Tea for Two (or Two New Teas)!

 

Life has been a bit hectic lately and this inspired us to create two new tea blends for Raggedy Hen Farm.  We realized that while we love Hilda’s Herbal Tea, we were craving something spicy and better suited to cool weather sipping; something that would be warming and a little festive.  We also wanted a calming, relaxing tea that was different than the simple minty-chamomile blends on the market–a tea not just for bedtime, but for anytime.  We think we’ve come up with a couple great blends that fit the bill perfectly…

Marilla’s Vanilla Spice~Named for our Plymouth Barred Rock, Marilla, this blend incorporates some wonderful respiratory health herbs like marshmallow and nettle root, with some delicious wintry spices and vitamin-packed fruits. We added organic elderberry and orange peel for extra cold & flu fighting, but this tea is so delicious with its subtle vanilla, ginger, and cinnamon goodness, you’d never know you were drinking something that was good for you! We also add a few gorgeous Star Anise pods to each bag for good measure.

Settle Down Herbal Tea~There are a lot of sleepy, dreamy, bedtime teas out there for the choosing, but sometimes, a person wants a calming, rejuvenating tea that isn’t just meant for sleep induction.  We had stress and tension in mind when we created this aromatic, soothing, and downright pretty blend of organic herbs.  Sure, it’s the perfect tea for your pre-bedtime ritual, but it is also great for a hectic morning or when you just need to regroup and remind yourself of all that is lovely in the world.  A combination of organic lavender flowers, rose buds, dried hops, catnip, spearmint, passionflower, chamomile and hibiscus create a calming way to settle down.

You can find these teas in our Raggedy Hen Farm shop (along with Hilda’s Herbal Tea too) and, as always, they are created using all organic herbs and spices (what we don’t grow ourselves, we source from Mountain Rose Herbs.)

Super Simple Syrups & Cordials

Making syrups is one of the most delicious ways to preserve some of nature’s tastiest and healthiest offerings.  By taking herbs, berries, roots, and spices and creating these concoctions of goodness, you can extract the wonderful properties, vitamins and health benefits and make very useful syrups.  These can be used for making cocktails and mixed drinks, sweetening tea, coffee and cocoa, drizzling over ice cream or even using in an icing or a pancake and waffle syrup.  Some even work well as medicines–soothing a sore throat or combating a cough.

To take the syrup up a notch, mixing it with alcohol like vodka, bourbon, whiskey, or rum helps to turn it into a cordial or liqueur–perfect for sipping as a sweet, after-dinner treat.  We’re going to share our basic recipe, along with some tips on how to customize and experiment to create your new favorites!

To start the process, you are basically making a very strong tea.  Add 1 cup herbs, berries, roots or whatever you want to decoct to 1 quart of water.  These can be fresh or dried.  Some of our favorites include: licorice root, dried rosehips, fresh mint leaves, fresh or dried rose petals, lavender petals, fresh basil leaves, and dried elderberries.  (We get most of our dried ingredients from Mountain Rose Herbs, we’ve included a link, but you can source from a place you trust.  We like knowing everything is organic!) Bring this mixture to a slow boil over medium high heat in a sauce pan with no lid; and then turn down and let simmer for 1/2 hour to 45 minutes.

Strain this mixture and compost the herbs, berries, etc. Pour the strained liquid back into the pan and add 1/2 cup raw, local honey or sugar for every pint of liquid. Stir until dissolved.  You shouldn’t need to cook this mixture any further unless you want a very thick syrup.  For honey, we prefer to NOT cook it since many of the beneficial enzymes can be destroyed by cooking.  If you are using sugar and want a thick syrup, you can bring the mixture back to simmer and cook until it is the consistency you want.  Once finished, you can decant to a jar or bottle.

For a cordial, you will basically just be adding alcohol to your syrup (or syrup to your alcohol).  Let the syrup cool completely (if you add alcohol to hot syrup, the alcohol could “cook” out of the mixture.) I like to add about 1/2 cup of vodka, whiskey, bourbon, or white rum per quart of syrup.  You can make it stronger or weaker depending on your tastes.  Combine this well; bottle and cap.  You can store cordials and syrups made with honey in a cool, dark place, but, they will last longer if you refrigerate them.

It is really that easy!  You can make combination syrups if you like (elderberry and wild cherry bark is one of our favorites for a medicinal syrup) and you can add spices, essential oils or extracts for added flavor.  There are so many possibilities and this is such a delicious way to preserve some of those herbs and fruit growing in your garden.  These make wonderful and gorgeous gifts as well. Happy sipping!