Cold Remedy: Lemon Ginger Tea

A couple of days ago, I felt the clammy grasp of a cold threatening to take over. At the first symptoms, I immediately whipped up a steaming batch of my trusty cold remedy: lemon ginger tea. I have a love-hate relationship with this tea. The thing is, I absolutely hate ginger. When I was a child, my mom would force me drink a bowl of ginger soup whenever I had the slightest hint of a cough or runny nose. I would pinch my nose and whimper as I drank it, all the while throwing pitiful looks at her. Despite my theatrics, I finished every last drop because it really does work!

Over the years, I altered my mom's original ginger soup recipe into something a little more palatable. I added lemon for a vitamin C boost and some honey for a sweeter taste.

Ingredients:
- 1 large wedge of lemon
- 1/2 cup ginger, grated
- honey, to taste

Directions:
Grate fresh ginger into a pot of boiling water. Let simmer for 3-5 minutes, or until the liquid becomes pale yellow and smells spicy. Remove from heat and squeeze in the lemon juice. Pour the tea into a strainer/cheesecloth to remove the ginger pieces or leave them if you're a fan of ginger. Stir in honey right before you drink the tea.

Fresh ginger is a lot more effective than the packaged ginger teas. The taste is a lot stronger too! If you find yourself heating up after th
is drink, it's working. Drink it several times a day and you'll feel a lot better. If you catch your cold early enough, you can completely ward if off with this tea. Try it and see how it works.

        Stay Warm,