I drink lots of tea, mostly herbal teas, in the morning, if I’m home during the day and always before going to bed…I’ve been thinking for a while now to start buying different types of herbs or spices and creating my own mixes of tea at home. So here is one of the first ones I made. I found this infusion recipe on an italian blog I really love, it’s called Granosalis, it’s written by a girl/photographer in Tuscany. She cooks in a very natural way, and makes a lot of homemade products, like vegetable broth powder, tomato concentrate, liquors, etc.
I love consulting her website. I also made some canned chickpeas this week, following her directions (there’s a picture at the end).
Anyways back to this herbal tea..It’s a mix of 4 different herbs and it’s a relaxant herbal tea.

•INGREDIENTS•
→40 gr HAWTHORNE, dried, flowers
→30 gr CHAMOMILE, dried, flowers
→20 gr MELISSA, dried, leaves
→10 gr ORANGE PEEL, dried

Just mix everything together in a big bowl and store in jars or paper bags. Better if consumed before 1 year. Infuse for 10 minutes then filter.

These are the benefits from these medicinal herbs:

Hawthorne: regulates blood pressure, reduces anxiety, protect your heart in a variety of ways, improve digestion, boost respiratory health, reduce the severity of chest pains, improve mood, treat intestinal infections, and positively affect the appearance and health of your skin.

Chamomile: has been used for centuries in teas as a mild, relaxing sleep aid, treatment for fevers, colds, stomach ailments, and as an anti-inflammatory,anti-bacterial, muscle relaxant, antispasmodic, anti-allergenic.

Melissa: also called Lemon Balm, treats insomnia (calming effects and helps induce sleep), eases indigestion, treats herpes lesions and cold sores, treats Alzheimer’s disease symptoms.

In Italy you can find bulk herbs and spices (that have medicinal values) in most “erboristeria”. Here in Bra, where I live now(small town!), there’s a lady that has a great little old shop, selling all kind of bulk spices, dried herbs, whole flours, and lots of healthy foods. She is known as “the spice lady” in town. 😉

These are the canned chickpeas I made last week too. If you eat a lot of legumes like me, it always handy to have cooked beans in your pantry. And when you know what is in them is even better. I will for sure do this for other beans next time.