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Wednesday 19 June 2013

MINT TEA

Good Morning to you,


When you fancy a cup of tea, what type do you choose?

Do you enjoy drinking Breakfast tea or the specialty teas?  George loves a morning cup of PG Tips, with plenty of milk, Natasha enjoys a cup of Earl Grey tea, Danielle drinks Breakfast tea, not just one cup, but many cups throughout the day and Phyllis likes a cup of good strong Yorkshire tea with just a little milk.

I am not a huge tea drinker myself, but I do enjoy herbal teas and my favourite is a cup of Mint tea in the afternoon or after a meal.  It is refreshing to drink and I find, it also aids digestion.

Maybe you have bought the little sachets of dried mint leaves  which you dunk into a tea cup, 


but, have you ever thought of making your own mint tea?


Mint is a herb which is rampant in growth. So as you cut the stems, they grow back very quickly. This is perfect for us, as it means we have a ready supply of mint tea.

I remember quite a few years ago, Phyllis had a mint plant, which she grew in the garden, as she enjoys minted Summer new potatoes.  She did not want the mint to rampage through the garden like a rowdy teenager, so she thought she would constrain it, by planting the mint, into an enamel bowl. This worked for a couple of years, but then the enamel bowl began to rot, just a little, but enough for the pesky mint to find a route out of the bowl. Without Phyllis knowing, it had started rooting in the surrounding area. It took Phyllis a long time to rid herself of this extra mint.  So learning from Phyllis' mistake, I plant my mint into large terracotta pots with a water dish at the bottom so that the roots cannot escape and if they try, I am on hand to slow them down a little.  Every few years I split the plants to create more, which allows me to make more mint tea...... and it is free, especially if you have a kind gardener friend who gives you a plant..... and we all know that gardeners are a generous bunch of people.

So, today, I thought I would introduce you to the very simple art of making your own mint tea or as it is also known a tisane, which is an infusion of mint leaves.


Cut yourself 5 or 6 sprigs of mint.


Wash the sprigs a few times in fresh water.


Choose your teapot, maybe you like
this one,

or


maybe something more cheerful,
 such as
 this brightly 
coloured teapot


boil some water,
 enough to fill the teapot


but, before you use the teapot,
  you must warm it,
by pouring about one inch
 of boiling hot water 
into the teapot. 
Replace the lid and gently 
swirl the water around the teapot, 
but please be careful,
remember, you are using
 hot water.

Let the pot stand for a minute. 
Remove the lid and empty
the teapot of the hot water.

Your teapot is now warmed and ready to use.
  
Now you have a choice,
you can strip the leaves from the stem,
or
just pop the sprigs, stems, leaves and all.


into your warmed teapot.


Stir


Replace the lid


Cover with a teacosy
 and allow the mint leaves to stand
 for five to ten minutes,
depending on
 the strength of tea you enjoy.

George likes his mint steeped
 for five minutes,
whereas I like mine a little stronger,
 so I
pour George's tea first
 and I wait another
 couple of minutes before 
I pour mine.


Choose your teacup,
 maybe this one,

or


this one,




and pour the mint tea,
into this cup


or


this one if you prefer.

Now all you have to do is sit back, sip this delicious mint tea and let the worries of the world pass you by.

I promise you, it is much nicer than any dried mint tea.

Take care and I will see you later in the week.

This week I shall be joining,










25 comments:

  1. Hello Daphne,

    Sounds delicious, I have some Mint growing but it is far too small to pick just yet. I do use the Rose Geranium in tea, picked fresh from the garden.

    Enjoy your cuppa.
    Bev.

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  2. I have lots of mint growing in pots in my garden, including chocolate mint and pineapple mint. I will definitely try making my own tea. Your tea pots and cups are beautiful!

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  3. Hi Daphne! I'm not much of a tea drinker either, but you've piqued my interest with this mint tea. And since I happen to have some growing out on the deck, I may have to give this a try. Although, I only have one teapot, not three or four. ;) And only two different sets of teacups and saucers, but neither are as pretty as yours. Wait, I do have one more special set given to me by my grandmother. I think that's the one I'll use. :) Your posts are always so interesting. Thanks for showing us how to make mint tea!

    Debbie

    ReplyDelete
  4. I drink a lot of tea hot and of course in the spring & summer ice tea
    my favorite is called Summer Pudding and I love it , I use to get it at the market in Seattle when I would go out for visits and now have to order it from London since the tea shop closed I haven't been able to find it here in Missouri

    like you little tea cups and saucers also and I have mint growing all over my flower gardens, it smells so good to pick and put in a vase of flowers

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  5. Mint grows like crazy in our garden and must be confined. Last year I made fake mint juleps for our little grandsons during the Kentucky Derby. They got to pick the mint. It was so much fun!

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  6. Your words about tea and mint and family cause me to think of so many of my own stories about these three subjects. I found you through Wordless Wednesday. Come visit me at Blue Plate Sundays. I think we have a lot in common.

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  7. I prefer Earl Grey and sometimes Lady Grey but only during cold weather. We drink a lot of iced tea in the summer always with mint and and lemon. In the south where my family originates it's called sweet tea. I do believe I need a tea cozy.

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  8. Dear Daphne,i have a mint plant in my garden.I dry it and make mint tea and i putt dry mint in my keftedes(mince balls).But i'm used to drink,from the days i lived in Melboune,a cup of Earl Grey tea,with milk!Have a lovely evening!Hugs!
    Dimi..

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  9. Hi Daphne, I have some mint growing in a pot. I'll have to try this method. I love your teacups and teapots, too.

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  10. Daphne, I have all kinds of mint growing in the garden and this will definitely be one of my must do's.

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  11. Dearest Daphne,
    Glad that someone else is using this delicious tea recipe. It helps against feeling bloated and it also aid digestion. Several good reasons for drinking this!
    Thanks for commenting on 'Our Hallway' post. Sad thing is that through that very front door on Monday I got our sweet SACHA GIRL handed by our neighbor. What a sad day(s).
    Hugs to you,
    Mariette

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  12. Thank you dear Daphne for finding me, so I coud find you back.
    What a lovely blog you have a bout 3 generation of strong women.
    I am following you now, and added you as a friend in Google+
    I love té so much.
    I get up to a lovely cup of Yorshire Gold ( it has to be that one)LOl
    And the I have different ones throug the day.
    Do keep in touch.
    XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

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  13. Hello Daphne~ I am a new follower! Thanks for your visit and lovely comment on my blog. I drink all the teas you mentioned above(PGTips, Yorkshire) and prefer loose leaf tea. I need to get a new mint plant. I bought a Cat Mint plant to share with our kitty but don't want to use hers! So nice to see you mentioned that an herbal steeping is called a tisane. Happy first day of summer :)
    Shawn

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  14. bonjour
    l'été je fais souvent des tisanes avec de la
    citronnelle , que l'on boit glacé
    et la menthe j'en mets avec les fraises
    bonne journée sous le soleil
    tendresse
    edith

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  15. Wow - you brought me back to my childhood. My Omi (grandmother) had a bed of mint growing beside her house. We'd use it for mint tea, but also for when we were waiting for someone to come pick us up, she'd pick some leaves and rub them on my wrists for "perfume". Thanks for the memories. (you made me smile!)

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  16. Peppermint tea is my absolute favorite! I love any kind of mint, really. I MUST try growing my own...I've been afraid to try (I have a bit of a black thumb) but this sounds fairly easy. Thanks for the inspiration!

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  17. Green tea is my everyday tea but I love English Breakfast tea the best and it has to be served with milk and sugar. Thanks for the directions as I have been wanting to grow my own mint.

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  18. Oh I'm so glad you pointed me in the direction of your blog. This is my kind of blog. Your photography is awesome, I've drooled over the recipes and really found the history pictures of Queen Elizabeth very interesting. I have become your latest follower as well so I can enJOY your blog in the future. btw, I'm a coffee drinker which I'm sure doesn't surprise you being the Kentuckian I am.

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  19. Thank you for stopping by my blog and introducing yourself, and for your very nice comments! I make a minted lemon iced tea that is good, and yours sounds even easier. Warm regards, Ann

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  20. Hi dear! I'm harvesting my mint to dry it for the winter... I've never known I could do tea with fresh mint, this will be my drinking for this evening!
    Tx for sharing, I'm now following you on G+ and GFC
    Have a terrific w-e
    MammaNene

    SergerPepper.blogspot.it

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  21. Thanks SO much for sharing - I had no idea making mint tea was so easy!!!
    Gorgeous photos :)
    Have a great weekend Daphne
    Hugs,
    Suzan

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  22. I have never made fresh mint tea. I prefer black tea. Maybe chai flavored with a splash of milk. I drink at least two cups per day.

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  23. I'm not a regular old tea drinker, but I do like herbal teas. Thank you for giving us this method for making fresh herbal tea. It looks very refreshing!

    Thanks so much for joining in this week.

    xo
    Claudia

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  24. What a good idea! I love mint tea, and I've never thought of making my own. Thanks for the inspiration!

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  25. I love mint tea, and grow it specifically for that purpose (and jelly!) I like a little honey to sweeten it up a bit too! And I love your teapots and cups! I have a little collection...My favorite to use is a tea- for-one set by Royal Albert, Old Country Roses!

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Dear Friends,

It is so wonderful to know you enjoy reading Ivy, Phyllis and Me! Thank you so much for taking the time to leave me a comment. I really do appreciate it.

Best wishes to you.

Daphne

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