Sweet Lizzy

Healthy, wholesome, recipe inspiration

tea

Blood Orange and Elderberry Elixir

Put your hand up if you get sick at least once a winter?

I thought so. I also used to find myself getting sick every winter (siigh) but over the years have learned that reducing my sugar intake, upping my vitamins and trying to get lots of rest helps tremendously. And the for the last two seasons I have taken Wild Muskoka’s Elderberry Syrup and have stayed healthy the WHOLE WINTER. Imagine that. Everyone else is sneezing, coughing and just exhausted and here I am feeling fabulous.

Wild Muskoka Botanicals was kind enough to send me some of their product so I could share with you the magic of elderberries. I created this beautiful warm tonic to sip on throughout the winter with blood orange juice, ginger, lemon and of course, elderberry syrup. It’s the perfect winter elixir to keep you healthy!

Are you ready to give it a go? Read on friends.

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Maple Water Herbal Iced Tea

Have you ever heard of maple water before? the ever so slightly sweet water collected from maple trees before making maple syrup is available right now in Ontario and I always try to get my hands on a fresh bottle. If you can’t get any fresh there are boxed versions which have been pasteurized(imo not quite as good as the fresh stuff) so I try and get it while I can.

Maple water is touted as another post workout electrolyte enhancer (much like coconut water) as it is filled with minerals. I would recommend adding a pinch or two of sea salt to your water if you use it post workout. The flavour is not as sweet as coconut water which I like- it almost tastes like a glass of water with just the tiniest hint of maple syrup to it.

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How to Create a Personalized Herbal Tea Blend (& one of my favourite blends!)

There is something a little bit magical about creating your own herbal tea blend. It’s as though you are formulating a potion just for you- mixing and matching different herbs for different needs- anxiety, stress, sleep, focus, energy immunity- you name it!

There is also something a little bit daunting about making your own herbal tea blend. Where to start? What herbs should I buy? How do I combine them? In my opinion, tea blending is the perfect way to begin your own home apothecary and is is the simplest way to use herbs, aside from cooking with them of course! You can start with a few basic herbs (you probably already have one or two in your spice cupboard!) and then go from there. It is important to note how the herbs act in YOUR own body and how they make you feel. I have a few favourites that I always seems to go back to like chamomile, lemon verbena, lemon balm, passionflower and hibiscus.

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DIY ZEN TEA

As I sit here writing this it is 30 degrees celsius…with the humidex it’s 35 degrees. Can we just pause and be grateful for this for one minute. October sets in this weekend and I am going to do my best to appreciate the heat despite the fact that my butt is stuck to my chair and I won’t be able to sleep in my non air conditioned house tonight. Soon enough it will be freezing and I will be dreaming of this warm weather. So for those of you that are questioning the weather… I assure you, fall is coming. The cozy sweaters, crisp fresh air, the changing of leaves and a warm cup of tea. Sigh…

Tea, not only is an autumn must, but something I encourage you to make yourself. If you have an apothecary of dried herbs started fantastic! If not, now is the time to start. You don’t have to grow your own and dry it (although this is pretty cheap). You can buy organic bulk herbs at health food stores or online.

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