The Best Thing About Being Sick? Boozy Tea.

Good Evening Kittens!

As I mentioned in my last post, I have been quite sick this past week.  Not sure exactly what I have, but it has not been a good time.  While I'm feeling better than I have in days, I'm still not feeling good and I had to cancel plans with some fantastic friends of mine that I do not see nearly enough in favor of a night at home.  Also, I have something truly fabulous going on tomorrow night that I need to be feeling as good as possible for.  So my plans for tonight included a bit of blogging, cuddling with Port, a mug of Boozy Tea, and an early bedtime.  It may not seem über exciting to most people, but I think it's perfect for tonight!

Each time I mention Boozy Tea, people seem fascinated and always ask me how I make it.  This used to confuse me since I view Boozy Tea as something you simply DO when you are sick.  I don't remember a time when I didn't use this as a way to make illness more tolerable.  Perhaps since Americans drink more coffee than tea, they are more familiar with Boozy Coffee than Boozy Tea.  I'm not sure about the particulars, but perhaps I should take it upon myself to educate people about Boozy Tea.

The first thing you need to know about Boozy Tea is that you should definitely drink it.  It'll make you feel better!

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Okay, it may be wrong to use photographs of little girls having tea parties while discussing Boozy Tea, so I'm going on the record to say Boozy Tea is NOT meant for these situations.  Moving on.

This is what I look like before...

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And after?  Everyone's having a swell time.  And yes, on occasion, hats do come out.

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While I am not a doctor, per se, and I'm not touting this as the cure for everything that ails you, Boozy Tea will make you feel a little better about being sick, it will help you get to sleep (like an all natural NyQuil), and it has lemon for vitamin C, honey to soothe the throat, and black tea which contains antioxidants (and who couldn't use more of those?).

Many people make a Hot Toddy while sick, but I prefer using tea instead of taking straight alcohol and adding water and then having to bother with cloves and other spices.  Perhaps it's because I am not a fan of drinking the hard stuff straight and I enjoy a nice cup of tea?  It's your choice, but if you're sick and tea is chalked full of good stuff, you probably want to drink as much of it as you can, no?

So, without further ado, my Boozy Tea fixin's!  An Earl Grey tea bag, lemon juice, honey, Brandy (Christian Brothers is Oma's favorite and I always have some on hand so that it's available as an option for her when she comes by), and Bärenjäger.  I once found a mix of Rum and Brandy which was being sold as Hot Toddy mix, so you could use that or any other dark spirit you like.  I've also been told that Grand Marnier is tasty as well, but perhaps orange doesn't go quite as well with honey as lemon does.  There is no science here, so experiment if you like.

Step 1 - Brew your tea.  I like to let mine steep covered.  It might be my imagination that the tea turns out stronger, but it is not my imagination that it prevents the tea from cooling as quickly.

 Why Mr. Grey, what a fetching hat!

Step 2 - Remove your tea bag and add your Brandy, Bärenjäger, honey, and lemon to taste.  I usually just pour, but for this post, I measured out 1oz of Brandy and Bärenjäger and 1 1/2 teaspoons honey.  You can also cheat and use lemon juice from the store if you don't feel like juicing a lemon.  It was strong, but good!

Most of you have probably never heard of Bärenjäger before.  It is a rather tasty honey liqueur that is not really useful in most instances, but is PERFECT here!  Because it is something that is rarely used, I actually forgot I had it until I was trying to get to the Brandy as I also rarely use that.

A large mug of Boozy Tea and a few chocolate chip cookies which Bridget (BEST. NEIGHBOR. EVER.) made for me from scratch yesterday was just what the doctor ordered.  I feel better already!

Good Night, Kittens!  I'm sure I'll be sleeping like a baby tonight!

XOXO!!