Monday, September 3, 2012

Lavender-Peach Iced Tea


Those who know me, know I love lavender.
I love the color, the smell, and the taste.

 When lavender is in bloom (early to mid-summer here in my area),
I have it all over the house. 
For our last Sunday family gathering a few weeks ago,
(celebrating the beginning of the harvest), 
I decided to make lavender-peach iced tea for the first time.

 I had saved the blossoms to gather the seeds so I can get the sprouts for new
plants started indoors in February.
I also kept the blossoms in jars as I plan to start using lavender to perfume my dishes
(I'll be trying lavender-rosemary chicken breasts: delicious and very Provençal).



I decided to heat up some water in a pot, add three tablespoons of lavender blossoms, and a few slices of our summer peaches. I made the mistake of boiling it (not good for tea!), so if you make this, I recommend you turn off the heat just before the water starts to boil. Then you let it steep for quite some time.
 I strained it, let it cool, and then put it in the fridge for a few hours.
 Before serving it I added a few teaspoons of sugar and mixed well
(you could add another type of sweetener like Stevia or nothing at all depending on your taste).


I poured the cold tea in pretty wine gobblers and added crushed ice and a slice or two of a fresh peach. 
Next time, I think I'll throw in frozen peaches instead of the ice, to keep the flavor
(water will water it down, of course), or make ice cubes with peach juice. 

 You can make tea with any herb or fruit combination. I made rose petal tea at the beginning of the spring, with petals from my own rose garden (but, of course, they need to be free of pesticides). 

 What combinations would you try? 
I'm thinking blueberry/vanilla (blueberries and half a vanilla bean pod?), 
or raspberry/lemon (pieces of lemon rind and raspberries)? 

Hmmm...oh the possibilities! 

 Go on, loves, have some tea.


 Besos,


8 comments:

  1. Oh sweet one, this is so fabulous! I love lavender too. The tea makes me go to sleep RIGHT AWAY!!

    How wonderful this new blog of yours is. SO BRIGHT AND BEAUTIFUL, but so was your other blog. Sending you a wish for a happy new week! Anita

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  2. Looks lovely and surely takes delicious! I will try it out! I like the mixture of rosehip and cinnamon. Especially now that the days get colder and shorter. I agree with Anita your blog is beautiful and individual! Christa

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  3. Living in Florida, lavender is not possible. However, I had the opportunity to experience a field of lavender twice in my life and thought I died and went to heaven. It was amazing.

    Velva

    P.S. Thank you for visiting my blog. I am also your new follower.

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  4. And my dear, YOUR words of kindness mean a great deal to me too! KEEP ON with the beautiful essence of YOU here! I am loving these drinks here!

    Enjoy your day and create nothing but good things. LOVE! Anita

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  5. Bonito blog Silvia. Soy compañera tuya del SAL la gordita en la playa. Te iré siguiendo.

    Un beso.

    Olga

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  6. Que rico! Tengo bastante lavanda, voy a probar esta receta!

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