The day was warm but overcast, the air was moist and balmy. This was the day after the first – and last mind you – rain storm in months. With the rain, came the heaving onrush of floral beauty. In my backyard bloomed... dandelions. Yes, dandelions. Everywhere. Never one to waste anything, I set to work right away.
Now... I need to take a moment to step aside and explain what said "work" was. See... over the years I've become an avid student of herbalism – as should be no surprise by the general theme of this blog – and lately I've been on something of a dandelion kick, having just done some rather extensive research and writing on the subject. So when these common yard "pests" started blossoming 'round the back of the house, I decided I was going to take advantage of the situation, and put together my first round of homemade herbal tea.
By now my neighbors likely think I'm something of a witch, anointing the bottom of the fence with salt water (though, in reality this is just to keep the toads out), and strategically placing fragrant sachets throughout the grass (to deter the neighborhood skunks). This day, though, was likely to confirm any suspicions they may have had, what with little me ambling about the lawn, carrying around an ice cream tote filled to the brim with dandelion flowers and greens. Regardless of what any passerby might have thought, I was quite excited, and happily took my natural loot inside in order to wash and prepare it for drying.
After carefully inspecting and washing my dandelions, I placed the greens and flowers on separate cookie sheets, covered them in tinfoil (leaving two small corners open to allow for ventilation), and preheated the oven to a mild 175°F (79°C). I dried the greens for about two hours and the flowers for about four, turning the plants over every 30 minutes or so. Once dry and cool, I mixed the dandelion greens with the flowers, then ran them through the blender until they were a nice, fluffy pulp.
There is no getting around it... my dandelions were not so pretty anymore; however, they were now in a state that would be exceedingly useful. At this point, I could have placed them in empty gel caps, soaked them in alcohol to make a tincture, or I could have even baked them into some pretty earthy sugar cookies. But this time I decided I wanted to some dandelion tea. Given that this was a sort of spur of the moment decision, I didn't have any empty teabags in the house and didn't have the time to buy any, so instead, I used coffee filters that were expertly (ha!) folded. In my beautifully assembled baggies, I placed the standard serving, which is about two tablespoons per bag, them stapled the coffee filters closed and placed them in an old tea box that I was just about to put in the recycling bin.
Sticking with the standard serving, I boiled two cups of water and let my newly made dandelion tea bags steep for around 15 minutes.
It took a lot of effort, but I resisted pouring my cup earlier than the required 15 minutes, and it was well worth the wait. Though store bought dandelion tea may have a sweeter taste, some may be surprised to discover – as I was – that the homemade stuff has a very earthy flavor, a flavor that is not unlike sweet potatoes. Although it isn't at all unpleasant, I would definitely recommend a bit of organic honey, as the sweet potato taste starts to morph into a flavor that is similar to... well... mushrooms once the tea starts to cool.
All in all, I'm pretty happy with my first tea making experiment. Any suggestions for my next round? Lavender, maybe?
