Today I’m sharing two herbal tea blends to enjoy for Yule // the Winter Solstice!
The Yule Tea blend is a sweet and festive spiced sip, full of immune-boosting ingredients that taste lovely. The combo of orange and spices is traditional for the season, in part because of those properties and in part because of associations with protection, divination, prosperity, and luck derived from them.
The Winter Solstice Tea tastes decadent like a holiday cake, but without the heartburn or feeling of overindulgence! With soothing herbs that promote digestion, relieve pain, and aid in circulation, it’s like a sweet, warm hug. And chamomile represents the sun that returns brighter each day after the solstice; juniper is a powerful talisman of winter protection, cleansing, and luck; and the other botanicals have ties to healing, love, and luck, too.
To make a single cup of tea, add 1 tablespoon to a tea strainer, eco- friendly tea bag, or French press. Pour 1 to 1 ½ cups hot water over the tea and steep for 3-5 minutes. Add honey or maple syrup to taste, if desired.
For educational purposes only. Not intended for medical advice. Always consult your physician.
*This post contains affiliate links, which means if you choose to buy something from a link that I share, I will make a small percentage of the sale *at no extra cost to you*.
Though the Falling Leaves Moon or Hunter’s Moon fell on October 17th this year and has technically passed, the full moon’s energy can still be tapped into. Read on to learn more about this month’s full moon and a corresponding tea recipe!
The Ojibwe named the full moon during what we call October the Falling Leaves Moon. We await the “peak” of the vibrant colors knowing the shedding of these leaves marks winter’s approach. As this full moon nears, we may feel Aries’ pull to dive into autumn with an energy as vibrant as the leaves. But the sun sign Libra may temper this drive with a need for balance to conserve our energies for the coming cold.
Brew this tea to mark the Falling Leaves Moon which includes gifts given from trees for both their symbolic and astro-herbalism connections. Hawthorn bolsters the heart, while juniper, cinnamon, and ginger support the Aries fire. Apple and vanilla round things out with sweetness to cool that fire off a bit and bring things back to balance.
To make a single cup of tea, add 1 tablespoon to a tea strainer, eco-friendly tea bag, or French press. Pour 1 to 1 ½ cups hot water over the tea and steep for about 5 minutes. Strain, and serve. Add sweetener of choice to taste, if desired.
If you’d like recipes to mark each month’s full moon, check out the current and upcoming issues of Botanical Anthology where I share these recipes!
For educational purposes only. Not intended for medical advice. Always consult your physician.
*This post contains affiliate links, which means if you choose to buy something from a link that I share, I will make a small percentage of the sale *at no extra cost to you*.
As a lover of all things autumn, I love branching out and learning about how different cultures mark my favorite season! I have recently learned a bit about the Mid-Autumn Festival in Chinese culture, which takes place around mid-September to early October and centers around the timing of what we know as the Harvest Moon.
During this autumn equinox festival, celebrations focus on the harvest—with gratitude and family gatherings; the moon; Chang’e (the goddess of the moon); and her companion, a white rabbit who pounds herbs in his mortar and pestle to make immortality elixir. Other symbols and parts of the celebration include lanterns, mooncakes, cassia wine, and burning incense as an offering to Chang’e.
This festival and the lore surrounding Chang’e and the Moon Rabbit are a wonderful Craftbrunch theme! There are lovely picture books on this folklore to share with children, you can decorate lanterns and make moon cakes, and more.
My contribution to the #autumnnaturemagic #Craftbrunch celebration I’ve joined on Instagram is a tea blend based on the idea of the immortality elixir that the Moon Rabbit makes! Most of the ingredients are longevity herbs in TCM (Traditional Chinese Medicine), and the cassia cinnamon and dried apricots are present to represent cassia wine, which I’ve not tried but I read it tastes like peaches or apricots!
(This tea is safe for adults and kids alike, but if you prefer you can substitute decaf green tea or leave it out altogether.)
Here is the recipe! It should be enough for a few cups of tea but you can increase accordingly for the number of people you’re serving.
Brew for 3-4 minutes with just-boiled water; you can brew longer if you omit the green tea, or perhaps put the green tea in a separate tea strainer and remove it before the other ingredients.
Garnish with cinnamon sticks and dried apricots if you like! Sip this tea before a lantern-lit autumn hike under the moonlight!
For educational purposes only. Not intended for medical advice. Always consult your physician.
*This post contains affiliate links, which means if you choose to buy something from a link that I share, I will make a small percentage of the sale *at no extra cost to you*.
When I first became interested in herbalism, my dad surprised me by gifting me all of my great grandmother’s herbalism and gardening books. By chance, or most likely not, I had wandered into a family legacy. My dad then regaled me with stories of some of her practices, like how she used to brew sassafras tea and root beer, made dandelion fritters, and added chicory and dandelion root to the coffee she brewed every day.
It is actually a long-standing tradition to add roots like dandelion, chicory, and burdock to coffee to add nutritional benefits and cut some of the bitterness. Beyond those roots, you can get creative with sweet and aromatic spices if you’d like to add more complex flavors. It’s really a very hygge—simple and intentionally cozy—process to develop your own personal mix and roast the ingredients yourself.
I love that I am carrying on my great grandma’s legacy. Many times when I make coffee, I also mix in roasted roots like she used to cut her coffee with. Herbs like dandelion, chicory, and burdock are nutritious and grounding, and help lessen the overall caffeine in your mug. They taste quite similar to coffee, though perhaps more complex and earthy, and you can put your own spin on your recipe with the addition of other flavorful botanicals.
Here is a closer look at some of the ingredients you might add to your own roasted root blend:
Roast equal parts of chosen roots on a baking sheet at 375° for 20 minutes, stirring once or twice to prevent burning. Allow to cool.
Mix in any spices or additional ingredients like cacao nibs and cinnamon chips, then grind in a coffee grinder and brew as you normally brew coffee. Opt for a coarser grind if brewing with a French press.
Adapted from my Roasted Roots article from the Autumn 2022 edition of Botanical Anthology.
For educational purposes only. Not intended for medical advice. Always consult your physician.
*This post contains affiliate links, which means if you choose to buy something from a link that I share, I will make a small percentage of the sale *at no extra cost to you*.
This article appears in the Winter 2022 edition of Botanical Anthology. You can purchase a digital copy HERE or a print copy HERE.
Along with the joys winter brings, it unfortunately also carries increased risk of illness in its wake. Between extra time spent indoors during colder weather and the season’s gatherings and festivities, exposure to many types of illnesses sees a dramatic uptick. To that end, immune support becomes a constant refrain.
Herbal allies can be indispensable when it comes to this winter barrage of germs. But what does “herbal immune boosting” mean? It is a many-pronged approach to keeping your body functioning optimally so that you might avoid some illnesses altogether, or at least lessen their severity. Different types of herbs work together synergistically to aid with this never-ending task.
Adaptogens Fatigue, burnout, and chronic stress are common problems that weaken the immune system and its ability to fend off illness. Adaptogenic herbs help restore balance and protect the body’s systems and processes to counter these effects, the immune system being an important beneficiary. Tulsi, astragalus, reishi and chaga mushrooms and licorice root are just a few examples of adaptogens.
Nervines Stress and insomnia deplete the body and create the perfect breeding ground for germs. Luckily, nervine herbs help combat both of these issues, and many are gentle and safe for everyday use for most individuals. As an added bonus, some nervines have antimicrobial properties, too. Gentle nervine herbs include chamomile, lavender, lemon balm, tulsi, rosemary, linden, hawthorn, and passionflower.
Diaphoretics Diaphoretic herbs are warming and promote circulation. Once sick, these herbs go on to help sweat out a fever and offer respiratory relief. These include yarrow, elderflower and berry, chamomile, ginger, catnip, cayenne, garlic, and linden.
Aromatics Aromatic herbs don’t just taste great—they provide important immune boosting actions, too. Most aid digestion, while also offering strong antimicrobial support. These germ-killers include ginger, cardamom, cinnamon, cloves, anise, allspice, rosemary, and fennel.
Antioxidants Antioxidants like vitamin C aid immunity by supporting and stimulating antimicrobial actions on a cellular level as well as protecting body tissues from damage. Antioxidant herbs that provide much-needed immune boosting include rooibos, rose hips, hibiscus, elderberry, orange peel, and raspberry leaves.
Alteratives Alterative herbs aid in detoxifying your body by supporting the organs and systems that handle this important task. You need your liver, kidneys, and lymphatic system in tip-top shape to fight off illness! This category of herbs includes echinacea, calendula, dandelion root, burdock root, and nettles.
There are countless combinations one can work with to create an immune-boosting herbal recipe. To make things a little less daunting, here is a simple tea as a starting point. It features elderberry, a tried-and- true immunity aid, but also rooibos, an oft-overlooked antioxidant powerhouse. There is a bit here from each of the above categories, and plenty to tempt the taste buds, as well.
Blend this combination of herbs as the recipe states, or use it as a jumping-off point to inspire your own immune supporting formulation!
Method Mix all ingredients except orange in a bowl. Transfer to an airtight container.
To make a single cup of tea, add 1 tablespoon to a tea strainer, eco-friendly tea bag, or French press. Pour about 1 1⁄2 cups hot water over the tea and steep for 5 to 10 minutes. Add fresh orange zest or orange slice and honey to taste, if desired.
Notes This recipe yields approximately 10 servings of tea. If making a small batch, measure the parts in teaspoons—it should yield about 2 servings of tea.
For educational purposes only. Not intended for medical advice. Always consult your physician.
*This post contains affiliate links, which means if you choose to buy something from a link that I share, I will make a small percentage of the sale *at no extra cost to you*.
DIY botanical hand soap is incredibly simple to make and can bring lovely, refreshing scent, moisturizing properties, and natural ingredients to the sinks in your home. It also makes a nice house-warming or holiday gift!
It is something extra special to concoct your own personalized soap from some of your favorite natural ingredients. You can capture the season, cozy vibes, and your favorite scents all in something you use many times a day! And the process of very easy and fun! My eight-year-old daughter especially enjoys creating this hand soap with me.
Simply combine castile soap, water, herb-infused oil (such as coconut, jojoba, sweet almond, or olive oil), and essential oils (these are optional but help add a stronger scent). You can also add ingredients like vegetable glycerine and/or aloe vera for extra moisturization, and vitamin E oil to extend the shelf life.
For this particular batch of hand soap, I invoked an autumnal energy by including rose-infused jojoba oil, orange essential oil, frankincense essential oil, cinnamon sticks, star anise, dried orange, and a few cloves. The dried botanicals and spices are added for accent and visual appeal, and they are hard enough so they won’t break down too much in the soap mixture to interfere with the soap. If you’d like, envision a warming and cozy intention while adding these to this soap your family and friends will use in your home.
Starting with a clean jar, add 1 cup water. Add 1/2 cup castille soap and all other ingredients. Replace lid and carefully swirl vigorously to mix. If the jar looks too empty, top up with a bit more water and castille soap.
The mixture will be a bit foamy at the top, and will be thin but luxuriously moisturizing for the skin.
Note: you may need to give it a swirl once in a while as the ingredients can separate while it sits and settles. Also, if very young children or anyone with skin sensitivities will be using the soap, you can omit the essential oils.
Would you make DIY hand soap? Which ingredients or scents would you use in yours?
For educational purposes only. Not intended for medical advice. Always consult your physician.
*This post contains affiliate links, which means if you choose to buy something from a link that I share, I will make a small percentage of the sale *at no extra cost to you*.
This time of year, the quest for protection from illness lines right up nicely with the folk idea of protection from negative energy, unfriendly spirits, and the like. Whether you are seeking one, the other, or both forms of protection, there is a simple and cozy way to invoke that sentiment, freshen your house, and refresh the energies of your home: herbal carpet powder!
Did you know that strewing herbs on the floor goes way, way back? From the ancient Romans to the Middle Ages, and even up to about the 18th century herbs were strewn over the floor with rushes and straw to release a pleasant aroma and repel unwanted pests. Some households swept them up each day and replaced them with fresh herbs, while others left them for a longer interval. Rosemary, lavender, chamomile, hyssop, sage, and marjoram were among the many herbs commonly used for this purpose. Modern carpet / vacuum powders aren’t left on the floor for very long—you let them sit for 15-30 minutes before vacuuming back up—but they certainly hearken back to this practice.
While you can easily buy ready-made carpet powders at the grocery store, it is incredibly easy and fun to make your own and stir a bit of intention and personalization into the mix. If you have pets and small children, it would be best to leave out any essential oils or only use the gentlest ones you’re already used to using around your small people and creatures. Otherwise, you can experiment and create your own blend that combines the scents and intentions you prefer!
For this recipe, I’ve used rosemary for protection and remembrance (for the upcoming sabbat of Samhain); allspice and cinnamon for prosperity, luck, and healing; and orange for lovely, cozy, and uplifting vibes. And all these ingredients have antibacterial and antimicrobial properties!
Mix ingredients well in a bowl and transfer to a glass jar. I used an empty Himalayan pink salt shaker jar because of the convenient shaker lid! Sprinkle on your carpet (and even wood or tile floors if you like), allow to sit for 15-30 minutes, and then vacuum up thoroughly. You can also sprinkle a bit of this powder around doorways and windowsills to repel insects (and maybe more? 👻).
For educational purposes only. Not intended for medical advice. Always consult your physician.
*This post contains affiliate links, which means if you choose to buy something from a link that I share, I will make a small percentage of the sale *at no extra cost to you*.
Mabon is almost here! Otherwise known as the Autumn Equinox, this sabbat marks the official beginning of fall, the second harvest festival, one of the two points in the year when day and night are equal, the height of preparations for the dark part of the year, and a day of thanksgiving and gratitude.
Depending on the year, my birthday falls right before or sometimes on Mabon (9/21), so it always feels *extra* special to me. I can always be counted on to make a bit of a fuss to celebrate the equinox! I suppose I may love fall so much because I’m a Mabon baby, but I think this most cozy, crisp, and magical time of the year would be my favorite regardless of my birthday.
My favorite flavor of autumn is…no, not pumpkin spice…but apple! And spiced apple, which is nearly the same as pumpkin spice, but with a different vehicle. I love pumpkin, don’t get me wrong—but apple will always be the flavor of September to me. So I am brewing up a simple and delicious batch of spiced apple cider for my family to enjoy this Mabon weekend.
In this recipe, apples are combined with vitamin C rich oranges and beneficial, warming, digestion-promoting, immune-boosting spices. This drink offers a cozy, warming, festive sip with many benefits!
Here is the recipe:
Materials—
½ to 1 gallon of fresh apple cider
2-3 apples, sliced
1-2 oranges, sliced
1 small to medium knob of fresh ginger, sliced, or 2 tsp dried ginger
To make a hot spiced cider, fill a large stock pot or slow cooker with the fresh apple cider, sliced apples and oranges, sliced ginger if using fresh, and cinnamon sticks. Place the rest of the spices in a cheesecloth bag or large eco friendly paper tea bag and add to the pot. Heat over low heat, stirring occasionally, and serve warm.
If the autumn equinox is still quite warm where you live, you can make this as a cold drink instead! Place all the ingredients in a pitcher in the refrigerator overnight. Try mixing it with sparkling apple cider, ginger beer, ginger ale, or Prosecco for a fizzy twist!
What are you doing to mark Mabon / the autumn solstice this year?
For educational purposes only. Not intended for medical advice. Always consult your physician.
*This post contains affiliate links, which means if you choose to buy something from a link that I share, I will make a small percentage of the sale *at no extra cost to you*.
This is an excerpt from the article Cinnamon, More than One Spice by Brighid Doherty featured in the Autumn edition of Botanical Anthology. A plant lover’s dream, it is a seasonal, plant centered quarterly publication bringing you over 50 articles from 49 contributors to incorporate herbs in your apothecary, kitchen, foraging and gardening, crafts, and celebrations.
To learn more about the similarities and differences between the two types of cinnamon plus their medicinal qualities check out our autumn edition. This herbal magazine, featuring remedies and recipes with medicinal plants for budding herbalists, can be purchased as a digital version here and as a printed version here.
Photo by Brighid Doherty
Breathe Easy Spiced Milk
This infusion is a nourishing combination of mullein, cinnamon, milk and honey that supports lung health. Whether the lungs have been exposed to excessive smoke or air pollution or experience chronic asthma, allergies, bronchitis or coughs, this remedy will help them function better. All of the ingredients soothe and nourish lung tissue. Mullein is a classic lung tonic herb. Cinnamon is warming, soothing and antimicrobial. Milk soothes lung tissue and provides important minerals allowing them to be calm. Honey sweetens and adds anti-microbial and soothing properties to the beverage.
Photo by Brighid Doherty
Materials
½ oz mullein leaves
2 c water, boiling hot
2 tbsp cinnamon chips or 2 quills
1-2 teaspoon each of cloves, cardamom, ginger, fennel seeds, optional
2 c organic whole milk or half and half
1 tbsp or more honey
1 quart mason jar and lid
Unbleached coffee filter paper and ceramic drip cup or fine mesh strainer
Small sauce pot
Method
Add mullein and boiling water to a quart mason jar and cover with a tight lid. Steep for 4-8 hours.
Strain the infusion into a small sauce pot. Add the milk, cinnamon and other desired spices. Simmer gently for 20-40 minutes.
Strain out the cinnamon and spices. Sweeten with honey to your preference. Pour into the quart jar to store.
Drink at least one cup per day. Enjoy warm or cold.
Store mullein infusion in the fridge for up to 1 week. Once the milk has been added it should be consumed within three days.
Notes
Mullein leaves have fine hairs that have the potential to irritate the throat when consumed. To avoid the hairs, mullein infusion is best strained through a fine mesh or unbleached coffee filter.
Premixed chai blends can be used instead of using cinnamon alone, or you can make your own spice blend.
Photo by Brighid Doherty
Brighid is a mother, gardener, herbalist, educator, podcaster, and author living on a bridged island in Maine. She is founder of The Solidago Herb School, The Healthy Herb Podcast, and author of Drinkable Healing Herbal Infusions. Connect with her @solidagoherbschool and solidagoherbschool.com
I decided to whip up an adorably tiny roller bottle of September-inspired perfume oil recently! I love teeny roller bottles because I can make a small amount to test out the scent combination, and I don’t have to worry about making too much if it’s something I’m only going to use for a short period because it’s intention is geared to a specific occasion or month.
The basis of this essential oil blend is Ho wood and benzoin, which are creamy, vanilla-esque scents that I find very cozy. Combined with these are notes that are spicy, woodsy, sweet, and a hint of floral. To me, this combination evokes early autumn: the sweet and creamy scents are rich, yet sunny and light, and the spice is subtle enough to hint at autumn without being too heavy.
If you have sensitive skin, you probably ought to cut back on the EOs when making this recipe, and you can leave out the cinnamon and cardamom if they might be irritating. (The cinnamon chips included will gradually infuse in the base oil anyway!)
And, as always, be sure to source and use essential oils responsibly and from reputable, sustainable sources. (Not an ad and not sponsored at all, but I get most of my essential oils from Mountain Rose Herbs and Simply Earth.)
Materials:
5 ml roller bottle
Dropper
Carrier oil of choice (I like olive oil even though it’s a bit unorthodox—I used calendula-infused olive oil to make it extra special!)
Cinnamon stick chips
Essential oils, in drops:
3 Ho wood
3 benzoin
2 cypress
2 sweet orange
1 geranium
1 cinnamon
1 cardamom
Method:
Add a few pieces of cinnamon stick chips. Fill the bottle about halfway with carrier oil using a dropper. Carefully add the essential oil drops, then top with more carrier oil—make sure to leave room to insert the roller ball top. Add the roller and cap tightly, shake to mix well, and let it sit a day or two before using.
The Herbology Faerie 