Photo: Aiwok, CC BY-SA 3.0 · source
Tea · From Bladwijzer
Blackcurrant leaf tea with mint
- Makes: ± 20 cups
- Time: 15 min + 3–5 days drying
- From: Blackcurrant
Ingredients
- ± 100 g fresh blackcurrant leaves (3 large handfuls)
- dried or fresh mint (optional)
- water, to make the tea
Method
- Pick young, healthy leaves on a dry morning, once the dew has gone. Never strip all the leaves from one shoot and leave leaves with spots or rust.
- Shake out the leaves and only rinse them if they are dirty. Pat them thoroughly dry.
- Lay the leaves in a single layer on a rack or cotton cloth and leave to dry for 3–5 days somewhere airy and shady, until crisp.
- Crumble the leaves roughly and mix them with a little dried mint, to taste.
- Put the blend in a jar.
- Make the tea: 1 teaspoon dried leaves (or 1 tablespoon fresh) per cup. Pour over water just off the boil, leave to steep for 5–7 minutes and strain.
- No time to dry them? Steep a handful of fresh leaves in 1 litre of hot water for 10 minutes and serve the tea cold, with ice and lemon.
Storing: In a tightly closed jar or tin, dry and dark, for 1 year. Only store the leaves once they are completely dry, otherwise they will go mouldy. Only use leaves from bushes that have not been sprayed.