a touch of spice

well folks, this post has been a long time coming. chai. oh, masala chai. words cannot express the love. all i know is that the first time i got a whiff of the spicy tea, my love affair with chai began. for a commercially available chai, celestial seasonings and tazo have to be my favourites. celestial seasonings has some hickory flavour added to it and it sometimes that bothers me. when it does, i just turn to tazo. i am one of those people who prefer their chai heavily spiced, and tazo does just that. plus they source their spices ethically and have several campaigns to give back to the communities where they get their tea. see their super cool website here. you all know that i can rarely resist a non-fat chai latte from starbucks. they use the tazo chai concentrate for their lattes. it doesn't have the same intensity as the teabags, but.. it's so rich and delicious that i'll take it!

spices are so prettttyyyyy

one thing i like about making my own masala chai is that i can adapt it to how i'm feeling at that moment. if i've got a sore throat, i'll generally add more peppercorns, or if i'm wanting something super sweet, i'll add more cinnamon. also, every batch you make comes out slightly different! the key is to play around with spices and see which combinations you like the best :)
the recipe below makes enough for 1 large, moderately spiced mug of chai

what you need:
1 stick of cinnamon
1 inch piece of ginger root
1 star anise
7 cloves
7 whole peppercorns
10 cardamom pods
1 or 2 teabags of plain black tea (or 2 tbsp loose)
2 cups water
1 cup milk
honey or sugar to taste

a cup of chai makes any study session a little more bearable!

step 1:
peel and thinly slice your ginger root. lightly crush your cardamom and cloves (peppercorns too if you want it spicyyy).
step 2: 
add water and milk to a pot with your spices and bring to a boil, then turn the heat down and lightly simmer for 10-15 minutes.
step 3:
add in your teabags and let steep for 3-5 minutes, depending on how strong you want it. strain really, really well into a mug and enjoy!

oh, hey, look what mug came in the mail!  : )

i decided to make this juuust as it started to hail/rain outside, perfect timing! i also settled down to watch the movie a touch of spice/politiki kouzina, which also finally came in the mail! it was pretty much a perfectly spiced afternoon. for those of you who haven't heard of/seen the movie, come over right NOW so you can watch it! it's the story about a boy who lives in istanbul, who's grandfather is a spice vendor and teaches him that life and food both need and a touch of spice. cute and funny all in one movie. what else can you ask for?

ingredients of the week: lemon, ginger and honey

as mentioned in my last post, i'm sick. and this is not the time to get sick! why can't my immune system just work?! well, i will let you know that soup made me feel a lot better, but nothing can make me feel better than a mug of my special get-well tea. it's not any weird tasting natural medicine with all sorts of strange ingredients, most of you have probably made it at some point.

so for this ingredient of the week, i'm actually breaking it down into three sections for the ingredients in my magical tea: lemon, ginger and honey. each ingredient has it's own unique medicinal qualities, and when combined can relieve literally any cold and flu symptoms you have!

first up!

so let's start with lemons. first off, the smell just puts you in a better mood. refreshing, light, happy, calming - exactly what you need when your world is insane! the most important thing to know about lemons (and limes, for that matter) is that they are full of anti-cancer and antioxidant compounds which are vital to keep a strong immune system. lemons are particularly high in vitamin c, which acts to neutralize any free radicals in the body and prevent them from damaging your healthy cells. specifically, vitamin c has shown to greatly reduce painful swelling and inflammation in the body, and can greatly help reduce the symptoms of osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis.

number two in the trio

next on the list: ginger. i love cooking with ginger because it's a bit spicy and instantly makes the whole kitchen smell good! ginger is really helpful for relieving any gastrointestinal issues such as upset stomachs, dizziness, nausea, vomiting (especially with morning and motion sickness) and all that nice stuff. like lemons, ginger also has strong anti-cancer, antioxidant and anti-inflammatory compounds that are extremely potent. when it comes to the flu, it helps with relieving throat pain, congestion, fever and chills, increases circulation and can even cure headaches. a compound in ginger also stimulates healthy sweating (yeah, it sounds gross) that detoxifies the body. it's the ultimate cold fighter!

greek honey with mixed nuts

i save the best (and my favourite) for last, honey. it's been used for over 2500 years by mankind, it is an important part of many different traditional medicines (such as ayurveda), and scientists are still researching into it's benefits! honey by far, is the best natural remedy for curing sore throats and suppressing a cough. hands down. it has many antimicrobial properties which help to soothe the raw tissues on the back of your throat. at the same time, honey boosts your immune system by increasing the production of white blood cells due to it's high amount of antioxidants. honey is a natural sweetner, and is a high source of vitamin c, calcium and iron. compare that to processed sugar, which has zip. use honey instead! weirdly, honey also has antibacterial and anti-fungal properties, so it can be used as an antiseptic. this seems strange, but it's even used after surgeries! i probably wouldn't stick it on my skin, but i guess if you're out of polysporin, haha?

ingredients for a healthy you

what you need:
slice of lemon
1 or 2 small pieces of fresh ginger root
1 tbsp organic honey (i use greek honey)

step 1:
put water in a kettle and begin to boil. in the mean time, chop of your pieces of ginger and trim off the skin. plop in the bottom of your mug.
step 2:
squirt your honey on top of the pieces of ginger.

like so...

step 3: 
put your slice of lemon on top of the honey and ginger, and once water has boiled, pour directly on top. stir with a spoon to mix the honey in with the water. drink up!

TA DA! now you know how to make my special tea. feel better!

another really tasty option for feeling better is to add a piece of ginger in a mug with honey and then steep a bag of tazo zen green tea with it. the tea is really light and refreshing, with lemongrass and spearmint leaves and goes perfectly with the ginger.

the elixir of life

this my friends, will change your life. a nescafé frappé: foam-covered iced coffee drink made with instant coffee and milk. i know, i know, it doesn't sound like much, but when you're out in the 40 degree heat, these drinks will literally save your life. oh, and if you're up for it, you can substitute the milk with baileys, something i have yet to try!

monemvasia, greece: relaxing at a kafeneio enjoying a frappé glyko me gala
(glee-KOH meh-GAH-lah)

i usually prefer my frappé glyko me gala (sweet with milk) but after drinking that everyday - sometimes even twice a day - for a month, it can make you sick. so, now i prefer them metrio me gala (medium sweet with milk). here's how you do it!

items needed to create this masterpiece

you will need:

a shaker (i used a nescafé one, but you can use a water bottle)

instant coffee (again, i used a nescafé one for frappés, but any kind will do)

sugar

milk

ice cubes

water

a glass

a straw (very important!)

step 1: 

add 1 or 2 teaspoons of instant coffee into your mixer, and then add half that amount of sugar (less or more, depending on how sweet you like it).

it should look something like this

step 2:

add just enough cold water to cover the mixture, and shake the hell out of it. once you feel the mix becoming foam, you know you're good.

step 3:

pour mix into a glass. at this point, i add the milk into the empty mixer and shake it a bit to get any extra coffee left. pour the milk into the glass. if you want, you can just add the milk in step 2. if you don't want to add milk, just skip this step.

step 4:

add in ice cubes and put the straw in the glass. enjoy!

ena frappé glyko me gala