Apple and Rhubarb Herbal Tea
Make your own homemade apple rhubarb herbal tea blend. Winter is when I get to play with all the goodies I’ve foraged, grown and dried all year long. Dried veggies and herbs find their way into soup mixes while hot peppers, onions and herbs get turned into custom spices and  seasoning blends.
When making tea blends I am motivated by taste and the sheer enjoyment of a nice cup of herbal tea. I am not trying to create age defying elixirs or healing tonics that must be taken daily. I drink my tea blends when I want a warm cup of something and I’ve maxed out my coffee consumption for the day.  My blends do not include black tea or any other caffeinated teas. For the most part I like to rely on things I’ve grown, gathered or harvested locally, with the exception of a bit of cinnamon, ginger or citrus.
Today, I’m sipping an apple rhubarb tea made with apples picked with Fruit Share and rhubarb and lemon verbena grown in my back yard. It also includes a bit of cinnamon because, well let’s face it, apples and rhubarb always taste better with a little cinnamon.
The only tricky part about blending your own teas is figuring how much of each item to add. It’s mostly trial and error and personal preferences. Here’s what I came up with for this apple rhubarb blend.
On occasion, I will make a few sachets of tea (great for camping) but mostly I leave the loose tea in jars and use a tea infuser when I want to enjoy a cup at home.
Apple and Rhubarb Herbal Tea Blend
Ingredients
- 3 parts dried apple
- 1 part dried rhubarb
- 1 part dried lemon thyme
- 1/2 part dried lime or lemon balm
- 1/4 part dried lemon grass
- 1 stick cinnamon
Instructions
- Mix all ingredients well, crumbling herbs well.
- Transfer to a glass jar with a tight fitting lid.
- Store for up 6 months to a year. Of course, as long as it remains completely dry, this blend can be safely stored indefinitely; however, the flavor will start to deteriorate significantly after 6 months to a year.
- Brewing Instructions
- Use 2 to 3 tsp of tea mix per cup of boiling water.
- Allow to steep, covered for 5 minutes or longer for stronger flavor.
Notes
If you’re not as obsessed about gathering and drying edibles as I am you can go to a bulk store or local herb or tea shop to purchase the necessary ingredients. I’m sure you’ll find other ingredients that will inspire you to create your own custom blend.
If you’re interested in growing herbs to use in your own tea blends, take a look at this article on How to Grow Your Own Tea Garden.
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Select, store and serve seasonal food for everyday cooking with Getty. Getty is a food educator and Professional Home Economist, who loves sharing tips and recipes following the seasons from her Canadian kitchen. Sign up to get seasonal tips and recipes delivered to your inbox. Learn more about Getty or check out her books and pdf guides.
Hi Getty, reading that rhubarb is a vegetable like celery, I am wondering if the stalks are safe to eat raw.
Hi Debbie,
Yes, rhubarb is technically more vegetable than fruit. And yes, the stalks are safe to eat raw. The part of rhubarb that is not safe to eat are the leaves. You’ll find the stalks very tart and likely won’t be able to eat very much. I have sliced the stalk very thinly, thinner than you would slice celery, and have added it to a salad. A delicious surprise. Enjoy!
We used to eat the stalks dipped in sugar as kids. Sweet and tart at the same time. It was a summer treat.
Yes! We did that too – the first sour candies!
Hi Getty
How do you dry your fruit to use in the teas etc? Do you use a dehydrator or an oven? What do you recommend? The rhubarb and apple tea sounds delicious. Thanks for sharing! 🙂
Hi Chloe
Yes I uses the dehydrator to dry the apples and rhubarb. I have never tried drying rhubarb in the oven but I have done apples, check out this article for how to: http://www.gettystewart.com/how-to-make-homemade-dried-apple-rings-in-the-oven/. I use the little broken pieces for tea.
Don’t let the dried rhubarb stop you from making a batch of your own blend. Just leave it out or try subbing in dried citrus zest. Zest a lemon or orange and let dry for a couple of days. Adds great flavor.
Enjoy!
Getty
We are trying to use coconut sugar in recipes. Do you have any you’d recommend?
Hi Nancy, I’m pretty conventional in the ingredients I use. I try to reduce overall sugar consumption, but continue to use regular granulated sugar. Sorry, I can’t help further.