Oh but it's a cold one these days in southern Alberta. But in true Fall fashion in these here parts, these snowy windy times are but making a brief appearance before Ma Nature ushers back in those glorious warm winds that make this my most favourite season in the foothills, a warm, colourful and most pleasant place to be with the bluest of blue skies you've ever seen.
In the meantime, my kiddo has made her way out to the prairies along with her Girl Guide group to finish one of their four-season-camping challenge they've thrown themselves this year. In the midst of that wild wind I thought was certainly uprooting trees in my neighbourhood, I wondered what kind of parent am I, to leave my girlie in this kind of storm, imagining she was shivering in her bed soaked with rain, snow and tears wondering why she was left to her own devices. (Don't we always imagine the worst?) This morning when I woke up, I thought how invincible those girls must feel, having made it through the night. Sure they may be wet and cold when we go to pick them up this evening, but they may also feel like they've gone through something together that really called them to come together and support one another, and I imagine they'll be giggling and laughing when we do make it to that little spot on the Bow River to bring them back home.
In order to help kickstart the defrost in a most delicious (and nourishing!) way, you can bet I'm making a batch of our favourite homemade Chai to take in a thermos for when we greet them. Just to make sure.
HOMEMADE CHAI TEA
In a big enough pot, add:
2 cups filtered water
2 cups milk of your choice (dairy, goat, coconut, almond, half cream half milk, etc)
2 bags of organic black tea (or orange pekoe)
1/4 tsp ground ginger powder
1/2 tsp ground vanilla powder or vanilla extract
4 cardamom pods (split open, as the flavour is in the seeds inside the pods)
2 tsp local honey
Bring it to a simmer. Let simmer for 5 minutes. Pour through a strainer. Enjoy.
And feel your insides start to warm from the toes up.
*Want to learn about the superpowers of spices, specifically cardamom? Follow this link, and then go make yourself a cuppa.