Food + Drink

Tea Time

by erin |

And just like that, I’m a tea drinker.

Listen, I’ve always wanted to be a tea drinker. My favorite people are tea drinkers, and they look so calm and effervescent just sitting there, steeping, lost in thought and glowy skin. And yet, coffee lured me into its black depths sometime in the thick of my college years. I blame gateway frappes, but whatever, here we are.

I love coffee. I have been drinking it daily, without fail, for over a decade. My good friends own the greatest little coffee shop around, and the entire existence of their takeout iced coffee is the singular reason I look forward to each morning’s (crazy early) alarm clock ring.

But.

I’m experimenting this month with a (rather extreme) diet in hopes of healing excema. Food is medicine, after all, and so, why not try skipping the creams and drops and pills in lieu of some good old-fashioned self control? Famous last words, I know.

The meal plan is not unlike Whole30 (which you know I love), but more intense: In addition to no sugar, dairy, alcohol, grains or legumes, there will be no eggs(!!!), no tomatoes, no citrus, no beef, no COFFEE.

I know, I know. What’s left?

Fruits, veggies, seafood, nuts, and apparently, tea.

And so, if you find yourself in want of replacing your own morning joe, I’ll just be over here doing some taste testing. Behold, my favorite teas thus far!:

  1. Ginger Turmeric Tea
    Perfect for an afternoon reset when you’re feeling sluggish and haven’t seen the sun for days. Try it over ice!
  2. Holy Basil Tea
    I first tried holy basil tea in India (so! strong!), and this peppery version is mild enough for daily use. (Tip: Replace a hot cup of holy basil with your evening wine – it’s known for calming, anti-anxiety properties and works wonders over here.)
  3. Paromi Tea
    I’ve never had a bad blend of Paromi tea, but Chamomile Lavender has been an especially worthy front runner this month. It’s light and sweet but a bit earthy; try it iced on a hot summer day. Also, the jar has the loveliest matte finish – keep it! I store my old jars in the laundry room for collecting the inevitable golf tees and loose change I repeatedly discover in a certain someone’s pockets.
  4. Peppermint Tea
    I’ll brew this in the morning for a nice kickstart to the day. It’s no coffee, but has been an oddly refreshing replacement. (Honorable mention to the delicious Hot Cinnamon Sunset, which I’ve been sipping nonstop this week!)

Plus, a few tea-inspired finds along the way:

Something to steep with / Something to steep in  / Something to wipe up / Something to sip in / Something to read during.

p.s. Care to add your favorite to the mix? Please share in the comments!

 

  • I don’t like coffee (yes really), and at first also not did not love tea, but I learned to drink it at work and is now a good compagnon through the day. I like Maroccan tea (our Maroccan neighbor taught us how to make it, with fresh mint leaves and in a Maroccan tea pot he gave us). And I like fennel tea in the evening. And “charge you up” tea in the morning (http://naturaltemptation.eu/smaken),but you probably don’t find it over there. And oh, oh, i do think i eat healthy, but excema has been a compagnon too since this winter and it just won’t leave! I think sleep deprivation is the biggest cause (and not so easy to solve, as long as our daughter doesn’t cooperate). (and maybe I stay up a little longer, due to summer weather and I’m reading your book!)

  • Harney and Sons Hot Spiced Cinnamon….comes in decaf as well, seriously delicious. I share tins with friends and they LOVE it.

  • Erin,
    I love coffee too! I’m still deciding if it’s an obsession or a hobby. But I’m right there with ya, in the last few years I’ve realized how much I love tea too. (Not to mention tea accessories are the cutest)
    My favorite tea is Yerba Mate. Please try some sometime! In addition to being yummy, it also has great health benifits. Any time I feel the slightest bit sickish, Yerba all day perks me right back up. It’s borderline magic.
    Taste notes: vanilla and seaweed
    A good friend of mine calls it mermaid juice.
    Enjoy!

  • Bengal Spice tea by Celestial Seasonings. AMAZING, especially with milk. No need for any sweeteners–just the perfect milky chai!

  • I love coffee dearly but found it made me really anxious in a way that other caffeinated things don’t. Isn’t that weird? Anyways, I made a forced switch to tea and here in my city, we have a GORGEOUS Teavana shop with hundreds of teas and then you can custom blend them to make something amazing. For caffeine, I love their Golden Monkey tea which is wonderful hot or iced, and on hot days, iced Pina Colada tea is the most delicious thing ever. I’m sure you can order their teas online! And if you haven’t checked out David’s Teas, that’s a particularly fun rabbit hole to fall down :) Good luck!

    • I have a friend that just discovered this same thing! And Ken gets crazy jittery on coffee. Our bodies are such enigmas! Also, pina colada tea? I had NO IDEA! Thank you for the tip!!! :)

  • We love creamy earl grey and princess earl grey(from spice market in pikes place in Seattle- they ship) and also the candy cane tea trader joes has at Christmas time is amazing- we stock up so we can drink it throughout the year. My friend served me an amazing chai lavendar tea that I’ve been wanting to track down for years.

    • OH YUM!!!! These sound delightful! Let me know if you ever track down that chai lavender tea!!!! :)

  • Being a girl raised from southern people and living a fair amount in the quasi south, I like my tea sweet. Especially iced tea, which is my preference. Coffee? Blech! However, I learned to drink hot tea in the morning while in Israel a few years ago. My go to is vanilla chai, sometimes with a shot of milk and always wth honey or sugar. It’s as much a comforting ritual as it is something I enjoy the flavor.

  • I have two go-to brands:
    Traditional Medicinals
    – the Seasonal Sampler
    – GingerAid
    Yogi
    – Egyptian Licorice [naturally sweet – very close to Aveda tea!]
    – Egyptian Mint Licorice

    *But I still prefer coffee : )

    • Yes Christine! I was going to mention both the Egyptian Licorice and Egyptian Mint Licorice. They are perfect for when you want something sweet but aren’t exactly hungry. :)

    • Thank you so so much, Christine – I so appreciate your recs! And ha, yes, coffee is such a winner. ;)

  • The Republic of Tea Blackberry Sage and Ginger Peach are two of my caffeinated faves. I’m also really enjoying Celestial Seasonings Bengal Spice for a chai-like warm and cozy herbal tea before bed. Peppermint is a great go-to also. = )

    • Bengal Spice is getting so much love today! And yes to Republic of Tea ANYTHING! I’ve been enjoying their blends so much!

  • Nettle Tea (Traditional Medicinails or dried loose leaves) contains B vitamins essential for busy people. This caffeine free herbal tea is mild – needs no dairy, and if you like it sweet try a touch of raw honey or coconut sugar. To occasionally detox try Traditional Medicinails EverydayDetox – has burdock, nettle leaf and dandelion root. Lemon myrtle leaf gives it a yummy lemon kick. A nice bedtime tea with amazing results the next morning.

  • Oh my! If i can have the courage to try and cure my eczema through diet. But hooray for teas! That i can do. 😁

  • Sounds like AIP- we are 3 months in ourselves! Its amazing how magical tea becomes after a bit. My favorite treat is a tea “latte”: blend in a blender on med/high- black tea with a scoop of collagen, a scoop and a splash of coconut milk (from the can), a bit of coconut oil, some cinnamon, some honey… Watch it get frothy and creamy! Yum! If you don’t like it right away, give your palate a month and try again. Now it tastes like dairy to me, even though I know it used to taste too fatty and coconutty.

    • it is similar to aip, yes! how are you holding up? :) and wow – this sounds DELICIOUS! thank you for sharing with me!!!

  • I love tea! I used to be a big coffee drinker but had to switch to tea several years ago (coffee was wrecking my stomach!) and I haven’t looked back. Every morning I make a pot of Numi Jasmine Green tea in my french press. Another lovely floral tea is Numi’s White Rose. My favorite caffeine-free options are Republic of Tea Cardamom Cinnamon and Numi Honeybush. For a pitcher of iced tea, I like to make just any old regular black tea but then I throw in one Trader Joe’s Pomegranite White. I love the extra flavor it adds. I could go on and on — my husband teases me about my ridiculous tea stash, which takes up way too much space in our kitchen!

    • thank you so much for such fantastic recommendations! :) hahahaah my tea stash is currently doing the same in our pantry! :)

  • David’s tea is so fun! Rose all day (chilled) is the perfect aperitif on a summer afternoon. Mother’s Little Helper is lovely hot. The Mint Matcha is awesome as well! Happy Steeping :)

    • i totally agree about mother’s little helper!!! has such a soothing kick! :) thank you for the tips!!

  • Aveda Comforting Tea has a wonderful flavor, caffeine free so perfect to sip and relax before bed. A less expensive dupe that is also great, Yogi Bedtime.

  • I’ve never been much of a coffee drinker, and like you Erin, I’ve discovered that mint tea chips me right up in the mornings, too – and for a bit more caffeine, I’ve stuck to lemongrass & spearmint green tea by Tazo in the mornings! Love this article!

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