Tag: teas

Herbal teas, the pleasure of hot water – Italian Cuisine

To warm up or relax, to purify or detoxify, to fight anxiety or insomnia, to digest better or stimulate a sluggish intestine, but also to lose weight or deflate, strengthen the immune system or fight colds: there are many reasons that push Italians to turn more and more often to herbal teas, whose sales continue to grow year after year.

That infusions of herbs, flowers, plants and roots help you feel better is out of the question, but that they are a universal remedy, with therapeutic properties and without side effects, to be taken without worries is false. Here, then, are the tips to take only the best from herbal teas.

Don't expect miracles

Herbal teas are an excellent solution for maintaining the right degree of hydration in the body, especially in those who do not feel thirsty and struggle to drink regularly. They also allow you to take advantage of the advantages of heat, which is a vasodilator, and to take plant extracts that could have positive effects, but you shouldn't expect them to lose weight, burn fat or have detox powers: these are all properties that scientific research does not has yet ascertained.

Do not overdo it

Good and hot, herbal teas are often a cuddle that we allow ourselves during the day. A good habit, certainly, as long as you don't overdo it. The fact that they are "natural" preparations, ie based on herbs or flowers, does not mean that they cannot have unpleasant effects. Thousands of chemicals of natural origin are taken with a herbal tea, which in any case can have effects on the human body. In addition, there are plants that can be allergenic, and therefore cause unwelcome reactions (for example, in the skin or intestine), or that can interfere with the intake of drugs. In particular moments of life (such as pregnancy) or if you have health problems it is good to consult your doctor before taking herbal teas on a regular and frequent basis. A classic case is that of those with low blood pressure to whom herbal teas (especially draining ones) are not recommended because they promote diuresis and, therefore, further lower the pressure. While those who take statins to lower cholesterol must give up those based on tea, even decaffeinated.

Packaged ones are better

Do-it-yourself can be risky: it is better to rely on herbal teas sold at the supermarket or those prepared by a graduate herbalist or an expert pharmacist. In any case, it is preferable to purchase products packaged in sachets as they carry information on their composition, suggestions for use and the name of the packer, which certifies their origin, on the label. And then on the packages there is the date by which it is preferable to consume them: an important information given that, with the passage of time, herbal teas "age" and gradually lose their properties.

Better the simple ones

It is difficult to resist herbal teas made up of several "ingredients", because they are those with the richest bouquet in taste and aroma. However, in these mixtures the individual components are present in low doses and, therefore, the bioavailability of their active ingredients is lower. So, if you drink the herbal tea just for the pleasure of it, no problem choosing a mix. To reach higher concentrations of the active ingredient, the infusion times can be increased (from 5 to 10 minutes), or two filters can be placed in the same cup, but in this case it is advisable not to exceed two cups a day.

But if you want to get all the benefits of herbal teas, it is better to choose those that do not contain more than five different medicinal plants. The ideal are those based on a single plant: cumin, anise or fennel to digest, lime, mint or lemon balm to relax, dandelion, birch or nettle to purify.

Never boiling water

Hot, yes, but not hot: herbal teas should be drunk this way both to get the best out of their active ingredients and to avoid health risks, as reported by the International Agency for Research on Cancer. Warm yes, then, but not very hot (never above the temperature of 65 °).

December 2021
Manuela Soressi

Detox herbal teas: three sure-fire recipes – Italian Cuisine

To eliminate waste and excess liquids, you need to drink a lot. If the right spices are added to the water, however, the purification will be even more effective

Three detox herbal teas, spicy and aromatic that pamper the body, lightening it from accumulated toxins, and at the same time also the palate.

Herbal tea with dandelion, lemon and cranberry to stimulate diuresis

The cranberry juice, the cranberry, is extremely diuretic and rich in antioxidants. The lemon juice, on the other hand, acts on the liver, stimulating liver function. While there dandelion herbal tea favors digestion and diuresis. This herbal tea to drink throughout the day is definitely a mix of ingredients that will force the body to expel toxins, but also a winning combination of vitamins and minerals – which support metabolism activities – such as vitamin C, contained in lemon and cranberry juice. To prepare it, just make 1.5 l of dandelion herbal tea, which you buy in herbal medicine, and mix it with 2 tablespoons of lemon juice and one of cranberry juice with no added sugar.

Cumin, coriander and fennel from the Ayurvedic tradition

For the traditional Indian medicine herbal teas are the way to bring the beneficial effects of herbs and spices to the tissues of the body. Among the detox teas, this is the one with the more detoxifying properties, in addition to acting on the abdominal swelling: unpleasant symptom from the aesthetic point of view and annoying from the physical point of view.
To prepare this remedy, bring about 300 ml of water to a boil. At this point add the tip of a teaspoon of each spice and leave to infuse for five minutes, covering the cup. Filter the herbal tea and drink it at least once a day to have a long-term detox effect, although you will also notice immediate benefits.

Cinnamon, basil, ginger, cumin: joint action on the kidneys

Detox herbal teas usually act on excretory organs – such as kidneys, liver and lymphatic vessels – responsible for eliminate waste materials from the body. In this herbal tea the cinnamon gives flavor and good perfume, in addition to lower the blood sugar level. The action of basil instead, it is the one that acts purely on kidneys, in addition to improving the digestion and be a powerful antioxidant. The "special team" completes the cumin – known to improve the digestion, purify and stimulate circulation – and lo ginger: detox spice which acts on the colon, liver and kidneys. Finally a touch of lemon juice to assist, thanks to the C vitamin, all the properties of spices.
To prepare it, bring to the boil about one liter of water. When the water boils add a cinnamon stick, 10 basil leaves, a small piece of about 2 cm of fresh ginger cut into thin slices, a teaspoon of cumin and the juice of half a lemon. Cover and leave to infuse for 5-10 minutes, before filtering and drinking. This herbal tea is also excellent cold or at room temperature, to be consumed during the day.

Tea and herbal teas that smell like Christmas: here's what to choose – Italian Cuisine

The typical scents of winter become a delicious infusion for the holidays: here are many ideas for delicious teas and Christmas teas (also detox)

The tree is also full of the latest decorations, those bought last minute because those last year no longer convinced us – and a bit 'are broken – those exchanged with friends at the Secret Santa, those unearthed at the market of Christmas. The last presents are still missing, but for those we have now made peace with the fact that as every year we will reduce if not 24, December 23. The snow is missing, but everything else is there. Family, candles, cookies, panettone (or pandoro?).

There is above all that atmosphere that is impossible to replicate at other times of the year, to be breathed deeply in front of a more or less romantic film, under a warm blanket, and with a Cup of tea hot in hand from which all the winter spices are made, all the scents of Christmas.

Types of tea

The first thing to know when we get closer to choosing a tea is that all the teas proper (white, green, oolong and black) derive from the same plant and that the aromatic difference derives rather from the treatment (withering, oxidation, fermentation and drying) that the leaves receive after harvesting. The addition of flowers, fruit, spices and essential oils then, leads to further diversify flavors and aromas. Red tea, better known as Rooibos, is not exactly a tea but it is prepared with the same treatment and grows exclusively on the plateaus of South Africa, where it is considered a national drink.

Tea and herbal teas: what is the difference?

The teas are mixtures of fruit, herbs and spices, generally of exotic origin, which combine with gluttony (this is where we can find, for example, chocolate) and flavor, a component of phytotherapeutic well-being. The only limit in this case is the taste, combined with the imagination: herbal teas in fact in herbal medicine (or at home, if you prefer do-it-yourself) can be prepared letting yourself be inspired by personal taste and the sought after benefit.

Tea and Christmas teas, which to choose

We have said it and perhaps it is one of the few truths on which we can all tend to agree. At Christmas we want to relax, have fun, rest, feel good. And it is in the name of this that we will choose from which infusion to let us warm up. Hibiscus, currant, cinnamon, licorice and cardamom will keep us company until Christmas morning, for all the evenings that separate us from the awakening of 25, for all books to be held with one hand because the other holds the hot cup, for all movies and cartoons that we will manage to look, making us dream with their aromas a wonderful and snowy Nordic Christmas. On Christmas morning, before a lunch that will surely be important, the best choice could be that of a healthy green tea flavored with bergamot, allOrange or to cinnamon. Or, if you prefer oriental flavors to Nordic notes, you can choose to add the mint or the rosein bud maybe, because even the eye wants its part. And even this year it is already time of the detox, in which these drinks are perfect allies. If you prefer a tea, opt for a fragrant green base with lemon and lemongrass, dandelion or pineapple. If instead you want to opt for a herbal tea, they will be perfect fennel, the lemon and lo ginger. All strictly biological.