Do you love to grow herbs but wonder what to do with your aromatic, abundant harvest?   Whether it is small pots in a kitchen windowsill, patio planters or a lush backyard garden, growing herbs is easy, fun and extremely bountiful!  If you, like me, have also been searching for practical ways to fully enjoy your herbal bounty, here is a simple and healthy suggestion:   Home-Brewed Fresh Herbal Tea!   

Drinking a tea brewed from freshly picked herbs is an easy method to get nature's restorative energy into your body.  Many fresh herbs contain a wide variety of active phytonutrients which can help strengthen the immune system and detoxify the body.  Fresh herbs are loaded with vitamins, antioxidants, essential oils, minerals, enzymes, chlorophyll, and numerous more compounds which boost our vitality and health.    Not only are these powerful elements something we can all benefit from, extracting many of the active constituents from a fresh plant is as simple as 1, 2, 3 – TEA 😊

Of course, you can play around with bioflavonoids and flavors.  Rich in antioxidants, oregano tea is surprisingly mild and sweet.  Also high in antioxidants and anti-inflammatory compounds, rosemary tea has been described as invigorating with subtle notes of lemon and mint.  I enjoy blending chamomile, lavender and lemon balm for a mellow evening tea to soothe my tummy and my mind.  Whatever flavor and herbal benefits I want to extract, I also love to add just a TINY fresh stevia leaf to give my tea a delicate hint of sweetness.  But let me be clear, a little leaf goes A Very Long Way.  Here is a basic recipe you can experiment with to find your favorite fresh herbal tea blend.  Cheers!

1. Cut and Rinse approximately 15-20  

     Herb leaves + 1 small Stevia leaf.              2.  Pour Boiling water over Herbs.           

     (Remove leaves from stems.)                           Steep for 8-10 minutes.                 3.  Strain and Enjoy!

Pictured:  Lemon Balm, Orange Mint and Stevia