Sick Tea

This is what I always have when I have a cold (as I fear might be soon). The tea itself is actually strictly optional; it’s the lemon, honey and ginger that will feel wonderful on a sore throat, and will supposedly help your immune system.

In a mug, mix together approximately:
1 Tablespoon lemon juice
1 Tablespoon honey
1/2 inch fresh ginger, roughly chopped or about a teaspoon of ginger from a jar. Don’t use dried!
(1 tea bag of your choice, optional)
Hot Water

Mix it all together, and feel better!

Spiced milk

My spin on chai, minus the tea aspect. It’s a great, relaxing drink for getting yourself to sleep, and I prefer it to drinking warm milk straight. I’ve given quantities below for whole spices and estimations for substituting whole spices with ground. Don’t stress out about crushing the spices – just whack them with a mortar (or a mug) and throw the shards in. Also, sometimes, if I don’t have any ginger to hand, I grind in a bit more pepper for that fiery kick.

Spiced milk
Serves one – just double or triple the quantities if you’re serving more

1 cup milk
2 cinnamon sticks, crushed (1 1/2 tsps)
2 – 3 star anise, crushed (1/2 tsp)
1 tsp ground ginger, or two tsps freshly finely-grated ginger root
3 – 4 cloves, snapped in half (about 1/4 tsp)
a couple of grinds black pepper – about 1/8 – 1/4 tsp)
1 – 3 TBS runny honey, depending on your taste

1) Place milk and spices into a saucepan. Place over low – medium heat (depending on your patience!) and bring to a boil. Remove from heat (you don’t want it to boil over!) and strain. Mix in honey to taste and serve.