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Tuesday, August 2, 2011

Carrot Top Tea

"Waste not, want not", Grandma Ruth would tell me this when I was a small child. My mom has influenced my thinking on these matters as well. Each year as I harvested carrots, the tops went into the compost pile out back and I never gave another thought to it. This year, the tops were so fragrant and lovely, I couldn't bear to toss them out. Turns out Carrot Top Tea is pretty darned good for the body. I know, who takes the time to make tea out of stuff most people throw away. Well, if you are lucky enough to find carrots in the store, with fresh lovely tops still attached, then by all means make some tea. Or better yet, grow some carrots. Stop wasting carrot tops people. The tea is pretty decent, and the health benefits appear to be decent too.
*Disclaimer please read this fine print, I'm not an herbalist or anything of the sort.Good grief you have a mind of your own and I'm not promising miracle cures here.
I'm not a huge tea drinker. Mister likes his sun tea, and almost always orders iced tea at restaurants. "Is your tea fresh brewed?" I hear him say this every time we go to dinner. I will drink chamomile, or an apple tea from time to time. Again, none of this qualifies me as a tea aficionado. I'm just a frugal lady who grew some carrots.

Carrot Top Tea

2 cups of fresh carrot top leaves washed well
8 cups of boiling water

Pour the boiling water over the tops and allow to steep until the water is cold. Remove the leaves (strain) and drink the tea over ice or reheat to drink warm.



Some of the health benefits of eating carrot tops.

  • detoxify and strengthen kidneys
  • chewing carrot leaves can heal sores in the mouth
  • contains chlorophyll which is said to have positive effects on tumors
  • carrot greens are high in vitamin K
  • rich in protein
  • high in potassium
The high potassium can make the greens taste bitter. I really didn't notice an overly bitter flavor to the tea we made. I just wanted to mention this because everything I have read about the subject makes mention of bitterness. But, hey I like those sour gummy worms (oh no corn syrup).
All I can tell you is when I harvest carrots again, I'll be making tea.



8 comments:

  1. I love the carrot top tea!

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  2. I think it's amazing how two very basic things like water and vegetable leaves can make such a good beverage! Thanks for commenting. Stop by anytime.

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    1. me too... stumbled on this recipe through FB. Also love the blog and comment about single tasking...We all so need to do this to restore quality to our lives. I grow most of my own veggies and am always looking for natural ways/things. Thanks again.

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  3. I just went through a survival training refresher yesterday and learned the same thing. I have carrots growing in the back yard to as well. I am going to try this Recipe now. Thank you.

    AWF1 (NAC/AW) Bruce

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  4. I love it over ice with a packet of Trader Joe's stevia.

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  5. Nice blog and so informative thank you for sharing us such a great blog.

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  6. Thank you so much! I have finally found a way to strengthen my mother's kidneys, the doctors have told me that if she has a kidney infection one more time that she can go into dialysis.

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  7. I wonder if I can add carrot tops to a second fermentation of kombucha?

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