Orange Mint Green Tea
Did you know that oranges are considered a staple of any weight loss diet? Citrus has been known to be a powerful nutritional supplement, but oranges specifically with their 45, vitamin rich and filling calories, are the star of this quick recipe. Research has shown links between low vitamin C levels and a high Body Mass Index, so infusing your Lipton Green Tea with oranges and hiking up your vitamin C levels makes weight loss sense. It doesn't hurt that the bonus take away here is that you are boosting your immune system as well.
The Journal of Functional food cites an animal study, that states that orange peel extracts, black
tea extracts, and caffeine create a powerful combination of anti-obesity fighting agents. Since green tea and black tea come from the same leaf (find out more about that here) you will find that your food cravings and resulting binge eating will be greatly curbed by drinking one to three cups
of this yumy recipe a day.
Green Tea is a mood enhancer as well as a powerful metabolism booster, making it a powerful weight loss aid as well. Middle Eastern cultures cherish mint leaves and adding them to tea is a tradition that is ingrained into the history of the region. However this little herbal hero is also packed with essential oils that have antioxidant properties. These oils are released when the leaves come into contact with hot water, along with strong antimicrobial and antiviral agents.
Ingredients
- 1 bag Lipton Green Tea with Mint
- 8 ounces of hot water
- ½ small orange
- 2 fresh mint leaves
- 3 spirals of orange peel
- a pinch of cinnamon
- 1 Tbsp of honey
- Ice, to chill
- Prepare Lipton Green Tea with Mint by pouring hot water (not boiling) onto the tea bag , let it steep for 5 minutes and then remove the tea bag. If you prefer a stronger tea, you can leave the tea bag in longer.
- Squeeze half of your orange into a separate cup and add the fresh mint leaves along with the orange peel spirals and the pinch of cinnamon to the orange juice and let them muddle.
- Once the tea has cooled slightly, pour tea over ice, add your infused orange juice mix. You can include the mint leaves and spirals or leave them out, according to how strong you want the added taste to be. Orange spirals are very high in nutritional value (6 grams) of orange peel provides 14% of the Daily Value of vitamin C — nearly 3 times more than the inner fruit. However, they tend to be bitter by nature, so if that is not a taste you are use to, you may want to remove the spirals only.
- Triple the amounts in this recipe, follow the same process, and store in a glass pitcher in the fridge and sip on it all day to suppress your appetite and feel satiated.
- Enjoy!
How to make Orange Peel Spirals
Although there are specially designed fruit peelers for this trick, you can achieve very similar results using a small and sharp kitchen knife.
Pierce the skin of your orange, before you peel it, with the upper edge of your knife. With a smooth, even motion, roll
your orange around in your hand, while continuing to cut a thin strip of the peel with the knife as you go. Stop when you have the desired length or until the peel naturally cuts off. Roll the
strip of peel into a spiral.
