Warming Winter Tea

Now this is a Canadian winter – crisp fresh air, sun glistening like diamonds on a blanket of newly fallen snow, and… SO COLD!!!! Thank goodness for cozy hats, mittens, scarves, parkas, boots – and yummy warming herbs and spices that you can make into a delicious tea.

Warming Winter Tea

Ingredients:

1 golf ball sized piece of ginger root (peeled and chopped)

1 cinnamon stick

8 – 10 goji berries

3 chinese red dates (make small cuts into the skin to expose the flesh)

Place about 2 cups of water (enough water to fill your favourite mug or thermos) into a sauce pan. Add all of the ingredients. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat, cover the pot, and simmer for 5 minutes. Let cool slightly and pour into your mug or thermos. Enjoy

Or: If you have a thermos that keeps things very hot, you can add all of the ingredients into your thermos and add boiling water. Close the lid and let steep for 30 minutes. Sip on the tea all day. Add more boiling water as needed.

The ingredients in this tea are common household spices, and are also herbs used in Traditional Chinese Medicine. Together, they are warming and nourishing – perfect for the chilly winter season.

Fresh Ginger Root (Sheng Jiang) is spicy, and protects you from the wind and cold. It is good for the immune system, regulates the stomach, improves digestion, and expels dampness and phlegm.

Cinnamon (Gui Zhi) is also spicy, warm and sweet. It strengthens the immune system, improves blood circulation, and relieves pain and swelling from wind, cold, and dampness.