December 13th, 2016

Cold busting lemongrass & ginger tea self-brew

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Coco&Me - Recipe for ginger & lemongrass tea self-brewing in thermos flask - www.cocoandme.com

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This post is in two parts. First, it’s the recipe itself, then secondly, there is my story on what it is like as I travel with this flask on the red bus to get to the chemo treatment that I am having at the moment.

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Part 1: The recipe.

Whenever I travel, I concoct this tea in a thermos flask & take it out with me. It takes just a couple of minutes to put together, it’s so simple, I just let the goodness steep on its own accord while traveling.

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I like to sip this as the day unfolds. Like while waiting for the bus on a freezing day for example. I pour just a tiny bit in to the cup so that it cools down quicker, then take a sip & enjoy the deep, warming zing of the ginger & the crisp, purifying aroma of the lemongrass. I feel its warmth seep in to my body & envelope me & shield me from the cold.

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Its weird to admit to, but this tea flask is starting to become almost like as if Linus’s security blanket for me. Whenever it’s too much, I take a break with it. Even while walking on the street at times! I stop & take a sip by the sidewalk & let the world pass by. I find that it is a great calming way to take a step back from the hustle & bustle. I now realise that the time you enjoy taking a break is not wasted time. It reminds me to slow down & most importantly, allow for that.

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Coco&Me’s recipe for cold busting lemongrass & ginger tea brew

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Ingredients:

Fresh lemongrass

Fresh ginger root

Tea bag of your choice (caffeine-free would be ideal, like rooibos tea or chamomile)

Honey to sweeten (optional)

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Method:

1. Boil some water in the kettle.

2. Cut a slice of ginger. Just a slither is plentiful, otherwise it becomes too spicy & dominant in the tea. Peel the skin, & place this in the thermos flask.

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cocoandme_ginger_tea

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3. Next, chop off about 2cm of lemongrass. Using the back of a wooden spoon, smash it to bruise & release the aromatic oils. Pop this in the flask also.

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cocoandme_lemongrass_1

cocoandme_lemongrass_2

cocoandme_lemongrass_flask

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4. Pop the tea bag in the flask & pour in the hot water. Let the tea steep for a while & then discard the bag.

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cocoandme_ticktock_flask

cocoandme_tea

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5. Then secure the lid. That’s all! :) It’ll be flavoursome after about 30 minutes. 

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Part 2: As on my way to the chemo treatment.

Thursday morning. Eight o’clock.

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The day starts with my earnest intention to leave the house much earlier than Mr.D who stands in to walk our daughter to school. I want to get to the hospital quick to start on the treatment so that I’ll be home by the time when the children come home from school.

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But I get too involved when I enter the kitchen – I see the washed up plates & pots from last nights dinner on the dish drainer by the sink & the compulsive in me finds some work to do. I circuit around & around the central kitchen in a hurry to put things away in to the cupboards. Have I ever told you that I hate my stupid kitchen island? It makes me feel like a guinea pig on one of those round spinning what-you-call-its.

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I’m the queen when it comes to multitasking (a much positive way to put it rather than saying impatient jitterer, which is what I really am!), so amidst the tidying I prepare my breakfast, which this morning is porridge with slices of kiwi & dried prunes. With the same chopping board I also cut a small piece of ginger & pound a thumb length of a stalk of the lemongrass. These I pop in to the travel flask filled with hot green-rooibos tea to steep. It’s amazing this, just the tiniest pieces perfumes & permeates the tea. I feel like I’m doing something right & healthy by drinking it. I tuck this travel flask in to my rucksack, together with a small bottle of anti-bacterial hand gel which I now carry around everywhere, because chemo compromises the immune system & I’m freaked out about germs on public transport!

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I leave the house to journey to the hospital. It will take me around an hour & a half on the bus with one interval change.

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On the first bus that I take, a scruffy possibly homeless man comes on. His worn out clothes are dirty gradients of grey. Except his t-shirt. It’s bright blue with the superman S logo. If there ever was a superman & I was Clarice, this beatened superman looked unpromising to bring some peace to my troubled world.

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Next, I sit on the icy cold metal bench as I wait for my second bus. The thing about England is that it’s so cold for most of the year. There’s not really a real summer here, it’s hot for only like two weeks then that’s the summer done! So I have a go at the bench. “C’mon, seriously? Do you have to be metal? You’re super icy!” ~ This is all in my head of course. Don’t worry, my screws aren’t that loose yet!

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This is the perfect time to take out my thermos flask & pour the hot tea in to the cup that also acts as a lid. The purifying aroma of the lemongrass feels like it’ll shield me from the cold, & the fiery kick from the ginger warm my body from the inside. I’m convinced that if anyone should take a thermal image of me & the others at the bus stop, I’ll be the one that is glowing reds & yellows, while the rest will be in shades of blue.

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Soon enough the bus for the second length of my journey arrives. This one takes up the longer part of my travel so I sit upstairs on the double decker bus. My preferred side to sit is always the curb side so that I can look at the passing shops. It’s interesting you know, the kind of shops out there. There’s ones that’s like“How on earth are they surviving?” & I’m not kidding, it’s the sort that both you & I will think so in unison. But surely the shop rent isn’t cheap either. Sometimes, there are shop-keepers that lean by the doorway, arms crossed, looking bored stiff. Er, yeah, that’s really gonna bring the customers in, isn’t it…

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I plug my earphones on & listen to the BBC radio programmes that I pre-downloaded on my iPhone. Listening to it & all the while looking out of the window is entertaining enough to pass the time. Food related programmes are my favourite to listen to. This particular instance they were cooking at the same time as talking & I hear the sizzling sounds of frying the fatty bacon with clear stereo audio. Ahhh my-my, it is food porn for the ears I tell you! The sounds of the kitchen are my favourite sounds that I behold so fondly. Love it. I subtly smile to myself for my own silly reaction & decide to take another sip of my tea. I briefly pondered wether the distinct lemongrass aroma may be too intense for the confines of the closed air of the bus, but heck, I pour some out anyhow.

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Listening to radio, I observe the people getting in & out of the bus from my upstairs seat. I noticed the young lady waiting by the bus stop straight away. Something about her is so radiant. Y’know what, it’s that youthful look with the air of carelessness. No sign of apparent worries, confidently living the moment. – It’s such a contrast to me, I thought. Me, makeup-less, on way to the ghastly chemo, with my balding head hidden under the beanie, finger-tips tingling with peripheral neuropathy, weighed down with anxiety for having to freeze my head with the cold cap again. As a fully-fledged adult you know that the grass is not greener on the other side, & blah blah blah, but nevertheless, I feel… jealous… & it tugs at the emotions that I want to keep stabilised. Undergoing chemo compromises the immune system physically for sure, but also emotionally it seems. I think tea again should help. I sip it & close my eyes as I gulp & feel the warmth trickle down deep.

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It’s a funny thing, now that I’m not busying myself with the baking, I notice my surroundings much more so. Keeping up with the appointments is busy enough, but the truth is, the little people in my head are also feeling like the shop-keeper leaning by the doorway with arms crossed, looking bored stiff…

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Ps: Two more chemo sessions to go! – Last one on 21st. Then 4 weeks of radiotherapy from mid January.

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12 Comments »

  1. Ooh, ginger and lemongrass are two of my favorite ingredients! I can’t wait to try your fragrant tea, especially as I’ve been trying to fend off a cold. The cold hasn’t taken root yet, but I’ve got that run-down feeling and a tickle in my throat.

    I’m glad to hear that your nearing the end of your chemo sessions. 頑張ってね。I will put good wishes out there for a full and quick recovery. Here’s to an abundance of good health in 2017! Sending you support from a slightly wintry Southern California.

    Comment by Yoshiko Yeto - December 15, 2016 2:16 am

  2. ありがとう、Yoshiko さん。I hope you’re feeling better soon from your cold!
    As you’re very likely to be aware anyway, but both ginger & lemongrass has antibacterial & antifungal properties to help your body cope with the cold! So yes, please give this tea a try and get better in time for Xmas! :)

    I always think, even after all these years blogging, about how wonderful it is that I can communicate with people from other parts of the world. Thank you Yoshiko san!
    From misty & damp London, t xx

    Comment by Tamami - December 15, 2016 6:56 am

  3. Hello Tamami!
    What a beautiful write up about your travelling on the bus! I thoroughly enjoyed reading it. You really have a way with words. I have never given thought about which side of the bus to sit down but I know that next time I am on the bus I will be sitting by the pavement side to observe the people and the shops too. I agree that it is much better than the car side!
    Good luck with your chemo Tamami, it is only two more to go!
    Louise xx

    Comment by Louise - December 15, 2016 7:11 am

  4. Oh thank you Louise!!!! :) :) :) (blush!) :) :) :)
    And yes, next time you’re on the bus, sit on the pavement side ~! I’m typing this reply from the bus right now actually, :) and right now, I see people that are all in a hurry to get to work. Their hands in their pockets and face snuggled in their scarves. I can’t help but notice the pavement littered with trash – just so different to how clean it is in Tokyo I think!
    xx :)

    Comment by Tamami - December 15, 2016 9:14 am

  5. Hello Tamami,
    Not much to say except that I am thinking of you from far away through these difficult days. I hope you are getting lots of support from the breast cancer charity, it sounds like your treatment is quite long and intensive and you have kids to think of so need lots of support yourself. Your tea sounds lovely!

    Comment by zoe - December 20, 2016 12:52 pm

  6. Hello Zoe!
    This is super sweet of you, thank you for thinking for me! :)
    Admittedly, the past week has been tough – my body decided to go on a protest from the poisonous chemo drugs, and retaliated with show of the worst side effects as of date. I also had a bit of fever, which resulted in me having to skip one chemo session as the doc decided that my body won’t be able to cope. This depressed me, because I was so nearly at the end without major hiccups. The doc & the nurses reassured me saying that, so long as the patient does 80% of the whole treatment it is effective so not to worry, that it doesn’t change my survival rate. But still, it depressed me anyhow. My next chemo is tomorrow actually, but I’m not fully recovered, hopefully they will go ahead with it…, gosh, it’s the last one, and I wanna get it right, and deserve that “Been there, done that” badge! ;-)

    Comment by Tamami - December 20, 2016 3:45 pm

  7. Hello Tamami,
    Thank you so much for this lovely post and the update on your treatment…
    It must be today your last chemo session, hope it went well. Have a warmful Christmas break with your family!!

    Comment by Caroline - December 21, 2016 12:37 pm

  8. Hello dear Caroline!
    Yup! I had my last chemo yesterday!!!!!! :) :) :) This time it went smoothly!
    Thank you so much Caroline for your kind message as always, and please have a wonderful Christmas with your cute family.
    T xx

    Comment by tamami - December 22, 2016 3:49 pm

  9. Hi Tamami, Just wanted to send my best thoughts for your health and happiness! You have shared so much of your life on your wonderful website so here’s right back at ya!
    Melekalikimaka and a Hauoli Makahiki Hou.
    Li Ann

    Comment by Li - December 22, 2016 8:21 pm

  10. Aw Li Ann,
    that’s sooo sweet… thanks!!!! :) :) :)
    That’s Hawaiian right!? Oh wow, in that case;
    メリークリスマス、リ・アンさん!:) :) :)
    xx

    Comment by Tamami - December 22, 2016 8:27 pm

  11. Late to the party I am! I hadn’t realized how chilly London is before. Lemongrass isn’t that easy to get around here. I like ginger root, tumeric Root, peppermint tea bags, & honeyed lemon.

    Comment by Jonquil - January 4, 2017 10:53 am

  12. Hi Jonquil! :)
    Oh yes, London’s pretty chilly…, and often rainy…, and grey most of the time… :(
    It’s interesting you mentioned turmeric root – it’s only after diagnosis that I’ve been buying it – the curcumin compound in it is super to fight off cancer, so I’ve been religiously taking it ever since! xx

    Comment by Tamami - January 4, 2017 12:33 pm

 

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