Can you eat your leftover Christmas tree? These are the health benefits of ‘pine needle tea’

You’ve gone through the leftover bacon, mashed potatoes, green beans and pie – but have you thought about eating your Christmas tree?

According to the National Christmas Tree Association, between 25 and 30 million real Christmas trees are sold in the US each year. Many homeowners pull their evergreens to the curb in the first few days of January to recycle them.

However, there are many ways to repurpose your used pine, spruce, or fir at home. You can chop it for firewood, shred it for mulch, build a bird sanctuary with the branches—or harvest the needles and transform them into cookies.

“The way I usually cook [Christmas trees] is to use the needles as an herb, the same way you can use rosemary. You use rosemary to flavor a dish, but you don’t necessarily eat the rosemary itself,” UK artisan baker and chef Julia Georgallis, author of How to Eat Your Christmas Tree, told Christopher Kimball’s Milk Street last week.

Georgallis’ cookbook, published in 2020, contains more than 30 recipes for everything from Christmas cured fish to Christmas tree vinegar and Christmas tree ginger ice cream.

A popular use for pine needles, especially in Asia, is making them into tea.

Pine needle tea is rich in antioxidants, vitamin A and vitamin C, which can boost immunity and soothe colds, according to the Ohio Department of Natural Resources.

Also, WebMD reports that certain molecules in pine needles, particularly anti-inflammatory flavonoids, can bind to a specific receptor in the body that plays an important role in regulating metabolism.

To start this par-tea, go to the white pine, easily identified by its clusters of five needles.

Cut the needles into smaller pieces, add to boiling water, remove from the heat, let it boil for 10 to 20 minutes and drain. Or you can buy prepackaged organic pine needle tea bags.

“To mellow out the flavor of pine needle tea, enjoy it cold,” registered dietitian Kate Spurgin recently told Well+Good. “For a more familiar taste, try it mixed with your favorite [herbal] tea.”

Tips for eating your Christmas tree

• Climb pine, spruce and fir. Cedar, cypress, and especially yew trees should be avoided because they can be toxic or inedible.
• Beware of trees sold in grocery stores or in parking lots that may have been sprayed with chemicals.
• Wear gloves when cutting branches and wash branches under cool, running water to remove mud and dirt.
• Use large, sharp scissors to cut upwards so the needles can fall into a large bowl. Wash needles before use.
• Avoid eating raw, unshredded needles, which are often very sharp.