Refreshing herbal tea made from fresh lemon verbena and mint leaves.
A while ago I ordered an herbal tea at the Chez Panisse Café in Berkeley. The tea came in a large clear glass teapot filled with green leaves and hot water.
The tea was lovely – light, lemony, minty.
Our waiter noticed this strange behavior and quickly came to the table and offered to provide us with fresh leaves. “These leaves here are mint, but what are those long green ones?” I asked. “Lemon verbena,” was the reply, and she happily answered my questions about the herb.
Lemon verbena is a bushy shrub that grows quite well in Northern California. Originally from South America, it has been cultivated in Europe since the 17th century.
Lemon verbena has a strong lemon scent and is used to add lemon flavor to many dishes.
Anticipating making my own verbena mint tea, I planted some this spring. As expected, the not-yet-bush plant is thriving. Here is the method for making easy peppermint tea with lemon verbena:
Peppermint tea with lemon verbena
ingredients
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1/2 Cup fresh mint leaves (not the stems, they are bitter), rinsed, lightly wrapped (about 20 leaves)
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1/2 Cup fresh Lemon verbena leavesrinsed, lightly packed (about 10-15 leaves)
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2 cups water
method
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Heat water:
Bring a pot of fresh water to almost, but not quite, the boil.
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Pour over mint and lemon verbena in teapot:
Place the mint and verbena leaves in a teapot. Pour the hot water over the leaves. Leave to rest for 3-5 minutes. Strain into teacups.
Links:
Lemon Verbena Sherbet – Delightful table
Berry and Lemon Verbena Jelly – a creation of Maki from I Was Just Really Very Hungry
| nutritional information (per serving) | |
|---|---|
| 11 | calories |
| 0g | Fat |
| 2g | carbohydrates |
| 1g | protein |
