The dreamiest, creamy blackberry chamomile tea mocktail made frothy with aquafaba, soothing with cardamom and chamomile, and naturally sweet with honey and fresh blackberries! This healthy mocktail recipe is easy to make and will help you sleep like a baby. Drink this as the perfect homemade sleepy time tea recipe before bed or as a healthy substitute for wine as you’re winding down at the end of the day.
Out of all the series we do in the Healthier Together community, the functional mocktail series is probably my favorite of them all. And it’s up against some strong contenders, like the Ben & Jerry’s healthy remake series, the healthy Starbucks copycat series, and the How I Learned to Love My Body Series on the Healthier Together Podcast!
Our functional mocktail series is just so versatile! We have our digestive mocktails with gut-soothing benefits, our aphrodisiac mocktail with sexy-time benefits, and now, a sleepy time mocktail designed to help you get the rest you deserve. The powerful ingredients in this blackberry chamomile tea mocktail function like medicine and are shown in studies to help both with promoting sleep directly and reducing stress and anxiety, which (obviously) cause poor sleep. Plus, this mocktail recipe is just so gorgeous and has the prettiest magenta foam layer on top! You’re going to love it.
Let’s chat chamomile
Scientifically speaking, chamomile tea has a sedative affect because of its chemical make-up. It contains a chemical compound called apigenin that’s proven to bring on sleepiness and a calming affect when it binds to the GABA receptors in the brain. If you’ve ever been on prescription medicine for anxiety, those GABA receptors might sound familiar because they are the same receptors that bind to benzodiazepine and anti-anxiety drugs.
The key to getting chamomile tea to have such a potent affect is to steep multiple chamomile tea bags for at least 15 minutes covered, so it maximizes the functional benefits of the tea and the therapeutic compounds stay in the cup instead of evaporating.
More delicious & powerful ingredients
While I like a cup of sleepy time tea before bed, I LOVE a classy, little mocktail that’s doing all the hard work to help me sleep and assuage my anxiety (so I don’t have to). If you haven’t listened yet, we talk all about relieving anxiety and essential mental health hacks on my latest Healthier Together podcast episode with Dr. Julie Smith. Here’s what’s in this chamomile tea mocktail:
Chamomile tea: this delicious herbal tea is proven to have a ton of health benefits from better sleep to easing anxiety to boosting digestion.
Ground cardamom: this warming spice is proven to be a delicious way to lower blood pressure and calm down before bed.
Blackberries: this juicy, brain-food is shown in research to add anti-inflammatory benefits to our healthy mocktail. I like to use frozen blackberries in this recipe for a jammy flavor.
Lemon: is packed with Vitamin-C and is proven in studies to boost your immune system and help your skin glow!
Honey: we sweeten this sleepy time tea mocktail with antioxidant-rich honey, which is shown in research to aid in weight loss.
Aquafaba: we use the liquid from a can of chickpeas to give this mocktail the frothy, creamy essence that you’d find in a fancy cocktail bar.
How to make this tea mocktail on the stove
- Make the tea: Boil water and add it to a large mason jar with chamomile tea bags. Cover it and let it steep. Then, stir in the honey and quick-chill it in the freezer.
- Muddle the fruit: add cardamom to the blackberries and microwave it in 30-second increments, muddling it in-between, until it’s pureed.
- Combine them: then, stir in lemon juice, strain it, and place it in the freezer until cold.
- Shake it up, baby! Pour it back into the mason jar and add the aquafaba. Shake it with the lid on until foamy.
- Serve & sleep well. Divide between two glasses, pouring a little into one, then a little into the other, going back and forth so the foam distributes evenly. Enjoy!
Can I make it ahead of time?
Yes! Making this blackberry chamomile tea mocktail ahead of time is so easy. Just follow steps 1-3 above, stopping before you’d pour in the aquafaba. And instead of storing in the freezer, store in the refrigerator with plastic wrap on top.
More healthy mocktail recipes:
Spiced Orange Chai Digestive Mocktail
Cranberry Rosemary Digestive Mocktail
Strawberry Basil Margarita Mocktail
I hope you love this Blackberry Chamomile Tea Mocktail as much as I do! Tag me on Instagram if you make them (@lizmoody) – I am so excited to see!
Print
Relaxing Blackberry Chamomile Tea Mocktail for Sleep
Ingredients
- 4 chamomile tea bags
- 2 tablespoons honey
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom
- 1 cup frozen blackberries
- juice of 1 lemon
- 2 tablespoons aquafaba (the liquid from a strained canned of chickpeas)
Instructions
- Boil water and add it to a large mason jar with chamomile tea bags. Cover it and let it steep for 15 minutes. Then squeeze out the tea bags into the mug, remove them, and stir in the honey until dissolved. Transfer the jar to the freezer to quick-chill for 30 minutes.
- Meanwhile, add the ground cardamom to the frozen blackberries in a large, microwave-safe dish. Microwave it in 30-second increments, smashing with a muddler or wooden spoon in-between, until it’s a fruit puree (about 1-2 minutes total).
- Once the tea is very chilled, pour it into the bowl with the muddled blackberries. Stir in lemon juice, then strain it with a fine mesh strainer (discard or compost solids). Put the strained mix in refridgerator or freezer until cold, then pour it into a big jar with a lid.
- Add the aquafaba and shake with the lid on until foamy.
- Divide between two glasses, pouring a little into one, then a little into the other, going back and forth so the foam distributes evenly). Within a few seconds, the mixture will separate and you’ll get the prettiest magenta foam layer on top!
