I started this short series to share real easy ideas and recipes to make Christmas gifts from the kitchen, simple but delicious treats for special friends or family.
These gifts from the kitchen are made with love, they come from the heart and mean much more than commercialized gifts in the stores.
I've been having fun making these as I knew exactly who I was making the various treats for.
I started with Drunken Fruit, to be enjoyed with Vanilla Ice Cream, and when I turn the bottles over now and see the rich colours of the syrup, I can still smell the heady spicy aromas of Cinnamon & Orange Zest from the Brandied Prunes. I know exactly who needs a little spice in their lives so those friends are going to get one of those added to their Christmas gift hampers ;)
Today I will show you how to make a deliciously spiced herbal tonic wine infused with Cassia Cinnamon bark, Star Anise, Cloves, Peppercorns, Nutmeg, Orange & Lemon peel and Rosemary, a creation of my mother, aka Ouma Lily.
Similar to mulled wine, but no added sugar and no cooking, simply an infusion of spices and herbs in a 1:1 blend of sweet red and dry red wine. The herbs and spices have to infuse for at least one to two weeks before opening.
Vintage labels designed especially for my series by my son's super talented girlfriend
Simply pour equal parts of sweet and dry red wines into a large jar & stir, adding a few sprigs of fresh Rosemary, Cassia Cinnamon bark, Star Anise, Cloves, Peppercorns, Nutmeg and Orange & Lemon peel. Always remember not to overdo it, you just want a hint of herbs & spices, go easy on the cloves especially.
Pour into bottles, seal & leave to infuse, turning the bottles once a day to let the herbs and spices mingle. These make lovely gifts and a quirky touch is to include a card listing the health benefits of having one glass at night as per Ouma Lily's prescription and a disclaimer about overdosing!
You can heat this a little and enjoy a warming drink in winter, but do not let it come to boil or most of the alcohol will evaporate.
Health benefits:
Red wine on its own taken in moderation has many benefits:
Full of antioxidants, boosts immunity, increases HDL cholesterol and reduces LDL cholesterol— prevents clogged arteries and heart disease.
Contains resveratrol which slows down ageing, improves blood flow, brain function and memory, has ant-inflammatory properties, protects against bone loss and increases bone density, thus helps with osteoporosis.
Added benefits of Ouma Lily’s Herbal Tonic Wine:
- Rosemary has antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties, enhances memory and concentration, contains carnosic acid which can fight off damage by free radicals in the brain, is an anti-tumor agent plus many more benefits. However do not overdo rosemary as there are side-effects when taking large quantities, as all herbs are powerful indeed!
- Cassia Cinnamon bark has numerous powerful medicinal properties - anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, fights heart disease in the same way red wine does, may protect against cancer, fights bacterial as well as fungal infections, has a powerful anti-diabetic effect plus many more health benefits.
- Star Anise is an antioxidant, contains Vit A & C, aids digestion and helps with coughs and flu.
Quirky claim - Star anise is said to improve sex drive ;) - Cloves has anti-viral properties and improves digestion.
- Peppercorns—the king of spice has numerous health benefits; cancer prevention, alleviates depression and improves brain function, digestion, nutrient absorption, is an anti-oxidant, promotes a healthy heart, prevents atherosclerosis.
Quirky claim - Peppercorns is said to prevent grey hair, pity I was not aware of this or I would have overdosed on this ;) - Nutmeg is believed to improve cardiovascular disease and boost heart function, reduce fatigue, stress and improve concentration, also great for detoxing the kidneys and liver.
- Orange peel contains flavonoids - antioxidant compounds that help prevent cancer and heart diseases, prevents allergies, help remove phlegm, bad breath and fights infection.
- Lemon Peel contains high levels of Vitamin C and calcium thus improves and maintains bone health, prevents inflammatory polyarthritis, osteoporosis and rheumatoid arthritis, cancer and heart disease, boosts immunity and digestion.
Disclaimer
Ouma Lily will not be held responsible if anyone suffers ill effects as a result of overdosing on her Herbal Tonic Wine ;)
One last look for all our busy people:
I do hope you've enjoyed this series; it's almost closing time so for the final post in this series I will give you a couple of ideas for gift packaging just in time for Christmas.
LINKS TO THIS SERIES
1. Gifts from my Heart, Gifts from my Kitchen #1 - Drunken Fruit
2. Gifts from my Heart, Gifts from my Kitchen #2 - Passionfruit Curd & Apricot Mustard
4. Gifts from my Heart, Gifts from my Kitchen #4 - Indulgent Gift Hampers
6. Gifts from my Heart, Gifts from my Kitchen #6 - Magical Shortbread Cookies
Thank you for stopping by
Comments, upvotes & resteems all much appreciated :)
Copyright @lizelle - All Rights Reserved
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Wow thank you so very much @adsactly and @princessmewmew, I really appreciate your wonderful support!
Hello @lizelle, thank you for sharing this creative work! We just stopped by to say that you've been upvoted by the @creativecrypto magazine. The Creative Crypto is all about art on the blockchain and learning from creatives like you. Looking forward to crossing paths again soon. Steem on!
Thank you so much @creativecrypto!
I did it! And I lovedddd it merry christmas
I hope you enjoy it, Merry Christmas to you as well :)
The second dat iT was even nicer
Congratulations! This post has been chosen as one of the daily Whistle Stops for The STEEM Engine!
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Thank you so much @thesteemengine!
You will seriously make me return to my drinking days Lady Lizelle and I can't blame your ouma! Blessings!
Now we don't want that do we, ouma Lily would be mortified ;)
Blessings to you and your family this Christmas day!
Omg! This is a must try since I love wine & herbs ❤️
Amazing benifits.
Bookmarked & resteemed
Thank you so much for that @ joyrobinson, hope you enjoy it!
Hi lizelle we met a few months ago but I lost track but you came by in comments at a friends blog and I just read All the recipies for christmas 💃👍💪 so great. I am so making the wine. Going to get the ingredients today and Will tag you while making it. Thanks great blog.... and have a wonderful christmas week 😉
So nice to see you again @brittandjosie! So glad to hear that you're going to make the herbal wine, look forward to seeing your version ;) Thank you for your lovely feedback and support! Wishing you and your family a wonderful Christmas time :)
Same to you and your loved ones on to the city for the ingredients
I have seen many recipes of hot wines in Steemit I really did not know about the hot wine until this year that I am in Steemit it seems an interesting recipe that I hope to prepare
Merry Christmas my friend @lizelle
Hope you enjoy it @andrina, it's always so nice seeing you!
Wishing you and your family a blessed Christmas as well :)
Another amazing post! Another recipe to bookmark! Thanks for sharing.
Thank you so much @viking-ventures!
Such a wonderful series! I love this idea. Especially with those fabulous homemade labels! 😍
I really had fun doing this series, quite excited to start packing it today;) Thank you for your support @plantstoplanks, wishing you and yours a merry Christmas if I don't see you before then :)
This is so beautiful @lizelle. You have shared a lifetime of beautiful gifts which you have created over the years. It is so kind of you to want to share this with others. Absolutely amazing my friend!
Ah thank you my friend, I've really enjoyed making all of these and writing up the posts!
Wishing you and your family a wonderful and blessed Christmas if I don't see you before then :)
Now things are heating up in the kitchen @lizelle this looks and sounds simply amazing with the infusion of herbs and spices. Another great treat for people to try wherever they live in the world.
Thank you @joanstewart, and the beauty of it is that there's no cooking! Appreciate your feedback :)
I love this recipe!
Thank you @belleamie!
I never try doing that to red wine. All the food look good.
Thank you!
Howdy tonight lizelle! wow this is a spectacular post! Your mother was a wine grower or producer? I've never heard of herbal tonic wine before so this was very informaional and educational!
Hi @janton, no this is just a recipe Mom and Granny concocted during difficult years as a medicinal tonic, thanks for stopping by :)
oh ok, but it sounds like a wonderful recipe to use these days too isn't it?
Oh for sure @janton, that's the beauty of it!
Hope you had a lovely Christmas day :)
Howdy lizelle! well Ma'am Mrs. J and I didn't really have Christmas this year because she worked 12 hour shifts on Christmas Eve, Christmas Day and then today from 6pm to 6am so obviously we didn't do much but that's fine. We have no family in Texas and no kids are around so no big deal. did you have a big family gathering?
We were also orphans this year, the kids did not come down so invited friends for lunch and later joined family for a post lunch gathering, was a change, not hectic at all, but needed a quieter Christmas this year as we're really busy in our little bnb!
oh how cool! you guys have a bnb?! so you come up with all these wonderful food dishes that you use your bnb guests to experiment on? lol.