Tea Tuesday #4: Alfalfa, Nettle, and Peppermint

Happy Spring Equinox! The weather here has felt more like early summer than early spring, so I thought a peppermint based tea would be nice this week. Peppermint has a wonderful cooling effect and it's one of my favorite hot weather drinks. I love to drink it sweetened over ice without any other herbs, but I thought some alfalfa and nettles would be good today in honor of spring. A nice cleansing, cooling drink. I will definitely be drinking it this afternoon in my water bottle at work!

Because I wanted to make enough that I will have it ready for work over the next couple of days, and because I will probably pour it over ice, the recipe today is a little larger and more concentrated than the teas I usually make.

Ingredients:
2 Tbsp nettle leaves
2 Tbsp alfalfa
4 Tbsp peppermint
4 Cups filtered or distilled water
Sugar, Honey or other sweetener to taste

Directions:
Mix the herbs together and place in a large glass measuring cup. Bring the water to a boil in a tea kettle and then pour over the herbs. Cover the measuring cup with a plate, and allow to steep for ten minutes. Strain out the herbs and pour into a glass or ceramic pitcher (glass canning jars also work well). Store in the refrigerator. When ready to use, mix with water and sweeten to taste.

I usually like to dilute this blend at least half and half with water, but it depends on my mood whether I use more or less water than that. Perfect spring drink:

Health Highlights
Peppermint: cooling, soothing to the digestive tract
Nettles: rich mineral content, refreshing spring tonic
Alfalfa: rich mineral content, refreshing spring tonic