Iced Chamomile Tea

It was 100 degrees around here yesterday, but my sure way to beat the heat (other than a trip to the beach!) is to sit down and relax with a nice cool glass of home-grown iced chamomile tea.

(I love this drink even more because the chamomile plants came up all by themselves this spring (they are notoriously vigorous self-seeders) - so no planting - in the rock garden we are ripping out this summer - so no weeding - and my girls also love chamomile tea, so they volunteered to pick it for me - no harvesting! My oldest daughter even boiled the water for me, so all I had to do was put the flowers in the tea ball, add some honey, and stir it all up! If it wasn't 100 degrees out, I wouldn't even break a sweat!)

Iced Chamomile Tea
Fill your tea ball with chamomile flowers (fresh, dried, or frozen) - or - use 2 chamomile tea bags (I like Choice Organic which is what I buy if I run out of home-grown flowers)

Boil 2 quarts of water; take off heat and add tea ball or bags. Steep for ten minutes. Add honey to taste.
Pour into a glass pitcher (I don't like to use plastic because of the heat) and refrigerate until ready to serve.

Chamomile is known for its relaxing and soothing properties, perfect for when you're winding down at the end of a long, hot day in the garden!