Lavender, my friend
Flu season has slammed just about everybody I know, including the Gentleman. When he got sick, I thought I was done for. So every time he made herbal tea to soothe his throat, I had tea also. Hydration seemed like the prudent thing to do.
Well wouldn’t you know – I never got sick. (KNOCK WOOD.) I’ve been pretty self-congratulatory about it, if you must know. But I do wonder if it had something to do with the tea. In particular, I’ve been drinking lavender tea at least once a day. My friend Sonia gave me a baby food jar full of dried lavender, and I made my way through it. When I was finished, I felt an almost superstitious need to buy more immediately.
I turned to Amazon, where half a pound of highly-rated culinary lavender runs about $10. The listing looks a bit dodgy, but wouldn’t you know, it’s a GIANT bale of lavender that made for perfectly delicious tea. How giant? Check this out.
An ordinary jar made to look tiny by a half pound of lavender
How do you like them apples? Friends in Philly, if you’d like some lavender, please let me know.
I continue to drink the tea straight with honey, but I’ve also created another delicious creation: iced lavender mint tea with honey!
Two mint herbal tea bags and about a tablespoon of dried lavender steeped in my grandma’s four-cup pyrex measuring cup…
Making a concentrated tea
…makes a pitcher of seriously delicious iced tea. I just strain out the tea, pour into a pitcher, and fill the rest with water. A cafe would charge $2.50 a glass. So refreshing!
Stay healthy!
Oooh, those teas sound SO good! My local chocolate shop also makes a lavender-white chocolate drink that is incredible.
If you are feeling overwhelmed by your bale, I will happily take some off your hands! (Or swap you cumin. I have like a 5-lb bag of cumin seed at home that I despair of ever finishing…)
You are welcome to some lavender, but I’m afraid I too am sitting on two lifetimes worth of cumin seed. Better than ground cumin! I think the seeds stay flavorful for a while.