Late last summer I wrote about my love for Diet Pepsi and my reasons for kicking the unhealthy habit. If you haven't read my article, Why I Gave Up Diet Pepsi, I'll wait right here while you do………..So as I was saying, I kicked that habit to the curb cold turkey and haven't missed it. Both my husband and my brain have thanked me ever since. When giving up an unhealthy habit it is often recommended to replace it with a healthy habit. And this is exactly what I did. I traded in my love for diet pop for a love for tea.
I was never a tea drinker, in fact I didn't even like it, but in my search for a little flavor in my water, I decided to give it another chance. After all, both green and black have many health benefits. In my quest to learn to love this healthy healing hot or cold libation, I have tried my share of tea brands and varieties. What I have found is I love iced green tea and all the different flavors it comes in. I also enjoy iced black tea. I don't care for, at all, hot green tea, blech. On the other hand, I love hot black tea, not plain though, it has to have some flavor. I doctor up my teas with lemon juice, almond milk, coconut milk and stevia.
If you are kicking the soda habit or haven't ventured into tea drinking, may I present to you my two favorite teas. If I could only drink two teas for the rest of my life, these are the two I pick. You can trust me, and give them a try, or let your own tastebuds do the talking by sampling all the teas on the market. If you are like I was and don't think you like tea, give these two a try. Oh and by the way, both of these are decaffeinated. I ditched caffeine back in January.
The Republic of Tea Daily Green Tea
I love Iced Green Tea!
This makes the best iced green tea when combined with lemon juice and stevia. I drink just about a pitcher of this every day. No kidding. It is that good. I also like to combine this with the flavored varieties of green tea like Pomegranate and Wild Berry. While I love the flavored teas, I find they are too strong in flavor alone and need to be “watered” down a little. We have an iced tea maker, which is very convenient in making the perfect pitcher of tea every time. If you don't own one, consider getting one, or make your tea using this method.
Here is how I make the perfect pitcher of tea:
8 Tea Bags
1/4 c. Organic Lemon Juice
heaping 1/8 tsp. NuNaturals Pure White Stevia Extract Powder
Tea can impede the absorption of iron from fruits and vegetables. Adding lemon will counteract this problem. It also adds a great flavor!
Before moving on, I have to add my two teenagers love iced green tea. In fact, so do my nephews and niece. When they come to visit I always make sure to have a pitcher of Pomegranate (it is pink) for them and tell them it's juice. They don't know the difference and they love it.
The Republic of Tea Vanilla Almond Black Tea
Vanilla Almond Black Tea is the Bomb!
My new favorite black tea for two reasons. First, I just discovered this and instantly fell in love and two my previous favorite, Hot Cinnamon Spice made by Caribou Coffee, was discontinued. If you like vanilla and almond then this is the tea for you. The aroma of this tea is ahhhmazing, I could smell this all day long. I traded in my afternoon cup of decaf coffee for this and haven't looked back.
Here's how I make the perfect cup of hot tea:
2 Tea Bags
8 oz. Hot Water
1/4 c. Homemade Almond Milk
12 drops NuNaturals Pure Liquid Vanilla Stevia
Steep the tea bags in hot water for 5 minutes. Add a dash of almond milk along with stevia and enjoy!
In a very close second place, when it comes to hot tea, is my homemade Chai Tea. This takes just a little longer to make but it never disappoints either.
I'll save my love for coffee and tea mugs for another post. We all have a favorite mug, don't we?! My absolute beloved mug of all time, from a dear friend, recently broke. So bummed. It was from Jamaica, maybe I'll be able to pick one up on our upcoming Low-Carb Cruise. At any rate, check out this mug of a different kind……
I Absolutely Love This Mug!