Catalogs and Chai Tea Recipe

   Yes it is winter in Western New York and what's a gardener to do......well it is the time for dreaming. I am of the opinion that one of the most delicious things about gardening is the anticipation of the garden. In December as the gardening catalogs start to arrive I stash them away for an appointed day. After the new year rolls around and all the holiday business settles down I make sure to find a day with a few consecutive hours to peruse my catalogs. Oh what pleasures of endless possibilities...

   Before I sit down to read my catalogs I am going to make a pot of Chai Tea. And here is how I did it.

Chai Tea

                2 cinnamon sticks

                   4 slices crystallized ginger

                   1 teaspoon cardamom pods

                   1 teaspoon coriander seeds 

                   1/2 teaspoon black peppercorns

                   1/2 teaspoon whole cloves

                   2 teabags black tea

                   1/4 cup brown sugar or honey

                   4 cups water

                   1 cup milk  

   Bring 4 cups of water to boil  and add the cinnamon sticks, ginger, cardamon, coriander, peppercorns, and cloves. Reduce the heat to low and simmer for 20 minutes. Remove from heat and add the tea and steep for 5 minutes. Add the sugar or honey to taste. Stir in the milk. Return to heat and bring up to a simmer. Strain into a warm tea pot and enjoy. Extras can be stored in the frig for a few days.

                                                                       

  I guess I am slow to change but I still prefer looking  at  a 'real' catalog than an electronic one. While I do most of my ordering over the internet I still like to look at a 'real' picture. My children gave me an ipad for Christmas and so for the first time ever I will use an electronic magazine though it does seem to me that  some of the charm  is lost.

    Winter used to hold no charm for me. Winter used to make me depressed. The endless gray, dull days of winter, days on end with not a beam of sunlight, constant cold and the extra work of snowfall would be such an overwhelming obstacle to my good humor. I would waste my days wishing for summer. What I have found however is that as I grow spiritually my circumstances effect my emotions less and less. I finally realized I had to stop being obsessed with growing plants and work on getting myself to grow! I had to get the crusty soil of my heart soft and ready for the seed that God was planting there. Yes! Our hearts are the garden of God. So today make sure to get some spiritual gardening done. Read your Bible, meditate on the Word, be obedient.  It might be winter were you live but I hope that in the  garden of your heart the Son is shining and things are growing. I pray for you that today you produce much fruit for the Master Gardener. Grace and Peace.