I wanted to write a post about the arrival of spring, the chirping of birds and the buzz of bumblebees in our glass-walled studio. (Maybe I just did, in a single-sentence-blog-post kind of way). Okay–have a photo too.

But, I am sick. This is supposed to happen in the winter, right? What’s this sneaky virus doing bothering me in April? (I know, I know, plenty of sickness occurs in the warm months, but it should be confined to winter, I say. Universe: make it so.)

Instead of reaching for my garden spade, I reached for the ingredients for my go-to sick remedy. Sick tea. I should really rename it. I’m a writer. I mean, come on.  “Sick” is not one of the ingredients, and all of the actual ingredients are perfectly good recipe-name possibilities. But I’m sick. So I haven’t. You can have a go if you like.

[In a perfect world, I’d also be making Jeni’s Influenza Prescription sorbet, with all the best things for a sore throat. I digress, but you should check it out.]

Sick tea has only three ingredients. Well, four if you include the water. Ginger, lemon and honey. But it is the best, THE BEST for sore, scratchy throats and general malaise.

You peel a good two inches of fresh ginger and chop it fairly small, then boil it in a saucepan full of water for about ten minutes. I let mine steep in the water overnight, or all day, until I’ve drunk all the tea and need to start again. The longer you leave the ginger in, the spicier (read: better) the tea gets. To drink, just pour the tea through a small strainer into your tea cup (either hot or cold-t0-be-reheated), add a few squeezes of lemon juice (and throw the lemon slices in too if you want), and a bulging teaspoon of honey. I always want to be generous to myself with the honey when I’m sick. (Or when I’m healthy, come to think of it.)

And now I must shuffle to the kitchen to make another batch. What do you like to drink when you’re sick? And what comfort foods do you crave? Don’t get me started on the cantaloupe I’m coveting right now…

XO (sniff)

Ria