We still have enough winter left to enjoy sitting down with a cup of hot tea. Here is a tea recipe you might try if you have some red hot candies. Don’t forget to pick some up on sale after Valentine’s Day.
Red Hot Cinnamon Tea Recipe
4 tsp. loose leaf black tea (or 4 tea bags)
32 red hot cinnamon candies
4 5-inch long cinnamon sticks, broken into 4 pieces
3 cups water, boiled
2 orange slices, halved for garnish
Place first 3 ingredients in a 1 qt. warmed tea pot.* Add water and let steep 3 minutes. Add half an orange slice to each cup and pour strained tea into each cup.
*A warmed pot is good because it helps keeps the tea warm longer.
I love tea cozies because they really help to keep your tea nice and hot. Even if you don’t have a cozy, try setting a saucer or fabric coaster on top of your cup of hot tea or folding a tea towel in half and wrapping it around your pot. Either one of these things help keep your tea nice and warm.
For you coffee drinkers: If I set my cup of coffee down to go in the other room for something, I will drop my tea cozy on top of it or set a saucer on it to keep it warmer for the couple of minutes I am away from it.
-Jill
Angie M.
I can’t wait to try this tea. Reminded me of how one of my cousins used to have hot apple cider with red hots. Yum!
Bea
I think I will have some of this wonderful sounding tea tonight. I am getting over a cold, and it will taste good. All the changes in the weather last week caught up with me. Especially the day the ice-cold winds were 55 miles an hour and blew snow drifts in my face. UGH!
Jill
Bea it sounds like you are getting over the nasty stuff which has been hitting everyone here maybe. It acts like a really bad cold and boy has it been hanging on. Hope you get better soon.
Anna
Jill, this sounds really yummy. And I have so many red hots left over from Valentine’s Day! Do you have any suggestions for substituting the cinnimon sticks?… I don’t have any in my pantry, and from following your advice, “I will make due until my grocery budget gets replunished”. By the way, thanks for all of your wonderful advice.
Jill
Anna you can use ground cinnamon. They usually say 1 1/2 tsp. ground =1 stick. I would start out with say half of that and keep adding until you get the flavor you like. If you don’t have ground cinnamon you could try making it with just the cinnamon candies because I have seen recipes with just that. If you don’t want to waste the tea bags etc. experimenting divide the recipe in fourths and try just one cup to start.
Bea
Jill, You are right. Nasty cold. I have been trying to drink more water. That helps, and the tea was great too. It was so warming and soothing. I love tea and I love cinnamon, so it was a nice combination. Thanks for your well wishes.
Busy Beekeeper mom.
Add a tablespoon of honey to the red hot tea, and it will really help a cold or sore throat due to allergies.
If you you are having problems sleeping through the night, and try taking a capsule or 2 (1/8 to 1/2 tsp) of _real_ cinnamon powder and a tablespoon of honey about 15 minutes before bed. (Just before brushing teeth is a good idea.) You have to take them together for it to work.
Busy Beekeeper mom.
You can take the real cinnamon & Honey in tea, or just wash the cinnamon caps down with something, and savor the honey, whichever you prefer.
Traci
I made this today. It’s a childhood fav. It makes a great iced tea!
Su Ann
OK, I give up…what is a “tea cozy”? thx
Jill
Don’t feel bad not everyone knows what a tea cozy is especially if you don’t drink tea. It is a covering placed over a tea pot to keep the tea warm but they say a picture is worth a thousand words so this might help more. Tea Cozy
Lilidh
Does anyone have an alternative to using the candies? I’d love to try this, but my husband is diabetic and the candies would be way too much for him.