I’m not sure if I’ve shared any of my favorite things with you all yet – but one of the things about having an organic farmer for a mother, I am suspicious of prescription medicine. No surprise here. Usually when I catch a cold, I do everything I can to fast, drink liquids and use natural methods to rid my body of whatever virus it has.
One of the things I’ve grown to love is tea. I love tea and I’ve got the best roommate ever who also loves tea. Hardly a day goes by where we don’t have one or two pots stewing in our house. yum.
My favorite is ginger lemon tea. One of the best things about living in a town like Oakland – (I hella loveOakland- don’t believe the hype!) is that I can buy huge clusters of fresh ginger root at my farmers market every Friday.
To make a pot of yummy ginger lemon tea. Put on the pot of boiling water. Cut up about 1 & ½ clumps of ginger, skin and all, (rinsed off), a ½ lemon. In the stewing tea pot put the ginger and squeeze the lemon out and then drop the lemon rind into the pot. When your water boils, fill your stewing pot and just wait!
My mom has a cool tea book and I just found a recipe for an extra ‘kick’ that will up the ante on my ginger root recipe. Ginger is excellent for so many things, digestion, tummy aches, and for relieving congestion/ flem. If you want to try this – use more ginger and add a sprinkling of cayenne pepper and a bit of honey – it will help unstuff a stuffy nose!
Any other tea lovers?
A Birth Project 
Ginger gives me a stomach ache so I can’t try that one. But I love the kind of Jasmine (Zhejiang Tea Company – it’s in the yellow box) tea we always got in China and I can buy it here in the Asian stores. Buster and I love to make a pot after dinner. Since he is home from college I am enjoying sharing that ritual with him again.
I love green tea too. I love lemon and honey combined. I always make ginger, garlic, honey and lemon tea on the very rare occasions that I have a cold.
I love oolong teas and I just got some from teacuppa.com … planning to try it later this evening 😉
I love all kinds of tea. Spiced tea, herbal tea, ginger tea is just one of my favs. Green tea is so good for you! Ginger tea was also one that helped one of my best girls when she was pregnant with morning sickness. ugh. I got my mom a new stewing pot for Christmas. We’ve been tea’in it up! Rasberry peppermint this morning!
Mmm…I love herbal teas. Thanks, I’m going to try yours! My mom in law gave me a “recipe” for one that’s become my default tea for colds. Chamomile, anise seed and freshly ground cinnamon with or without the addition of one tea bag. I just put the herb/spice mix in one of those tea bells or a coffee filter tied into a bundle.
I fall in and out of love with tea, depending on whether i’m reading and exercising, I think. Ginger tea, as hot as one can take it, with a little honey…will whip whatever ails you. Ever get those tonsil thingies…little stinkies that swell the tonsils and are p-u-trid? I swish hot, fresh-from-the-root ginger back there, and peow! I cut diagonally across the root and press pieces to exude some of the oils first, and, oh, is it pungent.
Happy New Year, LisaMarie, and all.
LOVE tea. Probably too much. I too am a huge fan of ginger/lemon, but I am seriously addicted to jasmine pearl and jade earl green. check out rishitea.com…
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