As the weather begins to warm up, so does my interest in smoothies. I know plenty of people enjoy them year-round, but when it’s cold out, frozen drinks just don’t appeal to me. Once spring and summer arrive though - it’s on! (My blender, that is.) This Hibiscus Berry Smoothie is my inaugural smoothie for the season, and it’s a great way to begin!

Over the past few months, I had been seeing lots of posts from my natural medicine community about hibiscus, specifically hibiscus tea. Hibiscus has wonderful nutritional benefits for heart health, including lowering blood pressure and reducing cholesterol, as well as supporting liver function. It’s loaded with antioxidants, which are what give hibiscus tea it’s vibrant red color.

Hibiscus tea is tart, and complements the flavor of strawberries and raspberries in this smoothie beautifully. To incorporate hibiscus into this smoothie, I brewed hibiscus tea from dried flowers, and froze it into ice cubes to blend into the smoothie. Hibiscus tea is absolutely wonderful on it’s own though! Hot or iced, with just a little sweetener, it’s delicious any time of day. Look for dried hibiscus flowers in the bulk section of your local grocery store, or in an aisle with South American or Caribbean foods (regions of the world where hibiscus has been consumed for centuries!). If you can’t find loose, dried hibiscus flowers, look in the tea aisle for sachets of hibiscus tea, and brew it the same way as below (using 2 tea bags for 2 cups of water).

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Original publication date: April 22, 2021