Krista | ramblingtart

Teas, Tisanes, Infusions, and Decoctions

by Krista | May 11, 2021 | Autumn

It’s autumn here in Australia, resplendent with foggy, chilly mornings and lusciously golden days of sunshine and blue skies. It is hands down, my favourite time of year.

My gardens are full of herbs for me to harvest, dry, and store for making all sorts of good things to keep us healthy, cheered, and comforted through the frigid months of winter. This week I’m harvesting roses, lemongrass, lemon balm, lemon verbena, lemon thyme, rosemary, rosellas, lemon myrtle, cinnamon myrtle, anise myrtle, stinging nettles, burdock root, motherwort, wormwood, mugwort, spearmint, dandelion root, peppermint, elderflower, and elderberries. Soon our little house will be filled with a dizzying array of scents as the dehydrator works overtime drying everything for storage. Over the next few months, they’ll be turned into teas, tisanes, infusions, and decoctions. What’s the difference, you may ask? I’m so glad you did!

dried herbs for tea making

What’s the difference between teas, tisanes, infusions, and decoctions?

Tea

Tea is made from the leaves of the Camellia Sinensis plant. Black tea, oolong, white tea, and green tea all come from this plant and are uniquely processed to give them their distinctive flavour, fragrance, and colour. Tea is also any kind of tea blend that includes tea leaves such as Earl Grey, which is black tea with bergamot or Chai, which adds all sorts of warming spices to a tea base.

Tisane

Tisane (pronounced tea-zahn) is made from herbs and does not contain any tea leaves. This includes single herbs like chamomile or peppermint and blends that mix an assortment of leaves, flowers, barks, roots, fruits, seeds, and spices. If you make a chai with a rooibos base, it becomes a tisane instead of a tea. Tisanes always make me think of Hercule Poirot, who drank them to stimulate his little grey cells.

Infusions and Decoctions

Infusions and Decoctions are simply different words for soaking plant material in hot water to leach out the flavour, colour, and properties.

Infusions are generally made by pouring just-boiled water over soft plant material such as leaves and flowers, while Decoctions are made by simmering hard plant material such as bark, roots, and woody stems in water.

Infusions are best for leaves and flowers because you don’t want to stew them and end up with nasty flavour and fragrance. Decoctions are best for bark and roots because you need that intense heat and long cooking time to remove the goodness from the plant and get it into the water so you can drink it.

Infusions generally take 5-10 minutes for a tisane. I usually add a heaping tbsp of dried herbs to a mug, cover with one cup of just-boiled water, cover with a saucer and leave to steep 5-10 minutes. Then I strain it, sweeten it with honey or maple syrup, and sip happily. However, if I’m using the herbs medicinally, I’ll add 1-2 cups of dried or fresh herbs to a jar, pour in just-boiled water to the brim, cover, then let sit on the counter overnight. This produces a potent brew that can be used to treat symptoms or as a tonic to support good health.

Decoctions take longer. A good rule of thumb is 1-2 tsp of dried or fresh root, bark, or woody stem to 1 cup water. Bring the mixture to a boil, reduce heat, cover, and simmer gently for 15-20 minutes. Leave to cool. Strain, sweeten with honey or maple syrup, and drink.

herbal blend for an infusion

Elderflower Yarrow Tisane

One of my favourite tisanes for winter is made with elderflower, yarrow, peppermint, rosehips, rose petals, hibiscus, and calendula. Not only is it delicious, but it does wonders in combating cold and flu symptoms and really helps clear blocked sinuses so I can breathe and sleep well.

Ingredients:

1/2 cup dried elderflowers

2 Tbsp dried hibiscus flowers

1/4 cup dried yarrow

1/4 cup dried peppermint leaves

2 Tbsp dried rosehips

2 Tbsp dried rose petals

2 Tbsp dried calendula flowers

Directions:

Mix all ingredients together well and store in an airtight glass jar, such as a mason jar, out of direct sunlight.

When ready to drink, scoop 1 heaped teaspoon in a tea strainer and place in a heatproof mug or cup. Pour over just-boiled water, cover, and leave to steep 5 minutes. Sweeten with maple syrup, honey, or sugar.

dried calendula and jasmine

Chai Decoction & Infusion

My favourite winter tea is chai. It’s so creamy and spicy and is unique because it’s both a decoction and an infusion. I love simmering whole or ground spices on my stove as the winter sunshine floods the kitchen. The fragrance is so comforting and the steam so warming that the whole brewing process makes me feel happy and cosy.

Ingredients:

2 cups whole milk

1 cinnamon stick

10 cardamom pods (or 1 tsp cardamom seeds)

1 Tbsp dried ginger root

5 Tasmanian Mountain pepper berries (or black peppercorns)

1/2 star anise

2 clove buds

1 tsp fennel seeds

maple syrup or brown sugar to taste

10 tsp black tea leaves (or rooibos, if you want a tisane)

2 cups just-boiled water

Directions:

Place milk, all spices, and sweetener in a large, heavy-bottomed saucepan over medium-high heat. Bring to boil, reduce heat, cover, and simmer for 5-10 minutes. (Watch carefully because the milk will boil over if you’re not careful.)
While the milk mixture is simmering, place tea leaves in a small saucepan, cover with just-boiled water and leave to steep 5 minutes. Strain and throw tea leaves on the compost heap or in the trash.
When the milk mixture is done, strain and return to pot. Add tea and stir together. Taste for sweetness and serve immediately or let cool to room temperature then bottle and store in the fridge to serve as iced chai.

dried rose petals

If you would love to learn how to make your own tisanes and teas and other delectable and nourishing remedies, I am teaching three workshops on 5 June, 12 June, and 4 September. You’ll learn all about choosing the best herbs for you, great tips for blending and storage, and creative ways to use your concoctions in your cooking or home apothecary. I’d love to see you there.

What are your favourite beverages during cold months? xo

Choose Life, Choose Love

by Krista | May 5, 2021 | Autumn

When my middle brother Evan killed himself in February, my life changed forever. The loss of a sibling is always devastating, but there’s a special kind of pain when that loss is due to suicide. There are no answers that can assuage such grief, no explanations, no reasons, it must simply be felt, honoured, and endured.

Some of the grief can be shared, but most of it can only be borne privately, quietly.

I went to the mountains with my grief, alone in a wonky tent as rain poured and winds howled. It felt like the sky itself was grieving with me. I hiked for hours each day, getting drenched to the skin as I trudged and slipped my way down muddy trails through the rainforest, letting the storms camouflage my grief from the occasional passing hiker as I sobbed and hiked and talked to Evan. I cried until I couldn’t cry anymore, and then I laughed, knowing how Evan would shake his head at me and chuckle and say, “Girl, you’re crazy, but I love you.”

I talked to him as I hiked along swollen streams, clambered gingerly over moss-slick logs and boulders, and emerged from dense rainforest to breathtaking views of the plains far below. I pointed out amazing mushrooms and gorgeous lizards and the tiniest of wildflowers and grinned to myself at how exasperated he would’ve been at me stopping every few feet to take pictures of red berries and dripping ferns and incredible fungi.

I linked arms with grief and didn’t let go, didn’t turn away, didn’t worry one bit what anyone thought of the red-eyed woman camping alone in a tent nearly flattened by storms. I wrote my grief, drew my loss, trekked my pain, and each night, slept like a rock. Each morning I woke up feeling stronger, braver, more connected to the world. And when my final day in the mountains dawned, I was ready to go home to my Bear, our animals, our farm, our life.

I don’t know why Evan killed himself. I never will. But, as I hiked mile after mile, I came to peace with that. I don’t need to know. I can trust, accept, and respect his choice in spite of the horrendous pain it inflicted on those who love him. For him, it was the best possible choice, and I will honour it.

I will also wake up every day and make my best possible choices. I will choose life and choose love. I will embrace all avenues of healing possible and strengthen relationships with people who see me, know me, and love me faithfully. I will keep creating, keep building, keep loving, and keep looking for ways to grow, learn, explore, and delight.

And I’ll keep going back to the mountains to restore my soul, body, and spirit. xo

Light & Shadow

by Krista | Feb 21, 2021 | Summer

My brother Evan died last week. It was sudden, horrific, and utterly devastating to his wife, our family, and all those who loved him.

For days I felt like I couldn’t breathe. Grief is like that. It snatches all that is easy and familiar and makes it feel impossible: breathing, eating, sleeping, connecting, laughing. But every day, somehow, I wake up and do those impossible things.

I try to link arms with grief, letting it have my attention whenever it demands it, catching my breath in the moments it releases its death grip on my heart. I see grief as my reminder that I have given and known love. If I hadn’t, grief wouldn’t be here.

I talk to Evan a lot. When I feed the animals and water the gardens; when I’m making dinner or can’t sleep at night. I tell him how much I love him, how much I miss him, and how angry I am at him for leaving us and breaking our hearts. I remind him of funny stories from our childhood, forgive him for the times he hurt me, and thank him for the ways he inspired and strengthened me.

I have two pieces of paper that I write on: Evan – Good Memories, Evan – Bad Memories.

Sometimes death drives us to elevate people to sainthood or heroism and I don’t think that’s honest or fair. We are all made of light and shadow, and to deny that is to deny the humanity that connects us.

So, as I remember Evan – Light Evan and Shadow Evan – I write those things down. Sometimes they’re things that make me cry so hard I feel like I will break in two, other times they make me laugh until I’m doubled over, tears of hilarity streaming down my face. Mostly they’re just little nothings, the simple, quiet things that made him, him. I’ve got light and shadow too. And I hope that when it’s my turn to go, my people will remember them both and love me still.

I recently read something Evan wrote about a particularly difficult time in his life:

“You know what though… I’m glad we went through that. The most unbreakable bonds are those forged in the fires of hardship and difficulty…Not being able to do all the things we wanted to do and dreamed of doing was exactly what we needed to evolve… it took away the external distractions of material things and activities and forced us to look inwards. It forced us to face the inner demons we avoided and address our weaknesses. We resisted at first, but then it became necessary for survival. We had to change our minds, we had to change the way we perceive things happening. Life is a never-ending succession of lessons to be learned…The inner work we put in will allow us to move on to the next lesson… let’s become life lesson experts together, let’s see every problem as an opportunity to create a solution… our own little life game we’ll play.”

These words make me smile because they are so Evan. In many ways, he was a hermit. He only had so much energy for people and then he was DONE and would have to skedaddle into silence until he was ready to connect again. Then he’d swoop in out of nowhere like a hurricane of love and encouragement and support, the best cheerleader you could ever hope for, brimming over with all the wisdom and affection he could lavish on you until he disappeared again. Like a burly Viking fairy godmother. For a long time that hurt me. It felt like rejection and abandonment every time he’d disappear. But then I realised it was just him, his light and shadow, and with understanding, came peace. I could be my own cheerleader, my own rock of support and love and encouragement. I could take those Viking fairy godmother moments from my brother and speak them to myself every day. I could take the pain I felt from his disappearances and make sure I don’t do that to my people. Just because I understand his shadow side, doesn’t mean I need to repeat it.

I love that Evan never stopped learning and growing. Ever. I loved our Viking fairy godmother chats because they were chockablock full of all the things he’d been pondering and wondering and thinking through in his hermit time. His last message to me was brimming with love and affection. He told me how proud he was of me for facing the traumas of my past and making a new, beautiful life out of the ashes of the old one. He was so happy I had found Bear and that I was safe and loved and had an amazing tribe of people who truly have my back. He never called me Krista, only Girl. “Girl,” he’d say, “You’ve got this. You’re amazing and strong and smart and creative. I love you and I’m proud of you.”

I can’t travel to the States for Evan’s funeral, so Bear and I are having a ceremony here too. Evan always wanted a Viking funeral, so we’re building a Viking longboat to honour him. I think he’d smile at that.

“Girl,” he’d say. “That’s awesome.”

Down by the River

by Krista | Jan 29, 2021 | Summer

The wind is hurtling through the trees this afternoon bringing glorious coolness that made it downright pleasant working outside. Bear and I designed, cut, shaped, and sanded cutting boards for my Etsy shop today, stopping regularly for chats and cuddles with the dogs and basking in cool breezes in the shade of the shed. I love working with him and working with wood, getting covered in fragrant sawdust, seeing the wood grain come through beautifully as we sand away layer after fine layer. Soon I’ll find a comfy spot and sit down to wood-burn designs into each board, oil them with linseed oil, then wrap them in oh-so-cheery Christmas paper to send to clients around the globe. I know it’s a tiny thing, but it makes me happy to be able to turn a simple and practical board into something just a little bit magical to bring joy to folks as they chop onions for soup or mince fresh herbs to add to a salad. I think even little bits of magic or beauty can make the difficulties of life a bit easier to bear.

This week I had another wonderful kinesiology session with my dear friend, Kerry, and started physical therapy to help my lungs get strong and healthy again. It’s been over a year since I could breathe properly, but each week it gets easier and that delights me no end. Two weeks ago I was able to sleep through the night, last week I got to start exercising again, going for short walks before my chest started rattling and wheezing. Today I was able to work outside with Bear and there’s no rattling or wheezing!! Hooray!!! We’re big into celebrating small achievements over here, so it’s ice cream for all after dinner tonight.

Yesterday I was in town for a full day of meetings, so I packed a delicious lunch – smoked trout crepes and green bean salad with feta and basil – and drove to my favourite spot by the river.

It’s a gorgeous place, the riverbanks lined with wildflowers and lush, green grass and towering gum trees filled with hundreds of white cockatiels riding the branches swaying in the wind. It’s a lovely spot for resting and daydreaming and planning.

I love sitting there, my car pulled right up to the water’s edge, watching the river, the birds, and the grasses and flowers dancing with the breeze.

Normally, there’s not a soul there, but yesterday who should appear but my friend Kathryn! It was so fun to see her and catch up on the last few months and get excited about going hiking together again once my lungs are better. She leads adventure therapy outings all over the region – mountain biking, hiking, camping, the works. I love going adventuring with her and discovering hidden gems of natural beauty in the mountains and forests near us.

After she left I hunkered down again, smiling contentedly as I finished eating and spent time writing in my journal, reading a little, and looking out the window a lot. All of a sudden, all the cockatiels decided it was time to mosey along and the sky was filled with hundreds of birds, their white feathers brilliant against the green of the trees as they swooped and soared. Such moments are breathtakingly wonderful.

Eventually, it was time to return to work, but I returned with a light and merry heart, bolstered by wondrous nature and a chance encounter with a lovely friend.

Back on the farm, the sun is sinking lower in the sky. We’ve tucked all the animals away for the night with plenty of food and water, work is done for the week, and now we get to start the weekend.

Tomorrow there are fallen trees to chop for firewood, a new fence to build, and trees to prepare for planting down the driveway to replace all the ones we lost in the drought. But this evening we’ll rest, eat our celebratory ice cream, and watch a movie. It’s going to be a good weekend. xo

Planning My Good Life

by Krista | Jan 10, 2021 | Summer

When I look outside today I can’t help but smile. There is green grass as far as I can see, across the farm yard, over the hills, and disappearing into the woods. New Year’s Day gave us the greatest gift – a deluge of rain. My joy and relief is deep, my gratitude unbounded. It was such a wonderful way to start this crazy new year, a vivid reminder that no matter how bad things get, the good will come.

I worked right up until Christmas Eve so I could have a proper holiday. Two full weeks of all the things that restore and rejuvenate: naps, good food, watching rain fall, reading books, coloring, and cutting out pictures and words for my 2021 vision board.

Creating a vision board each year has become a treasured tradition. I love removing last years images and phrases, smiling to myself at how they unfolded over the year in mostly unexpected ways, observing how much I’ve changed, grown, and learned, noting which values stayed the same and which ones altered. It’s such a good time of reflection, gratitude, grieving, letting go, then shifting into this new year with the dreams, goals, plans, and hopes I have now.

This year I put my vision board together on the day domestic terrorists broke into the Capitol in DC. Watching the horrible scenes unfold filled me with grief, anger, and a deep sense of helplessness. I let myself watch and feel and talk out everything with Bear, and then I turned away from what I have no control over, to something I do: planning the life I want to experience this year.

There are things I want to grow, make, build, see, explore, purchase, taste, and share.

I want a chicken that lays blue eggs, a potting shed with all my tools at the ready, and coffee dates with people I love, respect, and enjoy.

I have plans for hikes in the rain forest, camping in the mountains, cheese-making, and wine-brewing.

I’ll continue to study more about indigenous land care, history, and traditional medicine.

I want to get better at foraging and fermenting, learn how to make our orchards and vineyards more productive, and plant more flowers.

Some of the things on my vision board are obvious, but others are special secrets known only to me. Special things I’m treasuring until I’m ready to share them with the world.

The world may feel topsy-turvy, wobbly, and wonky, but we still have choices, so many choices that will make our lives, and the lives of our loves, so much better and easier.

What are some good things you’re choosing for your life this year? xo

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