Hot tea is definitely my beverage of choice. First thing in the morning and last thing at night, and several times a day (in between numerous glasses of room-temperature, freshly filtered water) I love sipping a hot cuppa whenever possible. For much of the year, I prefer drinking multiple pours of a light-bodied green tea or freshly picked herbals, such as sage or peppermint.
SHARING IT
But now that the first cold front has blown into town, I find myself making my favorite cool-weather libation, Spicy Ginger-Lemon Tea. If it were possible, I'd love to have you come over to our house, sit down at the kitchen table and pour you a cup right now, because it's always fun to share tea with friends. Since I can't, I'm doing the second best thing by sharing my recipe with you instead (as I have done with many other Circle friends over the years) in hopes you'll consider make some for yourself sometime soon. It's really quite simple, once you have the ingredients on hand.
MAKING IT
1 quart boiling water, poured over
1-2 tsp. of green tea leaves (Dragon Pearl Jasmine Green Tea is my favorite for this, but any unflavored green or black tea will do. And if you prefer to avoid caffeine, you can use Chamomile instead)
1 cinnamon stick (or 2 tsp. cinnamon powder)
3-4 whole cloves (or ½ tsp. clove powder)
1 inch of fresh ginger root, peeled, and sliced thin (Powdered ginger does not really work in this situation. Only fresh ginger will do, in my humble opinion...)
Let the tea mixture steep for 5-7 minutes, preferably in a well-insulated teapot. A double-wall, stainless steel thermal container is ideal, but a regular ceramic teapot or large Mason jar wrapped in a kitchen towel will do just fine.
Pour through a strainer into large mugs, each containing 1-2 tsp. lemon juice (or more, to taste), and 1-2 tsp. of pure maple syrup (or honey). If you're daring enough, your tongue (and stomach) will thank you and dance with joy if you add a healthy pinch of cayenne powder to your mug, too!
DRINKING IT
This tea is guaranteed to warm your heart and soul from the inside out, whatever the temperature might be outside. In addition to being refreshing, energizing and mighty tasty, the ginger and spices are also excellent for stimulating your digestive system, while calming your nervous system, too. Might sound odd, but its true.
And, in the event that you find yourself rushing around, feeling way too busy to even consider doing anything as superfluous as brewing up a batch of this stuff... may I suggest that it's all the more important that you allow yourself the time, space and resources to do so anyway? And, if this particular beverage doesn't speak to you, please consider finding another tangible, physical way to give yourself the time and space to relax, rest and refresh your soul for 10-15 minutes today?
DOING IT
Not only will you benefit from doing so, but so will all the others whose lives you will touch in the course of your day. At least, that's my cup of tea - and I'm sticking to it.
With joy,
Rudi
PS: This same tea also makes a delicious, homemade Ginger Ale. Just let it cool, then pour over ice and mix with equal parts sparkling mineral water, for a tasty beverage guaranteed to quench even your thirstiest thirst. Enjoy!
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