Angelina's Immune Support Herbal Tea

Every year, in the fall, I make a batch of my favorite herbal tea and thought I'd share it with you.

My kids grew up sipping this tasty brew, occasionally helping me harvest herbs from our garden and now they're grown, they ask me to send them a jar. It really makes my heart happy to continue this tradition. 

I keep the recipe a bit loose, using what I have on hand, adding herbs I've gathered and dried from my garden to some I buy at our local herb shop. I include immune boosting herbs like echinacea, licorice to fight respiratory viruses, throat soothers like slippery elm and marshmallow and chamomile and lavender to calm the nerves and induce restful sleep. Hibiscus petals give it a yummy tang.

This is such an easy recipe! It takes just a few minutes and you don't need to worry about getting the measurements exact. I've used standard English volumes, since that's what most folks have at home- cups, tablespoons, etc.

Play with the recipe, doing taste tests and tweaking it until you love it. *Be sure to record your changes so you can replicate your favorite blend in the future!

Makes about 12 fl oz of tea.

In a medium bowl, add:

• 1/4 c Licorice root (chopped fine) 
• 1/4 c Slippery elm bark
• 1/4 c Lemon Balm leaves
• 1/4 c Lavender buds
• 1/4 c Chamomile flowers
• 2 Tbsp Ashwagandha
• 2 Tbsp Echinacea root (chopped fine)
• 1/2 c Hibiscus petals
• 1/4 c Peppermint leaf (optinal)

Mix them well and store in an airtight jar. Use about 1 tsp per cup of tea. I occasionally add a bit of raw honey when I want it sweeter. If it's earlier in the day, I like to add a few jasmine green tea pearls for a caffeine boost. Emit anything you don't prefer the taste of and add whatever you like. 

Give it a try and let me know what you think in the comments!