Spicy Warm Winter: 8 spices for cold nights

 Winter…cold, windy, blustery days and freezing temperatures at night. These call for some great Winter spices, right?

I love this time of year! Outside it's chilly and dark early, but inside there's warmth and light. Often you find something nice and hot to warm up your hands and belly!  Don't you find yourself looking for a drink to do just that, as well as sooth a sore throat, or help get your voice back so you can go caroling?  I know I do!

Here are some of the best of holiday and Christmas time recipes, drinks, and links we could round-up to cover these 8 warm spices! (Plus some with nuts, maple, vanilla and hot chocolate!)

Affiliate links used; if you purchase through them I get a small commission-thanks!

Spices:

• Peppermint 
 • Cinnamon Sticks
 • Cloves
 • Orange Peel 
• Lemon Peel
 • Bay Leaf • Cardamom Pods • Cinnamon Bark Powder


Hot Drink Recipes from Nourishing Simplicity:

• Healing Chai Tea has an amazing assortment of spices that's sure to capture your senses. The deepness of it is so goood!  The many spices are healing, calming, and delightful!
• Eggnog nourishing and dairy-free (cooked)
• 

Peppermint Hot Cocoa Rich, creamy, chocolatey, and then that strong mint flavor; wow, oh so delicious!  There are even instructions for homemade maple whipped cream, as well as peppermint marshmallows!
• Peppermint Mocha  Coffee, cocoa, vanilla plus peppermint! 

Teas from BHS:

• Sparkling Festive Tea
• Christmas Tea is available again! This week I finally got a taste of this happy tea; it has a lovely red tint to add a touch of festive to the table!  I hope to mix more honey in mine tomorrow, and serve it up for the whole family! 
• Creamy Pumpkin Pie Tea, made up with coconut milk and a pinch of sea salt it's soo delicious!
• Ginger Snap Tea; first time Katie handed me a cup of that, I was hooked - placed my order for my own as soon as I could! 
• Lemon Drop Tea- it's one of my favorites!
• Spicy Wintertime Lemonade  @ BHS Kick a nasty sore throat right when it starts!

Warm or Spicy Breakfast Time Recipes:

• Brown Rice Pudding  @ Simple Life Abundant Life
• Vanilla Spiced Granola Recipe  @ Bulk Herb Store
  
• Paleo Sweet Potato Casserole   Plaid & Paleo
• Sourdough Squash Rolls @ The Entwife's Journal
• Stuffed & Roasted Butternut Apple Crisp + A Round-up of Wholesome Butternut Squash Recipes @ Just Making Noise

Articles & odds-and-ends;

  From Bulk Herb Store:

• Cinnamon & Spice and Everything Nice
• Peppermint Brings Relief 
• Holiday Potpourri
• Warm Holiday Spice Potpourri
• Spicy Chocolate Recipe

 & more:

• What is Cardamom?  @ the epicenter
• Double Hot Chocolate Mix recipe (dairy-free plus gift ideas) @ Nourishing Simplicity
• Savory Fig and Walnut Stuffing Recipe  @ Nourishing Simplicity

  

What do you think? 

Have you tried the Christmas Tea from BHS yet?  Have you gotten their your Holiday Spice Collection? What about the Holiday Tea Collection? I know, that's a lot of collections and spices, but they are so so yummy!

What's spices are you using this Christmas and through the Winter Time? 

 Shared on: The Art of Home-Making Monday, Monday's Musings, Wildcrafting Wednesday Christmas Edition, 

Travel Tip #3 Don't be stuffy about flying!

Do you like to fly? I usually do. Just the thought has been thrilling and exciting ever since I was a little 5 year old thing. I've loved the adventure, the idea.  Someone asked me once if it ever "got old," which left me puzzled. How could something that was the embodiment of adventure, travel, exciting times, be old and boring? I didn't understand how anyone could waste that precious time in the air by sleeping either; didn't they want to stare down at the passing scenery and see the changes in landscape, as we spanned half the continent? Weren't they sad to miss trailing along with the windy, weaving paths of the "little" rivers, or see how the criss-cross of roads and highways looked like little dirt trails drawn by small children in play?  How about the fascinating fact that half the country is filled with fields and crops?  It's so colorful and pretty neat to see mile after mile of food growing down there.

Well, after many flights, travels and adventures, I succumbed. I did, sad to say. I finally slept though a flight, one that wasn't even a "red-eye."  Sad, I know. Well, I did get more used to flying. And sometimes the return trip hasn't held the same gleam of excitement. But this last trip, well, it was sure fun! (Coming home for Christmas with family! Is that something to be excited about, or what?) Except... there was one point that stands out as quite painful. Oh yes, I'd never had such a stuffy head when flying before. This head cold is just that; a head full of, eh hem,

6 ways to avoid sicknes

When trying to avoid sickness, somethings are very important. (I'm starting to think they're just as important as washing hands and not letting someone cough on you...) Maybe you feel like you've heard this before, that everyone says these are important...but do you really want to stay healthy? Then why not do as many of these as you can? :]

More Fall links! 10 Fall Time Spices

In Oct. I gathered a bunch of links for some yummy looking Fall food. (Did you read Autumn Foods Round-up: Warm and cozy Fall Foods?)

 



Now I've gathered a new list of recipes, ideas, and articles, featuring 10 Fall Time Spices to warm up your days.   

(Go on over to my post at Bulk Herb Store Blog to read about these 10 great spices!)




This post is part of Natural Living Monday Blog Hop,  Encourage One Another Wednesday link-up, Alphabe-Thursday @Jenny Matlock, The Art of Homemaking Mondays ...

Simple Butternut Soup Recipe

Chop the following into large chunks and put in crock-pot:

Nov. 2013 - two giveaways

***these giveaways have ended; you can still buy the ebook though!***

E-book sale Fall 2013

***this bundle sale has ended; you can still buy the ebook though!***

Cooking Little House--Mexican Style! Apple N Onion Supper

My friend Katie at Nourishing Simplicity has a series called Cooking Through "Little House," from which I made a recipe this week, after noting it on a list of yummy Autumn foods:

Fried Apples n’ Onions

Just like she says, it's a supper simple and quick dish! Along with it I cooked up some meat, and we had our supper ready so fast!

Autumn recipes round-up: warm and cozy Fall Foods!

I have a huge pumpkin in my living room:

See?  :D

I'm so glad too, cause I've been seeing all these delicious pumpkin recipes online lately!

• Coconut Pumpkin pancakes (from Robin Jones Gunn) I'd like to adapt this idea to the following recipe...
• Simply Scrumptious Blender Oat Pancakes @ Home With Purpose
• and then top them with Vanilla Maple Whipped Cream @ Nourishing Simplicity
• Or maybe with this: Pumpkinfied Mousse (sugar free and candida diet friendly) @ Just Making Noise
• this one I'm just sharing with you (does anyone know a simple way to convert recipes with almond flour to either wheat or coconut??I have no way to get almond flour, and keep seeing such yummy things that need use it!)  Pumpkin Pie (sugar and caisin free)
• Sourdough Pumpkin/Kabocha Spice Cake @ Bulk Herb Store
• Squash Soup (with turnips) :D That's mine...I really like it, so I might save some of the pumpkin out when I cook the whole thing, and use it for this...now where can I get a slow-cooker larger enough...?
• How To Make Your Own Pumpkin Puree! @ Proverbs 31 Wife
• Pumpkin Spice Pancakes (gluten free) @ Simple Foody
• Sourdough Pumpkin Pancakes @ My Cultured Palate
• (so many pancake recipes! There's even this one with bananas @ Smithsperations !) :]
• Pumpkin Cranberry Bread @  Denise In Bloom
• Ezekiel Bread Pumpkin Muffins @ Lexie Naturals
• Pumpkin Pie Herbal "Latte" @ Nourishing Simplicity

I was also given a big ole' bag of apples that need to be cooked right away, so I think we'll have Fried Apples & Onions for supper! (and if I only had a slow-cooker,  I'd make Slow-cooker Applesauce too!) There's post on how and why to caramelize onions. :-)

And then there are these that don't have pumpkins or apples:

• Raw Pear Tart with Cashew Pastry Cream @ Helyn's Kitchen 
• And my most favorite of muffins of all!  Coconut Chai Muffins @ Nourishing Simplicity

Also, see More Fall Links: 10 Fall Time Spices and my Autumn pinboard for all sorts of other Autumn links! *NEW* 2014 Fall Foods Recipe round-up.

What are you making this fall?  Have you any pumpkin recipes to share? 

 

Sharing this post @ The Art of Homemaking Mondays , Mondays Musings, Homestead Barn Hop, Fabulously Fall Linky Party, Real Food Fridays, Front Porch Friday, Simple Meals Friday, Farmgirl Friday ... 

Photo of an Autumn Day

An Autumn day: homeschool and pouring up tinctures! 

Have you tried making tinctures yet?  My favorite one to have around is White Willow Bark & Lavander; great for headaches! (you could even use vinegar!)

*Bulk Herb Store just shared this newsletter called Tincture making Troubleshooting!

DIY: Fill Your Own Tea Bags

This post contains affiliate links

Some teas I used included: Soothing Lemon which you can also find in the ebook Steeped,  and my Cough & Cold tea. Don't forget to get your Press & Brew Tea Bags while you're at it!

Join me today for a little lesson on how to fill our own tea bags; it's soo easy! Definitely worth investing a little time and money for the easy use and time saved later on. (Later we'll talk about other great uses for these little DIY Tea Bags!) 

Click here for the project: "How To" Press & Brew Tea Bags: DIY

 

Have you filled your own tea bags yet? What herbs did you use?

This post is now part of the following blog-hops and link-ups:  Natural Living Monday @Nourishing Simplicity, The Art of Home-Making Monday @ Strangers & Pilgrims, Mama Moments @ A Mama's Story.

Cough & Cold Tea: recipe

My dear one has a cough and can't sleep; their cold is keeping them up, blowing their nose till they use up all the tissue.  What can I give them to help them stop coughing and relieve the over-all symptoms so they can get some sleep??

This is a mix I came up with for us! (I'm not recommend this for you; just sharing our experience. Please look into each herb to see if it's a fit your specific need before you add it to your blend.)

Cold cuppa: good drink on a warm day

Have you ever had red raspberry leaf tea?  

Well, contrary to the appearance of the photo above, 

it's not red! :-)

This post contains affiliate links.

With much in the house after a new move, I wanted something healthy and quick on hand to drink. Bottled water (oh one day I hope to get a Travel Berky!) is not always satisfying to my country tongue (used to great well water), and making tea all afternoon takes too much time. So followed some advice of Shoshanna's, and made a pitcher of cold Red Raspberry Leaf and it hit the spot just fine! 

Go read all about it, watch the video, and buy yourself some great herbs! Red Raspberry Leaf at Bulk Herb Store.

Buy this book :D

We've sickies in the house. So much to do; make elderberry syrup, throat soothing honey, and immune boosting tea...


...and no time for more typing.  But you should buy this book!

Steeped: Simple Nourishing Tea Time Treats