Was it just me or did anyone else have a bit of a time this week? All I know is that I was definitely not all here, maybe not all there either. All in all, I was feeling mighty unsettled and so I turned to the herbs with a vengeance. I was looking for something that might ease my spinny mind, my knotted tum tum, and perhaps help me get my feet back onto the earth and into the here and now.
Lots of people have their go-tos when feeling out of sorts. I have my teas. In keeping with the posts from earlier in the week, I got a little experimental adding a massive dollop of turmeric to my spice tea. It seemed to do the trick and given the amount of this sweet ambrosia I have been drinking all week, it is shocking that I haven’t turned completely yellow.
Turmeric tea is a serious drink, not for the faint of heart. It might just cure every last ache, pain, and whoa-is-me in your life (this might be an exaggeration a little but let me have it).
Why turmeric? How about these 15 reasons:
- Natural antiseptic and antibacterial properties to keep the infection away from cuts and burns.
- Natural liver detoxifier- is it possible that if we believe liver to be the seat of anger than turmeric can help release that anger? Hmmmm.
- May prevent and slow the progression of Alzheimer’s disease by removing amyloyd plaque buildup in the brain.
- Majorly powerful anti-inflammatory that works as well as many anti-inflammatory drugs but without the side effects.
- Has shown promise in slowing the progression of multiple sclerosis in mice.
- Natural pain killer. Yay more of this!
- Helps manage weight, and aid in fat metabolism
- A staple in Chinese medicine for helping lift mood in cases of depression
- Thanks to its anti-inflammatory properties, it is a natural treatment for arthritis and rheumatoid arthritis.
- Studies have shown that turmeric can boosts the effects of chemo drug paclitaxel and reduces its side effects.
- Accelerates wound healing and repairing of damaged skin
- Can help internally and topically with psoriasis and other inflammatory skin conditions.
- Wowzers does it help soothe upset stomach
- Helps to facilitate protein digestion
- A natural preventative against flu viruses.
I might just be able to go on forever. See we nutritionists all have our faves. Fave supplements, fave foods, gave green drinks, fave herbs… Turmeric has recently been added to my top 5 list of fave herbs. What else is on there right now? Well ginger for sure, passion flower is a must, I’ll take some goldenseal, and likely a little shtickle of gingko- though I am definitely impartial to the culinary herbs.
Anywhoozits- here is my recipe for turmeric tea.
Turmeric Tea
(single serving)
1 tsp cinnamon
pinch of clove
pinch of nutmeg
tsp fresh ginger (optional)
As much turmeric as you can handle! Start with a teaspoon and go up from there.
1-2 cups of water
Raw honey to sweeten
Mylk sub of choice (I went with fresh coconut milk but almond and hemp would both be delicious)
Slow and steady oven method
- Simmer herbs and water together for 10 mins
- Strain out and add honey and mylk
Fast and furious blender method
- Boil water in your kettle and add to blender (a blender with gradual speed increase will reduce likely hood of pressure from steam of boiled water exploding out of your belnder)
- Add in spices and blend until smooth and unified in colour.
- Strain out tea and add mylk and honey.
Hi Meagan, this tea looks absolutely Yummy!
I will try it today but only have ground cinnamon, nutmeg, clove and turmeric. Can I use them in the same quantity that you have in your recipe? Thanks
Turmeric is key. The rest is totally a free for all. Enjoy!
You did not just write “Mylk”.
I did Vanessa! Just for you my womyn…
I saw your “tweet” about this last week and have been drinking it almost every day since then. OMG, I LOVE it. I leave out the cloves (hate ‘em) and admittedly, I like a lot of honey in it. But it is SO GOOD!
And when I have leftovers, I put it in a mason jar in the fridge, and in the morning, I use the cold tea as the base liquid for my banana smoothies. Heaven!
What an awesome idea. I love that. You can also heat it up in a pot.
This is actually very similar to a nightly concoction I’ve been brewing too which is: 1 cup unsweetened almond milk + 1 tbsp of ground flax + couple of drops of stevia + as much turmeric as I can handle
I can’t wait to try your spiced up version!
Hope you’re feeling peppery and bright soon
I’ve been feeling something coming on…thanks so much for this! I really needed it!!
Yum, I’ve got a pot on the stove now — seems like just the perfect pick-me-up for the end of this crazy week!!!
Great idea – I’m always making my own version of chai using the same spices, but never thought to add the tumeric – clever girl M… I can’t wait to play, sip, drink and get even healthier – yay…. ruth@ruthshawyoga.com
Trying this ASAP. Yes, this week has been silly. <3
it is too early in the morning and i am up with my munchkins and laughing out loud that you read my post! i had NO idea you would “find”that! i do sincerely enjoy your blog…it is just so refreshing and easy to read! so thanks for doing it!
Can’t hide! I can see incoming links. That’s how I found you
Blushing from your praise.
Hi Meghan, thanksfor posting this wonderful recipe! I am always looking for ways to get in some turmeric, and this tea tastes great. I added in some cardamon, and a little cayenne pepper (I like it spicy), so it turned out like a turmeric chai. Yum! And now I also have a beautiful yellow colored blender : )
I love your blog, you always make me smile. Thanks for that too!
Awesome! I am drinking mine right now with cayenne in it. Keeping me warm that’s for sure.
I’ve never thought of something like turmeric tea, but it sounds amazing. And perfect for staying healthy and warm during this crazy winter!
Just tried this! <3
I also pressed it through a french press, but somehow it was too think and wouldn't strain well, had to let it trickle out reallllll slowly. Still tasted amazing though! thanks for this! i'm loving the benfits of the tumeric! <3 <3
I used coconut 'mylk', some vanilla bean, stevia&honey combo, and drink it with an extra stick of cinnamon for prettiness.
I made two pots this weekend, and even the boyfriend tried some.
I think cayenne will only help! Can’t wait to try it out as the new next batch! This is going to be my default — and it sure makes the place smell good!
Meghan, this is a genius and delicious recipe! I have been trying to find ways to get more tumeric in my diet….so this is perfect. Thank you
For all of you trying this tea…this may seem fairly obvious, but: do not brush your teeth after drinking this. I made that mistake this morning and now I have a funky ( but bright!) yellow tooth brush
[...] Telpner’s Turmeric Tea (like Chai, with Turmeric!) has been the new go-to drink around here. I even bought almond milk [...]
Turmeric is amazing!! The research on Alzheimer’s has also inspired research on eye health. (I have some info on my site, if anyone’s interested.) I love the idea of making tea out of it!
Is it possible to make the tea with fresh tumeric? I’ve only been able to find recipes using powdered tumeric. I always have fresh on hand.
For sure! Just simmer it for about 20 mins. I WISH all I could get was fresh.
[...] did not include any spices (it’s just as good without them). But I started drinking tons of turmeric tea, thanks to nutritionist Meghan Telpner, and one morning I decided to use the same spices in my [...]
I know this will sound a little silly, but how do you strain it? I tried a coffee filter and that didn’t work. I also just drank mine “straight” no milk – it was really yummy.
With a sieve. Simple as that!
I knew there were special benefits to tumeric but this drink sounds so delicious and very palatable!
I will try this for sure as I could use it for several of the cures listed. If I can’t have the tea daily, will a tumeric capsule do the trick just as well? I have some laying around that should be used up.
thanks once again for your wise words, Tara
i’ve been drooling over this recipe all week, and will be trying it tonight as i didn’t have tumeric.
Just had this with breakfast – yum!
I have to admit i was a little hesitant about this tea Meghan… but it’s SO good!!! What a great stress reliever last night! I love the chai flavors and such a great way to use tumeric. This may become a nightly routine!
It would definitely be a super health building one! And all those spices are great for balancing the blood sugar too!
Why do you have to strain it? Drank it tonight without straining and it was great.
I’ve been meaning to try this since you posted it and this morning thought i’d see about making a dent in the turmeric supply (we seem to accumulate it by not just small jars-full). It was just what i was hoping for. the cinnamon gives it a nice sweet spice, and the nutmeg a nice subtle floral hint, lovely way to have a decadent-feeling tea without the annoying caffeine jitters or chamomile tummy jumbles (chamomile and I do not get along). Now i may just have to try some of the other suggestions and recipes.
Thanks for the great blog. I was diagnosed with UC..ummm…nearly 12 years ago. Docs said diet wouldn’t matter. finally got sick of all the drugs (HATED Imuran, and couldn’t remember to take the mesalamine). Discovered if i don’t eat eggs or milk products, my gut is happy. also significantly reduced availability of processed foods; so vegan it is. and my gut has been behaving like a gut and not a foreign object. rather nice, really.
*i will however say that the hospital visit 8 years ago was a wake-up call and i appreciate the fact they could get me back on track. yes, surgery was mentioned, and numerous drugs tried. The infliximab did its job though and i got to go home. I prefer the method of changing lifestyle so that meds are not necessary rather than abusing the body and trying to fix it with meds. besides, there are so many yummy recipes and exercise is rewarding, and when your gut says your killing yourself, perhaps it’s time to listen and look at your life. I suppose i’m a bit dense and needed a bit more aggressive prodding than some
according to your # 3 – my grandfather has Alzheimer’s
while i don’t remember all of the details, my mother told me that a doctor did some research on my grandfather’s family and said that anyone in this bloodline should up their intake of turmeric so as decrease the chances of us getting Alzheimer’s. Turmeric seems to be a cure-all! thanks for sharing this. i am a tea lover and am definitely going to try out this tea! hugs!!
How about a Green Tea-Turmeric blend, and along with the Honey, add some Bee Pollen!!!
I wonder how much of the goodness of Turmeric dies in the boiling process?
Is Turmeric a root?
How do you buy this whole, and where in California?
Take care!
I have a question, do you think it would be all right to boil say a liter of plain turmeric tea from powder and store it in a plastic bottle at room temperature (here in the tropics that’s around 27-31 deg C) for a week? I only want to drink around a cup a day and I don’t want to be boiling so often since I only have limited access to a stove.
I would have recommend against that one- do you have cold storage? That would be the first recommendation and the second would be to find a glass bottle or jar. The potency will decrease over time so the fresher the better.
hi Megan,
Got your blogsite from my massage therapist. Where do you get tumeric root/ fresh tumeric? Is it callled anything else?
i have powdered tumeric but don’t know how active the ingredient is anymore.
thanks, Judy Hirsch
Fresh turmeric is tough to find sadly. You could try asian markets/china town or kensington if you are in toronto. Indian stores would also carry it. Otherwise- organic powdered would work.