gifts in a jar – holiday tea blend

Consumable gifts are a great low waste options any time of the year. Who doesn’t like food?! Or a free jar? Over the years I have done baking mixes, soups, coffee, tea blends, and infused olive oils. Most ingredients can be sourced in bulk or even grown in your outdoor space. Gifts in jars are inexpensive, but made with intention and given with love.

Our family eats a truly astonishing amount of clementines over the holiday season, but the peels do not go to waste. Instead, they are given one more life before heading to the compost as a lovely addition to simmer pots or this holiday tea blend. Simply slice the peel into thin strips and let dry on a plate on your counter for a day or two. Store in an airtight jar once completely dry.

Some tips on giving gifts in a jar:

• Use a wide mouth jar! Sometimes you need to get your fist or a pestle in there and smush stuff down to make it all fit. 
• Check your math. Add up the dry ingredients in your recipe and choose your jar size accordingly.
• Check your math again! Scale up the dry goods you need based on the number of jars you are making. Relive the middle school trauma of multiplying fractions. This way you don’t run out of sugar or end up with 5 extra pounds of oats.
• Head to the bulk section. I like to get ingredients for this kind of project in jars because I can accurately gauge the amount.
• Set up an assembly line, one ingredient at a time for all the jars. A jar funnel is your special helper!
• Layer the ingredients for aesthetics *and* efficient packing. Put a fluffy ingredient (like flour) under an ingredient that can be packed down (like brown sugar or dried fruit).
• You can jazz up the lid with scrap fabric, craft paper, leftover yarn, etc.
• Attach a tag with baking/cooking instructions. (I typically never put who it’s from on the tag. It might not be the recipient’s jam, but they are free to regift it that way if they like.)

Winter Spice Holiday Tea Blend

Layer ingredients in a half pint (250 ml) glass jar:

• ½ cup black tea leaves (Earl Grey or similar)
• 1 organic orange peel dried and sliced into thin strips
• ¼ cup dried currants or cranberries
• 2 tbsp whole clove buds
• ¼ tsp nutmeg (optional)
• a few cardamom pods
• a few anise stars
• garnish with a large cinnamon stick, crush another one into the blend

These little jars make great gifts for teachers, neighbours, and coworkers. Gift alongside a cute mug or tea ball. Enjoy!