'Tis the season of the cold and flu. Thus and therefore, I present to you, my strongest weapon against them- My Extremely Potent Herbal Cold Killer. This is a herbal drink which I make whenever I feel a cold coming on. This recipe is completely my own, experimented with and made by me. My mom's a herbalist and years of being her {happy and willing} guinea pig has made me extremely bold in using herbs. It's also made my taste buds used to some very weird combinations {milk with garlic, turmeric and black pepper, anyone?} but that's just an awesome side effect. My Extremely Potent Herbal Cold Killer is one such strong combination of herbs, which I make and drink to nip a cold in the bud. It's a simple brew that can be made at home.

Ingredients:

4 cups water
2 tsp clove powder or 6 whole cloves
4 tsp licorice powder- leave this ingredient out if you're diabetic
4 tsp dried ginger powder
4 tsp ground black pepper, or 6 whole pepper kernels
2 tsp turmeric powder
4 tsp coriander powder
2 tsp basil powder or a small bunch of dried basil leaves

Keep water in a pot on slow heat, add all herbs to it. Cover and let it cook, until you see the water visibly reduced. Turn heat off. That's it. Your brew is ready. Sieve into a small cup. The cup you see above is tiny. That's enough for you. Or else, just pour half a cup into a normal sized mug. Add a teaspoon of honey. Let cool to lukewarm. Sip slowly.

I take this whenever I feel a cold or flu coming on, or when a family member already has it, just to be safe. It'll stop your cold in its tracks. You can take it even if you have a full-blown cold. The relief you'll get will have you sending blessings to me.

When you drink it, it's normal to feel your throat and ear canals burning. That's because of the black pepper, ginger and clove. It stops soon enough and it's completely healthy. I add coriander powder in the mix to neutralize the heat of all the other spices. {Coriander is a coolant.}

You can have up to 2 whole cups a day. Drink them at intervals, preferably some time before or after meals.

Do you have a special brew you make to get rid of winter viruses? What do you add? What have you found most effective? Try mine and let me know if you liked it!