“When Marcel Proust dipped his petites madeleines into his tea, the taste and aroma set off a flood of memories and emotions from which modern literature has still not recovered.” -Twyla Tharp
A rather magical fall weekend full of time in the city shopping for art supplies, dinner with new friends (including a fantastic lobster with paella), lunches of noodle soup at a local cafe, long meandering walks in the woods (exploring new paths), time spent in front of the fire drinking wine, reading and watching movies.
All of these things are greatly needed as the plumbing problems in the house have reached a fevered pitch. I will spare you the nasty details, but suffice to say we are almost without water, again. So today I have decided to ask the universe for help with the matter, relinquish control of the situation (not an easy task from one who likes to push, shape, fix, anything and everything herself. read: control). I am also once again in a place where I must ask for help from friends and neighbors, (something this fiercely independent girl does not like to do). And so it is that we are always presented with the lessons that we most need to learn. What is not learned will be repeated.
Sometimes in life I have the awareness that I am being given a little gift. I had one such moment at dinner the other night. Our hosts had a family member visiting from Manilla, and after dinner she made the most wonderful ginger tea I have EVER had. As with all of the best things it was made of the most basic of ingredients. Surprisingly simple. I recalled attempting to make my own ginger tea once before, by boiling the ginger, the result was always much to strong and in fact not soothing at all.
In this version the ginger is first pounded and then steeped (not boiled). I will have to experiement with quantities to get the right mixture. (My husband the tea expert and connoisseur, adamantly points out that this is not actually tea (which comes from a specific plant), but instead a herbal infusion.) Whatever it is, it is wonderfully soothing and addictive.

further reading on ginger
ginger facts
another version of ginger lemon tea
in other tea news…visit Infuze Tea House! I’ve been waiting for a good tea house in Canada for a long time (one that deals with all forms of tea), this looks like the perfect place. And they have online ordering. (Link via Lori Joy Smith)