Warm up with tea
- Grace Bartlett begins her gold medal run in the Saturday mass start freestyle at Mount Van Hoevenberg during the Empire State Winter Games.(Provided photo — Jack Henry/Newhouse School)
- Competitors in the mass start freestyle at Mount Van Hoevenberg begin Saturday’s race in the Empire State Winter Games in Lake Placid. (Provided photo — Jack Henry/Newhouse School)
- Tea and muffins (Provided photo — Yvona Fast)

Tea and muffins (Provided photo — Yvona Fast)
Tea 2025. Warm up with a hot cup of tea!
It’s Carnival Week! Bring along a thermos of tea. And after coming in from wintery fun, sip your favorite tea to warm and hydrate.
After water, tea is the world’s most widely consumed beverage. The British love tea. Russians love chai.
Around the world tea is known by a variant of these two words. For example, the French say the and the Spanish word is te. The Russian chai is chay in Hindi, shay in Arabic and chai in Swahili. Of course, there are a few variants — the Polish word for tea is herbata.
Dutch traders transported tea leaves by boat in the 17th century. Silk traders brought the Chinese beverage by land through central Asia to places like India and Russia.
But what is tea?
Tea is a healthy beverage. Antioxidants, including polyphenols and catechins (plant flavonoids) and epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG). These are responsible for many of its cardiovascular benefits, which include lowering cholesterol and triglyceride levels and reducing fatty build-up in arteries. It also boosts the immune system and may lower cancer risk.
The tea plant, Camellia sinensis, is an evergreen native to the Orient. The beverage was known in China 5,000 years ago. It yields white, green, black, oolong and pu-erh tea depending on when the leaves are harvested and how they are processed.
Oxidation begins after the tea leaves are harvested. The process of drying, rolling and heating the leaves increases the oxidation.
White tea is the least processed, with the mildest flavor. The leaves are harvested early when the buds are tightly enclosed. They are not crushed, so there is little oxidation.
Green tea was first brewed during the reign of Emperor Shennong in 2737 B.C. Fresh leaves are harvested in the morning, heated immediately and often brewed the same evening. This does not allow them time to wither or oxidize. It retains its chlorophyll and green color, as well as tannins, minerals and vitamin C. Its flavor is subtler than black tea but a bit sharper.
Green tea has less caffeine than black tea, so it doesn’t cause insomnia or nervousness, although it is a mild stimulant.
Oolong tea is slightly oxidized, falling between green and black teas, with the freshness of green tea but the complexity of black tea. The leaves are dried and rolled, then fired to stop the oxidation process.
Black teas are fully oxidized, and brew to a brown hue. The leaves are dried, rolled and crushed, activating the oxidation process which turns the leaves black. The caffeine content ranges from 40 to 60 milligrams of caffeine per 8-ounce cup.
Pu’erh teas, a specialty of China’s Yunnan Province, are aged and fermented.
Since the Ming Dynasty (1368), Chinese teas have often been mixed with spices, floral essences or fruit to create complex flavors. One of the most popular flavored teas is Earl Gray, flavored with bergamot. Others include Lapsang Souchong, Rose tea, Caramel tea and fruit-flavored black teas. Masala chai-spiced tea is of Indian origin and is flavored with cardamom, ginger, clove and cinnamon. It is traditionally made with milk rather than water and sweetened.
Herbal teas are infusions of herbs; they do not contain caffeine and have many health benefits. Popular herbs for tea include culinary herbs like thyme, mint or sage (leaves); grasses like lemongrass, flowers of hibiscus, clover or chamomile, roots like ginger or dandelion. There is rosehip, lavender, violet, rosemary, lemon balm lemon verbena and rose geranium.
Yerba Mat is made from a South American holly plant. It is high in Vitamin C, potassium, magnesium and manganese, and acts as an appetite suppressant.
Most infusions of herbs offer health and nutritional benefits. Some are good stress relievers; others may help you relax and sleep. Raspberry leaf and strawberry leaf are high in vitamin C.
Native Americans made tea with pine needles (white pine is best) and balsam fir. While these are best harvested when the trees are budding in early spring, you can still go out now and harvest some needles; just cut off any brown ends.
Another local tea in our Adirondack region is chaga, made from a fungus that grows on birch trees.
Tea can be used in cooking. For example, use tea instead of water to cook pasta or rice.
My favorite are fruit teas: peach, orange, lemon, currant, aronia.
Take time to drink tea, dance and smile at life.
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Herbal Tea Infusion
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Ingredients:
1 teaspoon herb
1 cup (8 oz.) water
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Directions:
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To make herbal tea, boil a cup of water, remove from heat and add a teaspoon of the herb. Let it steep for about 10 minutes until you have an infusion. Strain and drink.
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Pine Needle Tea
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Ingredients:
1/4 cup white pine needles
12 oz. water
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Directions:
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Chop needles coarsely with a sharp knife. Place in bottom of a mug. Boil water. Pour in about 12 oz. boiling water. Let steep until needles go to the bottom of the cup. Strain. Drink as is, chill, reheat, add honey, sugar or lemon to your taste.
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Maple Chaga Tea Sauce
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Ingredients:
2 teabags or 2 Tablespoons chaga tea
1 cup boiling water
3 tablespoons maple syrup
2 teaspoons cornstarch
2 teaspoons cold water
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Directions:
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Place teabags in a small saucepan and pour hot water over them.
Steep for 5 minutes. Remove teabags.
Add 3 tablespoons maple syrup. Stir to combine.
In a small bowl, mix the water into the cornstarch, then stir into the saucepan with the tea. Bring to a simmer and stir just until the mixture thickens slightly.
Serve over fruit.