This was a decent sized basil harvest, the result of pruning my garden where the dozen variety of basil plants had grown to a few feet high. I picked mostly holy basil (tulsi) and some Thai basil, which has a slight licorice taste. I dried the branches, lying them flat on a blanket. I gave the leaves about an hour in sunlight, to have the plants soak in all of that light. Then I let them dry in the open air.
Once dried I plucked the leaves and cut them into smaller pieces. I saved a bunch for cooking, and still have several cups left. So I am using the leaf blend (because I accidentally got the two basils mixed up) for tea. I am drinking it iced with a little agave nectar, as it is hot here this time of year. Delicious! I just put the dried loose leaves right into a cup of water, let them soak and steep a bit, and I eat the leaves as I drink the tea.
Of course a more civilized person would use a strainer, but I love the taste of the wet, chewy leaves.