Recipe Difficulty: Easy, this is barely a recipe.

Recipe Tags:

• Lemon Ginger Tea
• Healthy Drinks
  
• Turmeric, Mint, Herbal Teas
  
• Whole Food Plant Based Lifestyle

Sipping on Lemon Ginger Tea is one of my favourite healthy habits.
I can thank my brothers girlfriend Pheobe for getting me into this habit. She made this drink for my niece and I often while I was visiting them in Switzerland over the holidays years ago, a simple but lovely thing. It kinda feels like a stretch to call this a recipe, more like a friendly reminder to throw a little love at yourself once in awhile. Maybe it's not just this tea.... maybe it's a yoga class, getting outside more....taking a mental health day.... or a bubble bath. For me, making this simple tea just makes me feel good.  It's tasty and makes my body feel happy. I'll make ginger lemon tea instead of pouring myself more coffee or in lieu of an evening cocktail. Which might not sound so exciting at first, but great habits are built on practice. Commit to doing something differently for a month to benefit your health, it can be a small thing, just do it daily. By the end of that month you will be surprised how much you can embrace changes in your life, and that momentum can propel you forward in ways you may not have been able to imagine before. My advice if you don't know where to start, just start small. Like by making yourself a ritual cup of hot fresh ginger & lemon tea. 

How I make my Fresh Lemon & Ginger Tea
The most simple way is to just slice a couple wedges of lemon and a couple chunks of ginger, and put them into your cup and top with hot water, that is what I do most often. If you want more, just add as much as you can handle to a tea pot cover with hot water, and let steep for several minutes before pouring into a cup. A nice way to make it if you can't handle having whole food ingredients in your cup. The best part is, you can definitely make a couple rounds of the tea using the whole ingredients. I always have a 2nd, if not a third cup using the same lemon & ginger. 

A Few Variations of Lemon Ginger Tea
You don't have to stop at just Lemon and Ginger, I often add different things depending what I have on hand, or just what I'm craving that day. If I have fresh mint, I love tossing some into my tea. Mint tea is one of my favourites. 

Sometimes I add in herbal tea leaves as well. If you have a mesh tea ball, you can stuff it with leaves, grated ginger, turmeric, and maybe some black peppercorns which are supposed to make the turmeric more bioavailable. Beyond that add anything you want. Experiment with different flavours and have fun. 

What are the Benefits of Lemon Ginger Tea?

I am not sure if there are any scientific studies done to really back up any of the claims you see online about the benefits of drinking lemon ginger water or tea, but I'm inclined to believe that it can't be a bad thing. Here is a list of some possible benefits that I read, I don't necessarily drink lemon ginger tea for these benefits, I just really like it, and I hope that it is also doing some good. 

• For sure it is hydrating!
  
• It might help with weight loss if you swap this habit for another caloric beverage
  
• lemons are full of antioxidants and vitamin C, so surely that is a nice thing for your immune system
  
• I've also read it is good for your hair and skin, but I'm not sure I've noticed any difference. 
• Possible benefits to your lyphatic system, helping to eliminate toxins from the bladder, colon and lymph glands.

I first had walnut stew while visiting my mum in Fredericton, NB. We were too tired to cook, and Cinnamon Café is the perfect place for tasty vegan take out. We ordered several dishes to share, but this stew is what stood out for me. I consider myself an adventurous eater but yet the flavours in this were unique to me. Needless to say I had to try making it at home. The result is this recipe and it is my take of Fensenjen, inspired by what I ate, but I wouldn't use it as reference for the most authentic version out there. I think it is delicious none the less.
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The base of walnut stew is predominately, you guessed it, crushed walnuts.  They are cooked down with onion, garlic, sweet potato and flavoured with pomegranate molasses. The result is a stew that is rich, tangy and slightly sweet. Saffron infused rice on the side is a must, as is a generous garnish of chopped parsley and pomegranate seeds. 

Because this stew is quite rich and packs a pretty big flavour punch I like it best with other bites along side. Warm hummus with tons of sautéed mushrooms (link to recipe below) is an amazing accompaniment. When I had the take out meal I also loved veggie spring rolls with sweet chili sauce and warm flatbread on the side too.  I didn't end up making the full ordeal at home but I totally would if I was planning to feed it to others. 

Fesenjan is a stew from Gilan province, Iran. It is traditionally made with chicken, or other meat but I have used chickpeas to keep it vegan. Cubes of crispy tofu would be a wonderful choice too. I learned that Fesenjan is often prepared during winter solstice celebrations. "Shab-e Yalda" is an Iranian festival to celebrate the longest and darkest night of the year; families gather to eat, drink and read poetry late into the night. Sounds wonderful to me.