This text is part of the special Plaisirs booklet
The cool weather that sets in quietly, but surely, inevitably makes you want to prepare a good comforting hot drink. Go on a taste discovery of these boreal plants, delicious in infusions.
Labrador tea
First of all, you should know that Labrador tea actually has nothing to do with tea! The Greenland Ledon, its real name, is a shrub with small white flowers that grows in mixed and boreal forests such as here in North America. Its leaves, flowers, stems and flower buds can be eaten fresh or dried, as an infusion. The Aboriginals particularly like it for its therapeutic virtues and its anti-inflammatory and antibacterial benefits. Labrador tea has a very mild, fir-like, slightly tart taste.
To taste in herbal tea made with Labrador tea, apple and meadowsweet from Pilki, a unique blend with woody and spicy aromas.
Echinacea
A plant native to Quebec, Echinacea is an ornamental perennial that produces beautiful large flowers in summer. If it is very popular with Quebec gardeners who like to use it in their flower beds, it is also delicious in herbal tea and is said to have medicinal properties. Moreover, it was once used in alternative medicine to strengthen the immune system. If there are several species of echinacea, it isEchinacea purpurea, purple coneflower, which is the most popular. It tastes strong and a bit pungent, but mixed with other herbs, like peppermint, Echinacea is pleasant on the palate.
To be enjoyed in the Délice Boréal Arctic Blend herbal tea, where echinacea pairs well with elderflower, chamomile and coltsfoot leaves, among other herbs.
The chaga
Chaga is a fungus, more precisely a polypore, which is usually found on the dead wood of birch trees. Some people like to replace their daily coffee with a decoction of powdered chaga. When brewed, chaga resembles a cup of filtered coffee in color and smoothness. A cup of chaga takes a long time to prepare: you have to infuse the powder in cold water for at least 30 minutes, then heat it quietly, without ever boiling it, for an hour or more, to accentuate the taste. . It is possible to prepare a large quantity to keep in the refrigerator to have on hand every morning.
To taste: the wild chaga from Les Mauvaises Herbes in a natural version.
Myric balsam
The balsam sweetwort plant is found almost everywhere in Quebec in wetlands, especially near lakes and rivers. Its picking is special: the branches of the sweet balsam are covered with a sticky yellow resin which sticks to the fingers, but which nevertheless gives off a delicious smell of fir. These are the catkins, or the fruits of the plant, that are consumed as an infusion, once dehydrated. Due to the slightly bitter and peppery taste of sweet gale, it is sometimes called boreal nutmeg.
To be enjoyed in the wild Taiga herbal tea of Camellia Sinensis, each sip of which is reminiscent of the boreal terroir. Also contains fir bud, wild blueberry, spruce shoot and juniper berry.
Hemp
The cultivation of hemp was banned in Canada and Quebec in 1938, as part of the fight against drug use. It is only since 1998 that farmers here have been able to resume industrial hemp production. Unlike its cousin, cannabis, hemp has almost zero tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) content and therefore produces no psychotropic effects when consumed. When infused, its slightly bitter taste is reminiscent of hazelnuts and can therefore replace coffee.
To be enjoyed in the grilled hemp and organic blueberry drink Le Bachata from Les Siffleux, a dark infusion that is drunk well with a touch of milk.