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Holiday Teas

It is holiday time and I have already made hot chocolate, drank cinnamon coffee, tried eggnog for the first time.(loved it!)  This week it’s tea time. While tea is great any time of the year it is especially important to me this time of the year when colds and flu viruses are running around. Tea is a great way to help you body’s immune system fight off germs and can help to improve your mood on rainy days. (if rain bothers you) Try  a herbal tea to warm up at night if you are trying to avoid the caffeine in coffee and hot chocolate. Herbal tea can help to keep you hydrated as cold temperatures tend to make us want to drink less water. Here are a few you may want to try.

Peppermint Tea

Orange Spiced Yule Tea 

Haitian Ginger Tea (Te Jenjanm)

Cinnamon and Orange “Tea”

Ginger and Lemon Tea (Hot/ Chilled)

Click here for more tea and other holiday drinks

How to Make Chai Tea

Chai tea is a traditional Indian tea made with milk, water and  a blend of black tea, ginger and other spices which may include cardamom, cinnamon, fennel, black pepper,cloves, star anise, coriander seeds and peppercorns. It can be consumed hot or cold and may provide a variety of health benefits.  Here is a recipe you may enjoy.

Ingredients

• 4 whole cloves
• 2 whole peppercorns
• 4 tea bags
• 4 teaspoons sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
• 1 cinnamon stick (3 inches)
• 2-1/2 cups boiling water
• 2 cups milk

Directions

• In a large bowl crush  cloves and peppercorns.
• Crush your spices until their aromas are released.
• Add tea bags, sugar, ginger, cinnamon stick to boiling water.
• Cover and steep for 6 minutes.
• In a small saucepan, heat milk.
• Strain tea, toss spices and tea bags.
• Stir in hot milk.
• Pour into cups.

Nutrition Facts1 cup: 92 calories, 4g fat (2g saturated fat), 12mg cholesterol, 49mg sodium, 10g carbohydrate (10g sugars, 0 fiber), 4g protein.Originally published as Indian Chai in Country Woman Christmas 2010

2 Holiday Teas

I love holiday time. Its a cozy time of year that you get to spend with friends and family. In my family tea was a big thing. I loved holiday inspired blends of tea. As I am about to start my holiday time I started thinking about what types of tea I want to have on hand for the next 25 days. Here are a few blends of that I wanted to share with you and I hope you enjoy.

 

Orange spiced yule tea:

Serves 4

4 cups boiling water

 

7 orange-flavored teabags

3 cinnamon sticks

1/4 cup honey

Slice of fresh orange

 

Fruity yule tea:

• 2 cinnamon sticks
• 2 tablespoons whole cloves
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 quart/950ml boiling water
• 1 quart/950ml strong tea
• 3 lemons, freshly juiced
• 1 cup pineapple juice
• 1 cup orange juice (strained)
• 3 quarts/2.8 liters (0.7 US gal) boiling water