FOODY FRIDAY- BENEFITS OF TEA

Hi everyone today I thought  I'd write about some of the benefits my family and I have had from natural teas. These natural teas have helped us in soothing and comforting ourselves when we have had mild problems and we also like to drink them because they taste good and are healthy.  I love offering natural healthy alternatives to my family and friends because I know I am giving them something that is beneficial. I’m going to show you what I have learnt from experience, and from being Greek.  The teas we are going to look at are very popular in Greece and Cyprus as they are cultivated there and have many healing properties.
Let me set the scene, say about 23yrs ago when I was 5, I remember having a belly ache and my mum being a proud Greek saying I’ll make you some glykaniso (that’s aniseed tea in Greek) your yiayia (grandmother) used to have it and so did her mother and yiayia and all our Greek ancestors when they had a belly ache. I guarantee that you will feel much better after you drink it.  So about 10 minutes later my mum came back with a sweet smelling cup of greeny yellow hot water, the colour didn’t put me off because it smelt so delicious like liquorice. I drank it all and wanted more and it somehow settled my stomach too. I’m not kidding this stuff is amazing whenever I drink it, it makes my tummy pains go away, but it also has alot of other medicinal benefits too:

• aids digestion, helps problems like flatulence, colic and bloating that comes from gas
• helps relieve menstrual cramps (I may try it and see if it helps with labour pains next time)
• relaxes the body preventing insomnia
• is a mild anti-parasite
• has long been known as an aphrodisiac

Glykaniso - Aniseed tea

You don’t have to just use Aniseed as a tea.  In Greece and Cyprus Aniseed is used in confectionery, breads, cakes and is the sweet warming flavour in Greek Ouzo

Another tea that us Greeks like to drink is Sage tea, especially if we have a cold or influenza because it:

• it helps relax the body
• ease pains in muscles and joints
• soothes sore throats, mouth ulcers and mouth sore

This herb too is not only used as a tea, as Greeks like to season their poultry and pork dishes with it and many old Greek people in their nineties credit the properties of sage for their longevity.

The final Greek herb I’m going to write about is Spearmint.  Spearmint is another tummy soothing tea but also has alot of other health benefits:

• it helps cure nausea
• helps treat mild indigestion
• helps treat diarrhea
• helps clear sinuses

If you want to add a taste of the Aegean to your salads,  you can sparingly add some spearmint.

gg-tip

When making herbal teas you are going to want to get as much flavour out of the herb as possible so when you make your tea add the tea to the water whilst boiling and when the water starts bubbling leave it to simmer for about 3-4 minutes. This means you will have to use a saucepan (I boil my tea in a Greek coffee saucepan but any small saucepan will do) to boil your water rather than a kettle as this allows the herb to be added to the water whilst boiling enabling the tea to infuse properly.  When you have left the tea to simmer for a few minutes put the lid on your saucepan and leave the teas to brew for 10 minutes before serving. Before you pour the tea in each cup place a strainer on top off each cup to catch all the tea leaves, because you don’t want to be drinking them, well I don’t anyway (“,).  This tip is for loose tea and not in teabag from.

Herbal teas are not the only teas us Greeks drink, we also drink standard hot water teabag and milk teas, but with a twist.  We add cinnamon sticks and cloves to the brew. Adding cinnamon and cloves to tea also has benefits other than the nice spicy flavour it gives.

Cinnamon and Clove Tea Health Benefits

• detox
• relieve gas
• relieve constipation when taken in large quantities
• treat colds
• decrease inflammation in arthritis
• helps with indigestion
• helps with nausea
• improves the function of the liver
• an effective antiseptic.  Beneficial in the cure of infections of the digestive tract, urinary and respiratory systems
• helpful in relaxing tension
• can induce sweating and serves to bring down fever
• useful in the treatment of hay fever and rhinitis

Cloves

GREEK CINNAMON AND CLOVE TEA

You will need:

• kettle
• 5-6 cups of water
• 2 cinnamon sticks
• 4-5 cloves
• 2 teabags
• milk

Cinnamon sticks

Greek cinnamon and clove tea method:

• boil water (enough for 5 or 6 cups)
• add cinnamon sticks and cloves to water and simmer for a few minutes to enable flavour to be released
• add boiled water to teapot
• add teabags to pot
• leave to brew for 10 minutes
• add milk to cup
• pour in tea
• sit back and enjoy

Extra gg-tip:I am going to let you in on a very old Greek remedy that goes way back, and will leave you astounded.  When I was young my mum and dad used to heat up some olive oil with 2-3 pieces of matiha/gum mastic, then they would put some of the oil on their hands and rub it on my stomach till all the oil disappeared to relive my stomach pain and it magically worked.  You could say because I was a kid the heat may have fooled me but, when my friend stayed at my house at the age of 16 and had bad period pains my mum made her the traditional recipe and it soothed her pains to her surprise and till this day she still raves about it.
I hope you have enjoyed my natural remedies, and you have as much success with the pain relief as my family and I have had. Also next time you come over and read our blog enjoy a cup of tea from me.

PS. Sorry about the pictures being the wrong way round. They are correct before I upload them but they seem to upload the wrong way. If anyone knows how to rotate pictures once uploaded to blogger please let me know, it will be much appreciated (",)