Homemade Tea Blends

Well hello again. This year has been off to a good-but-busy start, I got hired to shoot a cookbook last month and that’s what I spent most of January doing. It’s been a really fun project, but now that it’s winding down I’m able to catch my breath a little and share this post with you (finally!) I do plan on sharing more about the homestead (it’s really coming along), but in the meantime I have this little DIY to share, just in time for late winter. This time of year can be tough, having endured months of dark days, cold weather, and what feels like endless rain. But there’s a ray of comfort to the cold, and that’s a hot pot of tea. I drink multiple mugs every day this time of year, it’s such a great way to stay warm and keep the cozy vibes going strong. So I wanted to share a little bit about making your own tea blends, using a mix of both herbal and caffeinated tea varieties, all sourced from the lovely folks at Mountain Rose Herbs (a local Oregon business that supports organic herbs).

I love blending my own tea because it lets me refine the flavors to my specific tastes, and brew and taste as I go. I really love making a signature blend that I can share with friends as a gift or visitors when they come to the house, and of course enjoy in my daily winter routine, too! 🙂 Loose leaf teas are perfect for this, since they’re super easy to blend and you can get them by weight volume for smaller or bigger batches depending on your needs. I have three different recipes here in the blog post, with different flavor profiles and caffeine levels.

The least caffeinated and “fruitiest” flavor profile is the Orange Cream Rooibos, which has a delicious blend of vibrant rooibos tea, dried orange peel, cardamom pods, and lavender. They combine to create a creamy, vibrant, and lightly floral flavor profile that I just love. It’s my go-to for a night-time tea, since it has no caffeine but is loaded with antioxidants thanks to the magic of rooibos. The Floral Green Tea is lightly caffeinated, thanks to the spring green tea, and also has dried rose petals, lavender, and blackberry leaf in it, too. If you’ve never had blackberry leaf, it has a wonderfully mild but noticeable blackberry taste and scent to it, and really rounds out the gentle bitterness of green tea and the bright floral flavors of the flowers. And of course the green tea has lots of antioxidants in it, too. This is my favorite early afternoon tea when I need just a liiittle pick-me-up.

And last but not least, the Chocolate Chaga Earl Grey. This one is very simple, just a mix of lightly floral earl grey tea, roasted cacao nibs, and dried chaga mushroom bits all steeped together. The result is a lightly chocolate-y, earthy, and brightening tea that I love enjoying with a touch of milk and honey. It’s great for the morning since it has the most caffeine of the three, thanks to the earl grey. And chaga is such a nutritional powerhouse, it has antioxidants and a whole long list of ways it benefits the body (would definitely recommend going down a google rabbit hole with this one if you’re into nutrition).

I hope you enjoy them, my friend, and that it gives you a fun and delicious project to dive into during these late winter days. ‘Till next time!

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Homemade Tea Blends

These three tea blends each have their own delicious flavor profile, and run the range from no caffeine, to a little caffeine, to a stronger caffeine boost. I hope you enjoy them and that it encourages you to get creative and play with making your own signature blend, too!

Course Drinks

Cuisine American

Keyword tea blend

Prep Time 5 minutes

Cook Time 3 minutes

Total Time 8 minutes

Servings 96 servings of tea per loose leaf blend as measured

Calories 6 kcal

Ingredients

Orange Cream Rooibos

• 2/3 cup Dried orange peel
• 6 tablespoons green Cardamom pods
• 1 cup Rooibos
• 2 tablespoon plus 1 tapeaspoon Lavender

Floral Green Tea

• ⅓ cup organic dried Rose petals
• 1 cup spring Green tea
• 2 tablespoons organic dried Lavender
• ½ cup dried organic Blackberry leaf

Chocolate Chaga Earl Grey

• ½ cup roasted Cacao nibs
• ¼ cup dried chaga mushroom
• 1 cup earl grey tea
• 3 tablespoons cocoa powder (optional for an extra-chocolate-y flavor)

Instructions

Orange Cream Rooibos

1. In a medium-sized bowl, stir together all of the ingredients until combined. Store in an airtight container out of direct sunlight, like in a cupboard.

   To brew steep 1 teaspoon of the orange cream rooibos in 1 cup of hot water (about 208 degrees Fahrenheit) for 6-8 minutes. Strain and enjoy!

   You can use a bit more or less of the loose leaf tea blend to make the tea stronger or weaker, depending on your taste preference.

Floral Green Tea

1. In a medium-sized bowl, stir together all of the ingredients until combined. Store in an airtight container out of direct sunlight, like in a cupboard.

   To brew steep 1 teaspoon of the floral green tea in 1 cup of slightly hot water (about 150 degrees Fahrenheit) for 3 minutes. Strain and enjoy!

   You can use a bit more or less of the loose leaf tea blend to make the tea stronger or weaker, depending on your taste preference.

Chocolate Chaga Earl Grey

1. In a medium-sized bowl, stir together all of the ingredients until combined. Store in an airtight container out of direct sunlight, like in a cupboard.

   To brew steep 1 teaspoon of the chocolate chaga earl grey in 1 cup of hot water (about 208 degrees Fahrenheit) for 3-5 minutes. Strain and enjoy!

   You can use a bit more or less of the loose leaf tea blend to make the tea stronger or weaker, depending on your taste preference.

Nutrition Facts

Homemade Tea Blends

Amount Per Serving

Calories 6 Calories from Fat 4

% Daily Value*

Fat 0.4g1%

Saturated Fat 0.2g1%

Polyunsaturated Fat 0.003g

Monounsaturated Fat 0.01g

Sodium 0.4mg0%

Potassium 11mg0%

Carbohydrates 1g0%

Fiber 0.3g1%

Sugar 0.01g0%

Protein 0.2g0%

Vitamin A 4IU0%

Vitamin C 0.2mg0%

Calcium 3mg0%

Iron 0.1mg1%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.