Ginger Garlic Tea

I survived the first week of school and Back to School Night with the parents.  However, Saturday morning I was feeling a little tickle in my throat.  I don't know if it was the new "germs," the air conditioning that has been blowing non-stop, an allergy, or what, but I refuse to be sick for the long weekend and the second week of school.

When my Baci A. was dying, my family hired a Hospice caretaker, named Sheila, to be with her 24-7.  Sheila was this kind, soft-spoken woman from Trinidad who made ginger garlic tea.  I don't remember if the tea was intended for my Baci or for someone who was starting to feel ill by my Baci's bedside. Anyway, the tea Sheila concocted for us many years ago is still a family home remedy whenever we begin to feel sick.  I will warn you, it's potent.  It may even border on the line of offensive in smell, taste, and from the burning sensation you may experience as it is going down, but it works.

For ginger garlic tea: boil a 1" piece of chopped ginger and a few cloves of diced garlic in water for about 20 minutes.  Then strain the tea and serve the hot liquid immediately with honey. You will need the honey to cut into the potency of the ginger and garlic.  Besides, honey is good for you when you are feeling under the weather. 

Needless to say, I made and drank several cups of this pungent tea Saturday and Sunday and I no longer have that tickle in my throat.  I am not saying this tea will cure everything, but it sure seems to help at the first sign of an itchy, scratchy throat, or at the beginning of a cold for my family.