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I don’t know if there’s anyone out there who loves sleep as much as me. I’m sharing this herbal tea for sleep recipe because I want you to fall in love with sleep too. Chamomile tea infused with lavender and vanilla create the perfect nighttime steamer sleep tea to tell your body it’s time for bed.
Are you ready to have the best night of sleep?
Table of Contents
Sleep Tea Ingredients
My chamomile tea recipe uses dairy-free milk and a few light herbs with calming properties. Here’s what my tea holds:
- Almond milk: This dairy-free base can offer a nice, nutty flavor to your tea. Swap with the plant milk of your choice.
- Chamomile tea: A lovely-tasting herbal tea without caffeine.
- Honey: This lovely natural sweetener offers a light sweetness to the tea as well as may have anti-depressant and anti-anxiety properties.
- Vanilla extract: The lovely aroma has a calming effect on the brain.
- Lavender buds: Culinary flowers have been used for centuries in a variety of medicinal teas, tonics and more. They are flavorful and used to treat insomnia and anxiety.
Health Benefits of Sleep
Getting enough zzz’s at night is vital for your body to heal, renew and recharge for the next day. Sleep is how your body heals and grows stronger. If you’re not getting enough of it, eventually your own personal growth will suffer! Drink this soothing chamomile tea recipe before bedtime and slip into slumber with ease.
If I fall into a pattern of not getting enough sleep, it shows in all aspects of my life. I’m cranky, sluggish, irrational and eating foods that do me more harm than good. Quality sleep has become a huge part of my wellness journey.
I even created a whole bedtime routine with a bedtime smoothie (complete with the best Coop pillow) to ensure I am getting my beauty sleep.
Best Tea for Sleep
There are so many choices out there and many of them have additives that do more harm than good. I suggest sticking with simple, herbal teas that use ingredients such as this:
- Valerian Root: Helpful when you’re having a hard time sleeping due to anxiety or stress.
- Poppy Plant: Contains poppy plant acts as a mild sedative to help encourage a deep sleep when you’re feeling restless and achy.
- Chamomile: Contains apigenin, an occurring antioxidant that may promote sleepiness and reduce insomnia.
- Lavender Buds: Tea that includes lavender can improve your sleep quality and relax you too.
How to Make Herbal Tea for Sleep
Making your own tea is a simple and soothing process in and of itself.
- Heat up milk to hot but NOT boiling. I like the ‘steamer’ creamy feel to this tea, yet you can heat up water if warm milk isn’t your thing.
- Add a chamomile tea bag and lavender buds and steep for 5-6 minutes. This will give you good flavor as well as allow the herbs time to infuse the warmed milk. If you’re new to tea, try steeping for less time until you get used to the flavor.
- Pour your steeped tea through a strainer into your favorite mug. I’ve got quite the collection of mugs as I am a daily coffee drinker, yet I always choose my clay mug when drinking nighttime tea.
- Add just a bit of honey and vanilla extract for the final touch, then sit down and enjoy.
This is the best tea for sleep and happens to be a part of my 7-Day Plant-Based Reset. If you’re wanting to not just sleep better, but feel better all the time check out my best-selling program. Over 25,000 people have gone through it and discovered the transformational power of a plant-based diet. You’ll lose weight, gain energy and sleep better than you have in years.
Sleep Tea FAQs
Look for caffeine-free herbal teas like chamomile, valerian, lavender and more. These use natural ingredients that are calming vs caffeinated teas that will wake you up.
While sleep tea is not the ultimate cure for insomnia, an herbal sleep tea uses real herbs that help calm your mind and body to prepare for sleep. You can also choose foods that will gear you up for a good night’s sleep and establish consistent sleeping patterns so your body knows when it’s time to go to bed each night.
Easy! Pick your favorite plant milk and heat it on the stove. You want it hot but NOT boiling. Add in the herbal tea bag (I like to use chamomile) and lavender buds and steep. Strain then transfer the liquid to a mug. Add in your sweetener of choice for a bit more flavor. Enjoy!
More Recipes to Help You Sleep
I want to set my body up for sleep the best way I can, and a soothing drink with the right ingredients can help me do just that. Try one of these delicious beverages to put you in the mood for sleep.
- Pink Moon Milk: Another natural sleep aid that warms you up and calms your mind for quality sleep.
- Golden Milk Latte: A great beverage to naturally calm the inflammation that’s led to too many sleepless nights.
- Spiced Almond Milk: This is a great way to stabilize your blood sugar throughout the night.
- Sleep Well Smoothie: If you need a nighttime snack, blend this soothing smoothie to settle your body for the night.
Once you’ve made this lovely tea recipe, leave a rating and review to let me know how you liked it. I’d love to help you on your better sleep journey.
Lavender Sleep Tea
Ingredients
- 1 cup almond milk
- 1 chamomile tea bag
- 1 tsp raw honey to taste
- ½ tsp vanilla extract
- ½ tsp lavender buds optional
Instructions
- Place the almond milk into a small saucepan and heat until very hot but not boiling.
- Add the chamomile tea and lavender buds, if using and allow to steep 5-6 minutes.
- Remove tea bag and strain out lavender buds, if needed.
- Pour into the teacup or mug. Sweeten with honey, if using and stir in vanilla extract.
- Drink immediately.
Notes
- To create more of a frothy latte, pour all contents into a blender and blend before serving.
- If culinary lavender tea buds are hard to find, use a chamomile lavender tea bag.
- Swap honey with maple syrup to make this recipe vegan.
- Use the plant milk of your choice.
So calming! I’ve been looking forward to it every night since my first one during the Winter reset. Like a lullaby 🙂
Better this cup of warm yumminess sings you to sleep than us, Jen! Happy sleeping! 🙂
This tea is amazing! It’s so soothing and calming at night, makes me smile while I drink it.
We love smiles Kristin! So glad it was the perfect ending to your day.
This is absolutely delicious! I use oat milk instead of almond milk (or another plant milk). I love this!
Oooh! Bet that was creamier Stephanie. Thanks for sharing!
I have enjoyed the Vanilla Chamomile Steamer as part of a Plant-Based Cleanse. I never thought I would want milk in my tea but the almond milk makes this a delicious creamy beverage that feels like a hug. It is a nice way to end the day.
So glad you’re part of this cleanse community Eva! Hope you enjoy keeping this Vanilla Chamomile Steamer habit for the days to come.
I love the vanilla chamomile steamer. It’s the perfect calming and delicious drink before bed.
We completely agree Cara!
Love this tea! I had never tried almond milk as a base for tea – will try it with other teas now too. Great combination, esp. as a calming, bedtime tea. Thx!
So glad you gave it a sip, Stacey. 🙂
Lovely tea for a good night’s sleep
Sweetest of dreams Anna!
Hello. Thought I should point out that honey is not vegan. I’ll be substituting with agave syrup.
Too true Catherine! While our recipes are all plant-leaning, they aren’t always necessary vegan. Agave is a great swap here for those sticking to a vegan diet. Thanks for sharing!
i love this blissful cup of “languid-ity.” i cannot imagine that anyone would not feel a calmness while drinking it… a beautiful part of a night time self-care ritual… adelante…
We’re totally here for ‘languid-ity’ Debra!!! 🙂
My husband an I love it! Thank you for recipe.
So welcome Olivia!
I love it!! Is the best! The magical flavor is amazing. Thank you so much for share this receipt with me!!
You’re so welcome, Viry. Glad you love the flavor!
It is dessert after dinner w/o the guilt! The tea is pure loving kindness!
Isn’t it nice to treat yourself, yet know that it’s good for you too! Rawk on!
What brand of teas do you recommend to use for this recipe?
We most often use Yogi brand of teas, Jayesh. Great question!
This is perfectly calming and has the right amount of sweetness! Made it for the kids tonight and they enjoyed every last drop. Thank you!
Love that you’re using it for your kiddos. They get good sleep, we get good sleep! 🙂
amazing recipe, i havent had or used any other tea recipes for bed since i found this one. its so comforting and tastes amazing. ✨
This tea is one of the most calming and nourishing ones— it’s perfect for a good night sleep!
This looks soooo delicious!! I can’t wait to try it!