My Favorite Summertime Tea

Today I am sharing my favorite summer drink!

🌺Flowerchild Tea🌺

The original recipe comes from thehippyhomemaker.com, but sadly her website is no longer! (thankfully one of my sisters had written it on a recipe card). I have been making this tea blend for the last 8-9 years and have tweaked it over time.

Original Recipe:

* 2 parts Red Raspberry Leaf

* 1 part Hibiscus

* 1 part Orange Peel

* 1 part Lemon Peel

* 1/2 part Lemongrass

* 1/2-1 part Rosehips

* 1/4 part Chamomile

* 4 cups boiling water

* 4 TBSP Tea blend

* 4-5 lemons juiced or 1.5-2 cups juice

Steep 8-10 minutes

Sweeten to taste (honey, maple syrup, granulated sugar)

*What is a part? A part is whatever measurement or weight you make it. Example 1 part can be 2 tablespoons or it could be 0.1oz.

How I have modified it:

I try to stick to the original tea blend but …

~if I have local Pineapple weed(a relative of chamomile with similar properties) I will use that instead.

~I add Oatstraw (1 part) which is great for the nervous and endocrine system(stress and hormone balance).

~Sometimes I just add Orange peel or lemon peel and not both.

~I then steep the tea for 4-12 hours. I usually make it in the evening and allow it to steep overnight. This pulls out more of the nutrients in the herbs.

~After a long steep I add kombucha to it. The kombucha adds probiotics, some carbonation and sweetness without adding an additional sweetener. My favorite Kombucha flavors to pair with this tea are; the GT’s Lemonberry, the Strawberry Serenity, and the spring special edition Bloom. Add as much or as little kombucha as you want. I usually add 1/2 bottle to 4 cups of tea. You can also pour the tea and then add a bit of Kombucha to each glass so that it stays fizzy. This makes a great summer refresher for kids and adults!

If you really want to WOW the kids add a bit of Butterfly Pea Flower powder (use a milk frother to blend it in) and then add lemon juice. Your beautiful red tea will turn purple! This would also work with GT’s Sacred Life kombucha which has blue spiralina. I’ve made this for nieces before and we decided it was magic, but it could also be a lesson on how colors are made as well. The most important thing is to have fun with it!