who drank two cups of hibiscus tea a day for a month, successfully lowered their blood pressure.  I wonder how my super steeped brew would hold up to the dose in the study?  

Peppermint Rose

Peppermint is fast becoming among my favorite herbals.  It's such a potent herb that it's been hard not to let it overpower other flavors, but I think tonight I finally got it right.  In experimenting with the rose buds, which are lovely little dried roses, I've found that aside from the pretty color they give the tea and the delicate but almost un-noticeably sweet flavor, I've found it is easily muted by even a little bit of chamomile.  So tonight, I used two heaping tablespoons of rose buds and not even a teaspoon of peppermint.  What I ended up with was a perfect blend of sweet, fragrant, peppermint tea that I am very excited about.  I finished it off with an old bartending trick of a lemon twist so as not let the lemon flavor take hold over the rose.  A lemon twist is made by using just the zest instead of the fruit itself.  I pulled the peel off a slice of lemon and rubbed it around the rim of my glass, then squeezed it into my cup before pouring the tea in over it.  This way I get a little lemon flavor on my lips with each sip and a little more in the tea itself without it being too much.

I'm not familiar with any health benefits of rose tea (not yet anyway), but I have heard of rose oil being used along with intention for opening the heart and its use massaged into the wrist pulse points for relaxation and to relieve anxiety.  You can get small vials of rose oil at Whole Foods, along with lavender oil which is used to help problem skin conditions.

I also found this site today that I'll be reading more into later, it talks about this Canadian company's sustainable tea in Kenya, I found it an interesting read.  http://www.redrosetea.ca

Mint Jasmine

I bought some new tea today!  In keeping with the caffeine free herbals, I bought peppermint, Rose bud, and hibiscus teas to play with.  I bought 3 sizable bags of organic teas for just under $9.00.  I still have a little chamomile, lavender, and jasmine left (this tea lasts such a long time) so I used the last of the Jasmine tonight and crushed it up with the pestle and mortar with about a tablespoon of the new peppermint.  I steeped it for about 5 minutes and am currently sipping my second cup of refreshing, soothing tea.  Sadly, I'm not sure I taste the jasmine, but peppermint is such a powerful, fragrant herb that I'm not sure any other herbal would come out when mixed with it.  Jasmine is such a delicate flavor, it's not much surprise that it's lost against the potent peppermint.

Peppermint, like ginger is used homeopathically to aid in digestion.  It's come to my relief in the past when I've experienced heartburn and indigestion among many other stomach ailments.  It also helps digestion after a big meal.  This is why many restaurants serve mints on your way out, though I'm not sure the sugar helps much.  It's a nice thought though :)

Lavender and Ginger Faux Pas

The other night, in an effort at a break from the usual routine, I made an attempt at a lavender based pot of tea.  You must all realize by now that ginger is my go-to device, so naturally I utilized my fave digestive aid in this pot as well.  What I got was an unsavory looking pot of grayish tea with a bland flavor that left much to be desired.  Apparently lavender herbals are better suited to fill gaps in a blend than to carry the pot.

That being said, I have figured out my "tea for company" recipe and have been getting rave reviews on a particular jasmine ginger blend.  It incorporates a little chamomile as well, so serves well as an after dinner digestive and sleep aid.  It goes a little something like this:

3-4 slices of fresh ginger
approx 1 teaspoon chamomile
approx 2 tablespoons jasmine
squeeze and slice of lemon

Soda Pop Soap Box

A friend of mine posted on facebook today a link about the health concerns associated with drinking soda.  Having given up soda years ago (I honestly can't remember the last time I had a sip outside of some soda water in my cocktail last weekend) I can say I feel better and healthier without the toxic stuff running through my system.  Originally, I cut it out about 6 years ago when I changed over to a gluten free diet because some carmel coloring has gluten in it.  I found an automatic benefit in eliminating soda.  I was less bloated, drank less caffiene, and partook in a fraction of the sugar I'd been previously subjecting myself to.  My stomach thanked me profusely.  I also found that once I was off the stuff for about a week, I stopped craving it.  I have found, many times over, that there aren't many better things you can do for yourself than eliminating sugar and caffiene.  When ingesting sugar you are building up candida, or yeast, in your system and the more yeast grows in your system, the more of the stuff your system wants and craves in order to feed itself and keep growing.  This can cause all kinds of problems, from skin reactions and inflammation to joint tenderness and all kinds of stomach problems.  When you begin to eliminate the sugar from your system, the yeast begins to shrink.  That first week will be tough, but once you get over the hump your body will stop craving it and you'll start to feel like a new, healthier person without many of the problems you may not even have realized you'd developed.  To read a more scientific and specific explanation of this phenomenon, click here.

Lavender, Ginger, & a little Chamomile

Last night, in an attempt to finish out my chamomile kick with a bang, I overdosed on the chamomile with the largest dose to date, 3 tablespoons, lots of ginger as I'm fighting some inflammation with my arthritis and ginger is a natural anti-inflammatory, and a few pinches of jasmine.  It tasted just as you might imagine...it was too much.  So tonight I've reeled it in and taken the pot in an entirely new direction.  Tonight, I made a lavender based tea, 2 tablespoons of lavender, 3 small slices of ginger and 1 teaspoon of chamomile.  I was actually afraid the lavender might be better as part of a blend and that it might not be flavorful enough to carry a full pot.  I was wrong, I LOVE the lavender tea.  I steeped it for about 5 minutes, squeezed a little lemon in the bottom of my mug and served it up.  To myself.  Anyway, the tea I made tonight is delicious, maybe my favorite cup since the first pot of chamomile.  It's light, floral, sweet, and a little citrus hint with the lemon.

Though the herb lavender is generally used for its purpose as a fragrance, I've heard from a few different sources lately that lavender is said to calm frazzled nerves, which is not why I made this pot, but is certainly something I will keep in mind for future use!  I have used lavender oil in the past in lieu of perfume and also to ease irritated skin.  I also read today that lavender can be steeped as if being used for tea and instead cooled and used as a daily rinse to relieve dandruff.  Interessante!

Weekend Tea

This weekend, wanting to be out and about here in Williamsburg with my current literary addition The Omnivore's Dilemna , I stopped in for a mug of tea at The Roebling Tea Room.  It wasn't what I expected, but the place has a great vibe and a large weekend brunch crowd that caters to the hipsters that call Williamsburg home...very similar to the Silver Lake variety which makes for fabulous people watching.  I grabbed a seat at the antique wooden bar and was about to change my mind altogether for a bloody mary, but was convinced by the bartender that they carry amazing tea, so I threw my no-caffeine kick to the wind and ordered a masala chai tea latte.  It was a beer mug full of caffeinated goodness, spicy, and nothing like my past experiences with chai tea lattes from Starbucks which are severely over sugared it turns out.  I did add a little honey, but spent the next hour sipping and reading and listening into the yuppy convos happening around me.  I will admit I came away from that sitting a little jittery and have since sworn back off caffeine, but it was worth it.  The bartender has also convinced me that their herbal teas are also amazing, so I'll head back that way again to try those out and see how they compare to my own.

Tonight I am still experimenting with chamomile and am currently steeping 2 tablespoons of chamomile with a tablespoon of jasmine (I upped the ante on the jasmine tonight adding more than a pinch) and two generous slices of ginger.  I feel like until I come up with an over flavored pot, I'll just keep upping the portions a little each time to see what taste makes me the happiest.  Eventually I promise to give the chamomile a rest for a bit and try a jasmine based pot and then a lavender based pot, but for  now I need to feel like I've come up with a favorite pot of chamomile tea and that means more experimentation.  So far the first pot is the winner....beginners luck perhaps ;)

Chamomile, Ginger, & Lavender

The pre-bagged chamomile will no longer quench my craving, it's official.  I turned my nose up at the opportunity of several bagged or Keurig options for tea today.  I have been craving my own variety of chamomile, which is funny, because I'm usually a Yogi brand lemon ginger tea bag per night kind of girl.  I don't usually mix it up too much, and yet, I'm finding a special kind of creativity for ma petite glass teapot ce soir.

I sent an email to Karen Dunlap, my tea guru today, asking her advice on crushing the floral herbs I've been playing with before steeping them.  She had this to say:

"With delicate flowers, they soften up and give all their flavor by adding water - so there's no real need to grind them."


So tonight, I did not grind my floral bouquet of tea, and have mixed my 2 tablespoons of chamomile with 2 small pinches of lavender and 2 shaved slices of fresh ginger, with the smallest lemon garnish.  This combo has made for a spicy aroma and very mild tea compared to the Yogi brand lemon ginger I'm used to finishing out my day with.  Per Karen's advice, tonight I only let the brew steep for 3-5 minutes, compared to the 10 minutes from last night.  I'm not so sure that I don't like the 10 minute steep better.  After letting my second cup steep a little longer, I'm even happier with the now sweet and tiniest bit spicy flavor.  And at this point, I lifted the top off the pot to smell the floral compote, which was sensational.

In the coming weeks, I have signed up for some free introductory classes to herbal and Ayurvedic health remedies, and have done some brief research on the health benefits of chamomile (by brief I mean internet browsing, I have yet to make great use of my new library card).  I learned a few things and reinforced some things I already knew.  For instance, chamomile tea is often drunk before bedtime as it is said to be beneficial to a more restful sleep.  What I did not know, is that chamomile tea is also said to ease menstrual cramps, tummy aches, and possibly has a place as a mild protection against cancer (nothing specific on that yet).  I also learned that pregnant women should avoid it and that it can cause allergic reactions in some, which I actually already knew having had an ex boyfriend who claimed his lips would swell profusely when coming into contact with it, though never proved it.

So if you're having a hard time falling asleep or sleeping through the night, maybe give my new friend chamomile a try...unless of course you may be pregnant or allergic to it or its relatives ragweed, marigold, or daisies.

Enjoy!

Chamomile and Jasmine

Last week, being new to New York City and looking for new ways to nerd out and fulfill some odd desire to do this, I took a class on making my own tea.  The class was at the New York Open Center with a tea-master named Karen Dunlap, who you can find at karendunlap.org.  I was inspired by her, in that she does what fulfills her spirit and makes her happy and seems to make a good living being a tea consultant, consulting for restaurants and teaching classes in New York.  It also gives her lots of excuses to travel, which who doesn't need an excuse to travel?  Anyhow, she was doing a class on Chai tea, which she described as a contradiction in terms, seeing as in India, Chai actually means tea.  She brought a large pot of water to boiling, crushed up some cinnamon, cardamom, cloves, and pistachios, threw them in with some black tea leaves, strained the tea into a smaller pot, and a few minutes later after adding some almond milk and sugar, we were sipping her delights.  I was inspired again.  I can do this.  I love her idea of building and recognizing the cultures around tea and it's something I fully intend to incorporate into my own life.  So tonight I gave it a go.  I went to a store called Pearl River in New York City, which is SUCH a find.  They carry all kinds of Eastern flavored designs, from clothing, to food, art, candles, plants, fabric, you name it.  Upon Karen's recommendation, I bought a very small, about 2 mugs quantity tea pot with the little mesh basket inside for the leaves.  I'd bought a bag of organic chamomile loose leaf tea at my yoga school a few days before, but at Pearl River also bought some jasmine and lavender at 1.95 and 3.95/ounce respectively.  I've been trying to stay off caffeine, so I picked what I hoped to be gentle, caffeine free options, I'll let you know how sleep goes tonight and decide then if they are actually caffeine free.  Here is what I did to make my first pot of tea (so easy):

Bring a tea pot of water to boil
crush 2 tbsp organic chamomile loose leaf tea in a ceramic masher (like an antique pill crusher bowl)
Added a couple of pinches of loose leaf jasmine tea and crush that with the chamomile
dump those contents into the mesh basket of the teapot
Fill the teapot with the hot water and steep for about 10 minutes and serve with a slice of lemon

I can't even believe how much more enjoyable this is than the regular bagged tea I've been drinking for years. This particular pot has a sweet taste and aromatic scent, just lovely.  More experiments to come!