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Get It NowI love Starbucks drinks, so when I was feeling under the weather, I decided to try their classic medicine ball tea. (I have kids so I tend to catch… everything!) The honey citrus mint tea turned out to be just what I needed — the perfect soothing mix of lemon and honey for my sore throat. And since I have my own natural zero sugar honey, I used it to make a copycat Starbucks medicine ball tea recipe at home!
Why You’ll Love This Starbucks Medicine Ball
- Flavorful blend of lemon and honey
- Smooth and soothing hot tea
- Natural ingredients
- Ready in minutes
- Less sugar (and money!) than the Starbucks version
- Perfect for cold days
What Is A Medicine Ball At Starbucks?
The Starbucks medicine ball, also known as cold buster tea, is a honey citrus mint tea made with a blend of Teavana Peach Tranquility tea and Jade Citrus Mint tea, steamed lemonade, and honey.
Ingredients & Substitutions
This section explains how to choose the best ingredients for a medicine ball drink, what each one does in the recipe, and substitution options. For measurements, see the recipe card below.
- Teas – If you want this recipe to be as close to Starbucks as possible, use a Teavana Jade Citrus Mint tea bag and a Teavana Peach Tranquility tea bag. You can also replace those with other peach tea and citrus green tea from your local grocery store.
- Hot Water – Just boil water in a kettle, or in a small saucepan on the stove.
- Lemon Juice – If you’d like to stick closer to the original Starbucks recipe, you can use half lemonade and half tea instead of lemon juice. However, I found that fresh lemon juice cuts down on the sugar content and give the drink a fresher taste.
- Honey – Starbucks uses regular honey for their medicine ball recipe (and you can too). I prefer to use natural sugar-free honey for an equally sweet taste.
VARIATION: Add fresh mint or extract!
If you like more of a minty flavor, add 1/8 to 1/4 teaspoon of spearmint or peppermint extract, a pump of peppermint syrup, or add in a handful of fresh mint leaves and muddle them gently to release their flavor.
How To Make Starbucks Medicine Ball Tea
This section shows how to make honey citrus mint tea similar to the Starbucks medicine ball drink, with step-by-step photos and details about the technique, to help you visualize it. For full instructions, including amounts and temperatures, see the recipe card below.
- Combine. Place the peach and citrus mint tea bags into a mug. Add the hot water and lemon juice.
- Steep. Let the medicine ball tea sit for a few minutes to steep.
- Adjust flavor. Stir in the honey and adjust the lemon juice to taste if needed.
VARIATION: Make it iced!
You can also enjoy this tea in the cold version. Add a cup of ice to a glass and pour prepared tea into it.
How To Order A Medicine Ball At Starbucks?
The medicine ball is a Starbucks secret menu item, and you can just ask for a “Honey Citrus Mint Tea”. You can also say that you’d like a hot tea made with equal parts of Teavana teas (peach and citrus mint), steamed lemonade, and honey.
More Healthy Drink Recipes
This Starbucks copycat recipe is great if you’re under the weather. If you’re in the mood to other lightened-up beverages, check out these recipes:
Starbucks Medicine Ball Tea (Honey Citrus Mint)
Boost your day with a 5-minute Starbucks medicine ball tea recipe! It's a soothing blend of peach and citrus mint teas, lemon, and honey.
Instructions
Tap on the times in the instructions below to start a kitchen timer while you cook.
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Place the peach and citrus mint tea bags into a mug. Add the hot water and lemon juice.
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Let the medicine ball tea sit for 5 minutes to steep.
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Stir in honey to taste. Adjust lemon juice to taste if needed.
Did You Like It?
Leave a rating to help other readers, or get the recipe sent to your inbox.
Recipe Notes
Serving size: Entire recipe (1 mug)
Nutrition info uses zero sugar honey, but regular also works.
Nutrition facts are provided as a courtesy. Have questions about calculations or why you got a different result? Please see our nutrition policy.
© Copyright Maya Krampf for Wholesome Yum. Please DO NOT SCREENSHOT OR COPY/PASTE recipes to social media or websites. We’d LOVE for you to share a link with photo instead. 🙂
7 Comments
April
0This is so delicious – love those tea flavors, and the lemon and honey really work so well with them.
Allyson Zea
0This is absolutely essential for this time of the year! Thank you for making this recipe available!
Liz
0Holy cow! This stuff really works! We weren’t feeling so hot, so I gave it a try. It’s delicious, and really helped us feel better. Thanks for the recipe!
Bennieluv
0This awesome, really smooth and soothing! I’ll definitely make this over and over again during cold nights 🙂
Hanna
0I have never heard of this tea but so love the ingredients in this so I had to try it. The combination of peach and citrus is deli! Great recipe
Jenny
0I was feeling under the weather after the holidays and I made this tea. It kicked my cold to the curb and made me feel so much better! I will definitely be saving this so I have it every time I’m feeling like I’m catching something!
Carol
0I have really gotten into tea recently so when I ran across your recipe, I knew I wanted to try it. The combination of flavors is heavenly!! I am so glad I found it. I have been making it on the regular!