One of my favorite winter down time activities is to make a cup of warm herbal tea or spiced golden milk and cuddle up in a blanket reading a good herb or gardening book! This recipe is a little sweet and warming with all its wonderful spices. It will definitely increase circulation, warming the body and promote good digestion. You may be surprised to see black pepper in it, but it only helps to increase absorption of other herb and spices adding more benefit. I like to make a big pot to share with loved ones or reheat over a few days and sip on to warm me up. Play around with the spices to your liking. This is what I like to call hearth home medicine, using what we already have in our cupboards. You probably already have all these ingredients to make it!

Recipe

2 cups milk, (coconut, rice, almond or animal).

1-2 tablespoons maple syrup or honey

1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric

Pinch of ground cardamom

Pinch of cinnamon (optional)

Pinch of ground ginger

Pinch of ground cloves

Pinch of ground allspice

Pinch of ground black pepper

1/4 – 1/2 teaspoon vanilla

Warm the milk in a saucepan or pot over medium heat. Add the maple syrup and spices. Whisk in well until it begins to simmer. Add the vanilla and serve. Keep on low if serving throughout the evening, stirring occasionally or transfer to a container, keep in fridge and reheat over the next few days.

Emily Saddler

Emily is a Master Gardener, wife of a professional landscape contractor, homeschool mom of 7 awesome kids, yoga/pilates instructor, a clinical and master herbalist, licensed massage therapist and soon to be traditional naturopath. She is a very passionate advocate of organic home-grown food! Emily maintains a blog called “The Organic Suburban Farm Girl” where she shares gardening advice, delicious recipes made with fresh, organic ingredients, herbal and natural home care product recipes and loves teaching classes on gardening, plant identification and herbal remedy workshops. Check out the events and classes page for more info.