Make Your Own Moroccan Mint Tea

 The heat of summer has definitely rolled in here and with that comes the need for a great refreshing drink and Moroccan Mint Tea comes quickly to mind.  Although it's a great 4 season tea, it really comes across best iced in the summer (at least to me!)

When you hear the word "Moroccan," images of a busy and crowded open air market amidst hot temperatures immediately comes to mind.  It's no wonder that spearmint is the refreshment factor in this very famous tea.

 

In North Africa, in Morocco, Algeria and Tunisia specifically, this tea is served all day.  It is considered a drink of hospitality and is served whenever visitors arrive as well as at mealtimes.  Shop owners will greet you with a cup of this tea when you enter their shop.  

 Best of all, this tea is made from very simple and basic ingredients.  I really enjoy using bulk tea for the Gunpowder, but even a green tea bag will work.  You can also use spearmint fresh or dried, depending on what you have on hand.  Again, a spearmint tea bag will suffice if you want to give this a try.  I like using the best ingredients available to get the best flavor, but feel free to experiment.

 To get to the actual preparation, I will give you a recipe by the glass and for a teapot amount.  You'll probably want the teapot version because this tea will be addictive!

By the Cup:

1 tsp of Gunpowder Green loose tea.  (Use a quality green teabag if you don't have the loose tea)
1-2 nice sized sprigs of fresh spearmint. (Use a teaspoon of loose dried spearmint or a teabag of a quality spearmint tea)
1 tsp of sugar (traditionally it's sugar, but you can use Stevia or honey if you like)
1 to 1/2 cups of boiling water (depends on the size of your mug or glass.)

Steep tea leaves, mint and sugar in boiling hot water for 3 minutes.  Gunpowder is a strong tea so if you oversteep it, it can become bitter.  Save these tea leaves for at least one more steeping as well.

To mix the tea, pour into another glass and then pour back into the original glass.  This also aerates the tea.  

Garnish with a sprig of fresh spearmint to serve.  Drink hot (like they do even in summer) or serve over ice for an amazing refreshing drink.

 By the Teapot (1-1/2 quart):


1 Tbsp of Gunpowder Green loose tea.  (Use a quality green teabag if you don't have the loose tea)
4-5 nice sized sprigs of fresh spearmint. (Use a teaspoon of loose dried spearmint or a teabag of a quality spearmint tea)
3-4 Tbsp of sugar

 Steep tea leaves, mint and sugar in boiling hot water for 3 minutes.  Gunpowder is a strong tea so if you oversteep it can become bitter.  Save these tea leaves for at least one more steeping as well.

Pour your first cup of tea out and then back into the teapot to mix and combine well. 

 (If you're feeling very Moroccan, then when you're ready to serve, pour your tea into tall heat resistant glasses and pour from as high as you can manage with out spilling. (Do not hold the glass and place on a tray to catch spillage.)  This will aerate the tea and create a froth on top...yum.  Not a necessary step, but very North African if you're are daring with your tea experiences.)

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Sip, enjoy, repeat.

I make a dry mix for winter use as it's one of our son's favorite teas.  Just a mix of half gunpowder and half spearmint.  Use a tsp and a half or to taste.  Makes a great gift as well.

Two great tastes combine for one amazing refreshing tea.  And of course, this tea is full of health benefits as well.

Thanks for reading...Blessings!



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Make an Herbal Container Tea Garden

Herbal teas; also known as "tisanes" are a must-have for any tea drinker.  But if you live in a small space, you may not realize how easy it is to have a small tea garden with herbs.  Many herbs do quite well in containers and they make a great little display as well.  I like my herbs in containers because I can locate them wherever I want and not have to create an flower bed for them.  I also don't have to weed them either.  

I wouldn't recommend putting all your tea herbs in one small pot.  They will grow into beautiful large plants if you separate them and not stuff them into one spot.  Also, when you grow them all together, the more vigorous plants tend to overtake the smaller ones and you can potentially lose an herb this way. Even though those pots with several kinds of herbs look really cute - if you're growing your plants for harvest, this one pot/many herb method really doesn't work well.

                                             1. Start with the Basics.

There are quite a few herbs to choose for your tea garden and the list goes on and depending on what you like.  The basic herbs you will want to include for sure are the mints and chamomile.  When I started drinking herbals, chamomile was my first tea.  It wasn't my favorite but that was because I was drinking it in tea bags (yuk) and using older flowers from herb shops.  Growing your own is a totally different taste sensation.  The taste is fresher, brighter and all around better.  It easy to grow too.  I started mine in the fall in containers and let it overwinter.  It came up fine on its own and I didn't have to do anything really.  Or you can purchase a few plants to get your garden started.  If you leave a few flowers on the plant toward the end of the season, it will easily self-sow.  Just don't empty out the soil from the container. 

                2. Grow Herbs that Will be the Base Flavor for your Own Tea Blends.

For me that is the mints.  I have been growing two different peppermints as well as spearmint for years in pots.  I have found that the best way to keep the strains and flavor of peppermints pure and contained is to grow them this way.  I have a wonderful chocolate mint and a blue balsam mint.  I also keep the mints flavors intact by keeping them from flowering by keeping the leaves picked.  I harvest the top portion of the stem on each stalk and let them air dry or gently dry them in my dehydrator. 
Growing them in the containers makes it easy for me to keep them harvested regularly than if left in a garden bed where they tend to spread and it becomes easy to let them go.  By regularly harvesting the leaves and not letting them flower, they don't cross pollinate, set seed and produce a new diluted mint flavored plant as my other mints have.  

Growing mints and chamomile gives you two great flavor profiles in which to add in other herbs from the garden.  Especially if you are growing herbs for medicine.  Many of the medicinal herbs are bitter tasting by themselves so it's great to add mint and/or chamomile to flavor your own blend.  They also taste great by themselves.

 

3. There are lots of Herbs to Choose for Your Garden.

Besides the herbs mentioned above, there are some great herbs out there to add to your tea garden.  You can start with a few herbs and add some more each season.  I have grown Pineapple Sage, Lemon Balm, Hyssop and don't forget to add a Stevia plant to your garden.  These can grow in containers well and you can use the leaves fresh or dried to sweeten your teas.  I often add dry stevia leaves to my tea blends to naturally sweeten them.  Be adventurous in your tea herbs too, lemon thyme and lemon basil can be refreshing as a tea too.

                      4. Remember to Feed your Container Herbs and Water 
                                                      Them Regularly.
 
Because these plants are living in pots you need to make sure to use a fish emulsion or other organic food once or twice in the summer.  I find I don't need to do much except water the pots if they look a bit wilt-y.  If the summer is really hot, I often move them to a part shade location until they begin to perk up a bit.  Mints tend to like some shade and this is a bonus to growing in containers.

So don't let a lack of space limit you from making your own herbal teas.  Even if you have smaller pots on a patio space or porch, just make sure they get some decent sun and keep them watered for your own fresh teas.  You'll definitely taste the difference.

Blessings!!

What are your favorite tea herbs?

More posts on growing plants in containers:  Container Plant How-To's and How to Plant a Cottage-Style Window Box


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Windowsill Herb Garden

 

I was perusing Pinterest in October and found a pin about starting certain herbs from cuttings.  I was very intrigued especially since Rosemary was mentioned as one of them and I ALWAYS buy a new plant every year as they don't winter over where I live.  I have tried and tried to keep them through the winter, even getting them through until early Spring, only to have a late freeze "do them in."  I tried keeping them inside too, but after discarding many Rosemary "corpses" early winter, I gave up.

However, it is known universally that true gardeners never really give up, we only replant.  So, I figured I would try again by trying this method of  taking cuttings and see if I could keep them alive over winter.

 

So I was amazed and shocked to find that the Rosemary seems to happily root themselves in a bit of water.  Just take a clipping of a stem down to the woody part.  Remove the lower leaves and place in container...that's it.  Insta-Rosemary plants...well, give or take a week or two.  However, if you are patient, they will root.  And as you can see mine did.  

And then I planted two out of five of them.  They did well for awhile and then the inevitable came...

more herbal carnage. 

I couldn't show you a picture, because a dead plant is a disgrace to a gardener, even if it's only on a windowsill.

So, I started another cutting and it's happily rooted in water.  Where it's going to stay for now.

I also brought in the "mother plant."  And she's alive and even growing.  

I am fiercely trying to ignore her and only water when I see branches wilt as overwatering is a fast death sentence to Rosemary.

 

This parsley is actually not a cutting but a plant I started in late fall.  I don't think it's going to grow much bigger but I'm determined to keep it alive as I love its leaves.

 

My basil cuttings?  I only had one casualty and that was due to over or under watering...not sure which one it was.  However, the others rooted and were planted and are doing pretty well so far.

I have five more to plant, but am moving slowly on the planting as I don't want to lose any of them and they are still happy in their water.

I even managed to start a few peppermints from the plants in late November or early December.  Two out of five survived but they are making it.

I only have eastern windows, so anything that makes it will have to be especially hardy.

So, this is my winter garden.  Humble but happy.  A happy garden sight for white snowy days.  And the scent is a delicious reminder of outdoor summertime meals.

What's your favorite herb to cook with in the winter?  Blessings! 

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My Version of Olive Garden's "White Peach Cooler"

Yes, with all of the recent heat we've been experiencing lately, it's definitely summertime.  And summertime means iced tea for us.  If you don't drink iced tea, I really encourage you to try it.  It tastes great and is a great alternative for sodas that are basically made of sugar and chemicals.  (Not that I don't enjoy a Coke or Pepsi once in awhile.)  It's full of antioxidants, phytochemicals with are bone-strengthening, and even is known to help prevent tooth decay.  Try that from a Pepsi-free!  Seriously, if you're not sure about it, try the recipe below and it will become your new favorite drink.  All of the fruit flavors combine to make a one-of-kind drink perfect for hot weather.

This is my own version of a drink I saw advertised while dining at Olive Garden.  I looked at the ingredients and realized, I can make that one!  So here it is and I hope you're able to try it and enjoy it yourself at home.

I happen to have a great spearmint plant at home.   However, if you don't, feel free to use a mint tea bag to use in your tea blend instead.

Here are the ingredients to make a one quart serving of this tasty tea.  It will make a cup for you and a friend.  

Minty Peach and Lemon Iced Tea

1 tea bag of Peach herbal tea
1 tea bag of black, green or white tea
(You can also use a tea bag of Peach black tea if you can find them.  I like separating flavors so I can make more combinations.)
Half of an average sized lemon
A sprig of spearmint OR a mint tea bag
One quart jar (or something that will hold 32 oz.)

Put your tea bags and mint into the jar.  Heat your water to a boil and once boiling, add water to your container only to cover the teabags and mint.  If you are drinking this iced, you don't need to add water to the top as it's only more water to cool.  Let the tea bags steep for 15 minutes or more.  I usually do this and then start working on something else around the kitchen.  Once your tea water has cooled quite a bit, juice your half a lemon and add to your tea.  You can put it in earlier if you need.  You can also add a bit of made up lemonade if you have it available.  Stir and add sugar to taste.  I use two Stevia packets for one quart.  Add ice and fresh water to fill the jar and DRINK!  

I believe you will love this flavored tea.  Now you can drink a restaurant quality drink and serve it at home for you and your friends!  Enjoy and blessings!

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