Wellbeing | A Breath of Fresh Air

Why stepping outside and filling your lungs in winter will always improve your day

There’s no getting away from it. If you reside in the UK, you’re probably not living your best outdoor lifestyle in December. But is that, in fact what makes a blast of winter air so special? When you step outside in summer you may not even bother to shut the door behind you; the garden becomes an extension of the house. You don’t need to change your clothes or add layers. You simply mosey on out and join everyone else, going about their day.

But in winter, stepping outside can be like stepping into Narnia. Moving from a stuffy, centrally heated house full of artificial light into the dark and the fresh, cool air feels like a little adventure, whether you’re off on a hike or just poking your nose outside. And there’s nothing like that first lungful of cold air to calm frazzled nerves, soothe overindulged stomachs and clear your mind. No matter how long you have, a breath of fresh air might be the festive re-set you need this season. Here are a few excuses to help you find it. 

Excuse: A good walk

Whether it’s a nice chat with a parent or sibling, or perhaps a catch-up with an adult child you don’t see so much of these days, a good long walk is an excellent reason to get out of the house when you feel you’re starting to ‘ferment’. Once the excesses of Christmas Day and Boxing Day are over you can declare that you ‘simply must get a bit of exercise’ and commandeer someone to keep you company. 

Enjoy the first slap of cold air on your cheeks as you rediscover the world outside (somehow even two days spent indoors at Christmas always feels like you’ve been locked up for months). Pick somewhere that will allow you to appreciate nature a bit, whether that’s a national park or the gardens of a stately home, or a wilder woodland setting, and you’ll have plenty of conversation starters. However, you often find that the mere act of walking side by side, without the pressure of full eye contact, allows people to open up and you’ll end up chatting about all sorts of things and possibly discovering a new side to someone you thought you knew everything about. And how often do we get the chance to do that? 

Secret benefit: Reconnecting with the important people in your life. 

Excuse: Tidying the garden

If wandering far from home isn’t an option, find a good long job that absolutely must be done in the garden and escape into the fresh air. At this time of year, any dry day is a good enough excuse to abscond to the garden for a few hours. Wrap up warm, with double gloves, and get cutting back, sweeping up and scrubbing out old plant pots ready for spring. Pop a podcast on in your ear phones, or just enjoy hearing the occasional garden bird trilling. 

Secret benefit: Your future self will thank you in February.

Excuse: Child or dog care

Whether you own a child or a dog yourself or not does not matter here. No parent or pet owner will object if you offer to take a scatty lab or over-Christmassed kid out to burn off some energy in the park. You need not admit that you’d much rather spend an hour in the company of someone smaller and/or furrier than yourself than have to make any more adult small talk about the cost of living or when it is acceptable to take the tree down. Take a ball with you, a good book in case the dog/child leaves you to your own devices once there, and maybe a flask of something hot to enjoy with your fresh air and dose of daylight.

Secret benefit: A nice cup of tea and a sit down - en plein air. 

Excuse: Putting the bins out

The thing about Christmas is that if you’re not washing up, you’re probably taking the bins out. Both are excellent ways of finding a little peace and quiet for yourself. But taking out the bins has the added bonus of a few moments of fresh air, too. 

Tie up the bin liner and replace it so that no one comes looking for you asking where the new bin liners are, then trudge through the back door with the air of someone ‘just getting the job done’. Make a slightly larger deal than necessary about rearranging the bins for maximum space efficiency and by the time you’ve sorted it all out, all eyes will be off you. Slope around the corner of the house where you’ll be unseen and then, with only the moon for company, look up at the sky and take in a few deep breaths and enjoy five meditative moments alone with your thoughts. If anyone questions your absence when you go back indoors, claim you thought you saw a rat and went to investigate. That should ensure no one else offers to take the bin out and the job remains yours.

Secret benefit: A bit of peace and quiet. Plus, you’ll be treated like a heroine for doing the dirty jobs.

Excuse: Just airing the house

If the weather foils your plans, as a last resort, find a quiet room, throw open the window, stick your head out and take a few deep lungfuls of winter air. Mentally, block out the rest of the world and all the goings on inside the busy house, close your eyes and imagine yourself out in the great blue yonder… That’s better, isn’t it?

Secret benefit: A mini self-care package (and a fresher feeling room). 

If you’re interested in fresh air winter walks you might enjoy our feature ‘A Wander to Behold’ from our December issue, which is on sale now.

Buy this month's The Simple Things - buy, download or subscribe

More ways to breathe deeper in winter…

More from our December issue…

How to | Ice Skate Without Embarrassment

If it’s been a while and you don’t want to embarrass yourself on the rink, read our quick ice skating primer and you’ll be Jayne Torvill dancing to Bolero in no time (in your head at least).

Assuming you haven’t hit an ice rink since you were in short trousers, but have an invitation to one this winter, fear not. It’s not *quite* like riding a bike but it’s definitely something you can be passable at within an hour or so. 

Getting started

When you first get on the ice, it goes without saying that you should stick to the barriers to begin with. They’re there for you to hold onto, particularly while you find your ice legs again. Now is not the time for a Triple Salchow. Remember: enthusiasm bears no relation to skill. 

Standing on your own two feet

Once you feel a bit steadier, you can let go of the barrier but perhaps stay within grabbing distance for now. Go around the outside of the rink, first taking marching steps with each foot and then beginning to glide on just one foot with each step, as if you were riding a scooter. Then try it on the other foot. Once you’ve got the hang of the step, glide, step, glide business, try doing a little glide with each foot on each step you take. 

A word on posture

As you skate, you should keep your knees just loosely bent and your arms close to your body. This will keep your centre of gravity steady. And you don’t want wibbly wobbly passers mistaking your flailing arm for an offer of support and grabbing it as they hit the ice, either. 

Getting up speed

Now you’ve mastered gliding you can try ‘stroking’, which is basically a long glide. With each step forward and glide you take on one foot, lift the other behind you and as you step onto the foot in the air and glide on it, you lift the first foot behind you. You’re properly skating now. 

How to fall well

Learn to fall with grace, rather than from grace, by getting out in front of the problem and practising falling and getting up. First, make sure you aren’t going to fall in front of another skater. Bend your knees quite low into a crouch, lean forward and then tip gently onto your side onto the ice. Roll immediately onto your bottom and put your hands in your lap; this is essential if you want to avoid any nasty skate-blade-fingers interfaces. Once you’ve checked around you that no other skaters are nearby, turn onto all fours, place both hands on the ice in front of you and put one foot between your hands. Once you’re steady move the other foot between your hands, too, and push yourself up to a standing position. Practising falling and getting up is really important, both for safety and to avoid looking like an upturned turtle in mittens, crying and getting sweaty and wishing you’d said you’d look after the bags and coats by the mulled wine stall instead. Trust us. We speak from experience. 

How to stop

Last but very much not least, you’ll need to know how to come to a halt. It works the same way as stopping on skis: turn your toes inward so that the sides of the blades make a bit of a snow plough effect on the ice, which will slow you down. (Alternatively, you can do what most people do and career helplessly towards the barriers shouting “MOVE IT OR LOSE IT” and let physics do its work as you hit the wall.)

The picture above is from our feature Let It Snow, in our December issue, which you can still buy a back issue of from our online store. If you’re a fan of celebrating the micro seasons, including snow falling and everything icing over, look out for our January issue feature, The 72 Seasons, which explains a few of the ‘micro’ seasons to enjoy during winter, and at other times of year, too! The January issue is in shops now. 

Buy this month's The Simple Things - buy, download or subscribe

More winter inspiration…

From our January issue…

Science lesson | How frost is made

Waking to a sprinkling of frost on the lawn, leaves and cobwebs is a little bit magical, but how does frost actually happen?

It’s all about the ‘dew point’. The dew point is the temperature at which water vapour in the air is so cold it turns from gas to liquid and appears in droplets on grass, plants, cars etc. When objects outdoors become colder than the dewpoint, that water vapour which has turned to dew freezes, forming tiny ice crystals. Because cool air sinks, frosts happen more commonly in low-lying areas, such as valleys, and frosts tend to happen overnight because the air is cooler then.

It’s a little more complicated than that though. And, for the frost curious, here are the various ‘types’ of frost:

Hoarfrost (or radiation frost)
Forming on outdoor objects and on the ground outside, hoarfrost is made up of tiny ice crystals, created when dew freezes.

Window frost
Less common in these days of double glazing, window frost occurs when there is cold air on one side of the glass and moist air indoors. Brrrr!

Advection frost
This sort of frost is formed from small ‘spikes’ of ice rather than crystals and tends to happen when the wind blows over tree branches, rooves and telegraph wires, freezing water vapour on those objects as it gusts. 

Rime
Yes, as in ‘of the Ancient Mariner’. Rime often forms on ships or other objects near the sea. Rime occurs in very cold, very wet locations and it forms very fast. It’s much more dramatic-looking than other types of frost and can often make an object appear to be made from solid ice. 

Join us on a winter walk where we appreciate frost and much more in our January issue. Our Outing feature, Sights, Drama, Action begins on page 76.

Buy this month's The Simple Things - buy, download or subscribe

More winter nature to appreciate…

More from our blog…

Christmas recipe: Mulled white wine

The scents of cloves and cinnamon wafting from this wintry punch are a wonderful accompaniment for any Yuletide gathering, or take some out to warm carol singers this evening

Mulled white wine with cinnamon & cloves

Warming spices and wine in a toasty tipple that tastes as good as it smells

Serves 6
1 x 750ml bottle white wine
500ml cider
Juice and zest of 1⁄2 orange
1⁄2 lemon, sliced
3–4 star anise
3 cinnamon sticks, plus extra to serve (optional)
1 tbsp cloves
1 vanilla pod
4 tbsp caster sugar

Heat all the ingredients in a pan, until steaming but not boiling. 

Serve with cinnamon sticks, if you like.

This recipe was originally published in our December 2017 issue but it’s just as warming and festive today.

More from the December issue:

More Christmas posts:

Get hold of your copy of this month's The Simple Things - buy, download or subscribe

Bake: sun bread for Yule

Make bread rings that look like the sun to summon it back (and to dip into your soup, too)

The Pagan celebration of Yule (Winter Solstice) begins on 21st December and we still incorporate many of Yule’s traditions today, such as bringing in a Yule log and hanging mistletoe. This simple sun bread is an easy make and a simple way to cheer and warm the darkest day of the year. Make one for your supper to dip into soup and one for a friend or neighbour to spread the sharing message of Yule.

You will need

400g strong plain white flour

115g plain white flour

300ml slightly warm water

1 tsp salt

1 sachet (7g) easy-blend

dried yeast

How to make

1 Sift flours and salt into a large bowl, mix in the yeast and add the water. Mix to form a soft dough. Turn onto a floured surface and knead for 10 mins.

2 Oil a bowl and put the dough into it, covering the top with cling film. Leave in a warm place until doubled in size.

3 Flour three baking trays. Tip the dough out onto a lightly floured

surface and split into three portions.

4 Take one portion and roll it out into a long, thin length and join the ends

to form a circle. Place the circle onto a baking sheet and stretch it a little

more, then take a handful of flour and sprinkle and rub it all over the circle.

5 Take a pair of scissors and snip diagonally into the ring, then pull out

the point of the snip to form the first of the bread sun’s rays. Repeat all the

way around, pulling out the points as you go, and taking care not to disturb

the flour coating: it is the difference between the flour-coated parts and

the uncoated snipped parts that will help form the ray-like patterning.

6 Cover loosely with cling film or a clean tea towel and then repeat the

whole process with the other pieces of dough. Leave the covered rings to

prove until they’ve doubled in size.

7 Heat your oven to 200C/Fan 180/400F and bake for 35-40 mins,

until the tops are golden brown and the bases make a hollow sound when

tapped. Serve warm or cold.

This recipe was first featured in our December 2017 issue alongside other recipes to celebrate Yule, by Lia Leendertz. Photography by Kirstie Young.

Get hold of your copy of this month's The Simple Things - buy, download or subscribe

More celebrations for midwinter…

More from our December issue…

Make | Winter Herb Salt

This easy recipe can be made with whatever fresh herbs you have to hand; you just need roughly the same volume of sea salt as you do chopped herbs

The flavoursome salt is a versatile seasoning for so many winter recipes and is particularly good crumbled over freshly roasted chestnuts. Potted up in little glass jars and tied with a ribbon, it also makes a lovely gift for others to enjoy.

Makes 1 jar

You will need
A mixed bunch of fresh winter herbs of your choice (rosemary, sage, and a few bay leaves is our go-to combination for this)
Coarse sea salt

To make
Remove any tough stems from the herbs and finely chop them. Roughly measure out an equal volume of sea salt to the chopped herbs. Mix the Winter herbs and sea salt together until well combined. Spread the herb salt out in a shallow layer in a dish or bowl, cover with a tea towel, and leave somewhere warm and dry for a few days, or until the salt and herbs are dry to the touch. Scoop into a jar and use as needed.

The Winter Herb Salt was just one of the beautiful makes from our feature Gifts from the Smallholding in our December issue, by Kathy Bishop and with photography by Tom Crowford from The Seasonal Table. We’ve loved following Kathy and Tom’s adventures on their smallholding this year.  You can find the Winter Herb Salt as well as lots more wintry recipes and ideas, including squash and kale lasagne, mash with onions and breadcrumbs, ginger crumble with apple compote and redcurrant, apple and rosemary fizz starting on page 46 of our December issue, which you can preorder now.

Buy this month's The Simple Things - buy, download or subscribe

More things to make with salt…

More from our blog…

Nature | Seaweed Weather Forecasting

When there’s little else to forage, seaweed is still plentiful. But as well as being good to eat, did you know it can also act as your very own Wincey Willis? 

Hang some seaweed outside and if it feels dry to the touch the weather should be fine, whereas if it feels damp rain be on its way. It’s not a completely failsafe forecast, being based only on the fact that if there’s moisture in the air it may indicate rain soon to come. If it’s VERY wet, it may simply be that it’s actually raining already. But it’s a bit of fun. 

Here are a few more ways you can tell the weather without switching on the radio or TV.

• Have a look at the dandelions. If they’re closed it will be clouding over. 

• See if you can spot any bees. They don’t tend to leave the hive when rain is on the way. 

• Notice what leaves are doing. Those with soft stems will go a little limp when there’s stormy or blustery weather on the way to allow wind to blow them about without snapping them.

• Arrange a very elaborate picnic. Around 20 seconds after you’ve spread the blanket on the ground, it will almost certainly begin to rain.

Discover more about seaweed, how to forage it and eat it in our January issue with our feature A Winter’s Tale. It starts on page 36.

Buy this month's The Simple Things - buy, download or subscribe

More from our January issue…

More foraged finds you can eat…

Winter | a suggested snow day timetable

The best days are snow days. If you’re due snow where you are, and maybe a surprise day at home, here’s how to make the most of it…

There’s a fine line where snow’s concerned. Ideally you want more than a light dusting, or there’s no chance of duvet days and snowman-building, but anything too extreme can be at best a bit of a pain and at worst put people in danger. We’re hoping for some of that middle ground. Just enough to ensure a day off work, but not so much that it’s no longer enjoyable. And if you’re lucky enough to hit that snowy sweet spot, where life slows down, just for a couple of days, and you get to enjoy a bonus snow day you weren’t expecting, you should make the most of it. 

We’ve put together a suggested timetable for getting the best from a snow day.

7am Look outside and assess your front path. 

7.30am Ring work and leave a message declaring your driveway ‘impassable’ and your front door ‘snowed shut’ and excuse yourself for the day.

8am Check on any elderly or vulnerable neighbours and see if they need paths clearing, heating tinkering with or any food provisions. Bask in the warm glow of being neighbourly. 

8.30am Make yourself a hot breakfast; eggs and bacon would be ideal, but feel free to press an avocado into use for something more fancy. A sprinkling of paprika gives any savoury breakfast a decadent feel. If you were underprepared for a snow day, seek out some porridge oats in the back of the cupboard or scrape together the ingredients for a pancake or three. 

9am Eat breakfast, smugly contemplating the fact that on any normal day you would currently be armpit to armpit with several hundred commuters, or sitting in gridlocked traffic. 

9.30am Make your living space as cosy as you can. Lay a fire if you have one. Get out the blankets. Treat yourself and turn the heating up a notch. Generally behave as though you are preparing for a siege at Ice Station Zebra, rather than a bit of chilly weather in the UK. 

10.30am Get wrapped up in old clothes and dig out the wellies. It’s time for a bit of light snowballing. If you don’t have children or other company to join in, add an element of competition for yourself by setting up a target. A wheelie bin works well. 

11am It’s been three hours since your last act of altruism so put out some bird food and fresh dishes of water to help out your feathered friends.

11.30am Come back inside for hot drinks and slippers. Watch the birds hopping about in the snow, hoovering up your treats and feel grateful for your slippers (and your wellies).

12 noon Time to start considering the question of lunch. This is a bonus day, remember, so, as with breakfast, you need to make a bit of an event of this if possible. Leftover Christmas goodies are a good place to start. A posh chutney would make a bit of an event of cheese on toast. If you have veg to use up, source a stock cube from the cupboard and throw a homemade soup together. Bonus points for adding fancy toppings to your homemade soup: a swirl of cream, some home-toasted croutons, a scattering of grated parmesan, a few herbs rescued from the snowy patio and chopped as a garnish. 

1pm Eat your delicious and warming lunch, with a view of the snow falling if possible. Pretend you’re in the Alps, enjoying a quick lunch on the mountain before popping your skis on and whizzing back to your chalet for the afternoon. 

1.30pm Rouse yourself from your ski chalet reverie and email the office to tell them you’ve had to start on your emergency tins from your bunker but you were forced to eat your spaghetti hoops cold, from the tin because the electricity is down and the pipes are frozen so you couldn’t risk making washing up. 

2pm Wellies on again. Pop outside again for a turn around the garden, get some photos of the snowiest parts of your property as ‘evidence’. Bonus points for capturing any actual snow drifts. 

2.30pm Back inside, change into lounge attire (that’s PJs to anyone else) and a big woolly jumper and nice thick socks. Post your snowy pictures to social media, for the look of the thing and declare yourself most annoyed to be kept from your desk.

3pm Gather together a packet of biscuits, a large mug of tea and head for your newly cosied-up living room and watch Dr Zhivago under a blanket. 

5.20pm Remember that Dr Zhivago was actually quite long and wonder where on earth the afternoon went. 

6pm Get dinner on nice and early and pity the poor cold souls struggling home through the slush now.

9pm Have a decadently early night with a good book and notice the way the night sounds that bit more silent than usual covered in a blanket of snow.

If you’re looking forward to making the most of the cold weather, don’t miss our feature on how to thrive in winter in the January issue, out now. Cold Comfort Balm starts on p18.

Buy this month's The Simple Things - buy, download or subscribe

More from our January issue…

More snow…

Words | backronyms and snackronyms

Some word-related fun to take with you on a winter walk..

A trail mix is comfort food at its most smug, and we’re right behind that. While you’re popping delicious gem-sized pieces of colourful dried fruits and nuts into your mouth (and maybe some chocolate in there, too) you can also feel the glow of fuelling your body with something healthy and homemade. 

There’s something about the words ‘trail mix’ that make you feel like you could face anything on a winter walk. Doesn’t the idea of being on a ‘trail’ rather than just a bit of a ramble make you feel like you are striding out with purpose? 

While we were putting together our On The Trail feature for our January issue, we discovered, to our delight, that there are several other even better names for trail mix. 

In North America, trail mix is often known as ‘gorp’, probably derived from the early 20th century term ‘to gorp’ or ‘to eat greedily’. Since then, however, gorp has become an acronym for Good Old Raisins and Peanuts or sometimes, more specifically, Granola, Oats, Raisins, Peanuts. It’s what’s known as a ‘backronym’: an acronym that was created to fit a word after the event, rather than a word that was created as an acronym. 

In Australia, trail mix is known as ‘scroggin’, a 1940s word which later came to stand for Sultanas, Chocolate, Raisins, Orange peel, Ginger, Glucose (sugar), Imagination (whatever you like), Nuts. Others, insist it stands for Sultanas, Chocolate, Raisins, Other Good thinGs Including Nuts.

Next time we head out on a winter walk we are definitely going to be making some of the trail mix recipes featured in our January issue and pictured above. Trail Mix is a very fine snack - Something Nice And Comforting (from the) Kitchen.

The trail mix recipes and warming soups for a winter walk featured in our January issue were taken from Delicious Wintertime: The Cookbook for Cold Weather Adventures by Markus Sӓmmer (Gestalten).

Buy this month's The Simple Things - buy, download or subscribe

More from our January issue…

More wonderful walks…

How to: do winter walks well

Wrap up, head out, gather up, then hunker down. Walks in winter are a bit special

A good walk can cure many an ill, but a good walk in winter brings with it rosy cheeks, a glow of achievement, and a life-affirming sense of having worked with the elements rather than against them.

We always feel winter walks are best summed up by Ruth Craft in her 1976 children’s book, The Winter Bear:

‘So three set off in the cold, still air

With an apple or two and plenty to wear.’

The three children wander among almost-bare hedgerows spotting ‘bryony vine and old man’s beard’ and eventually light upon a teddy bear, stuck up a tree, which they bring home, dry off, patch up and ‘set him with care on a round, brown cushion in the best armchair.’

It’s a classic winter walk. Well prepped, a well-trodden route, high hopes, a jolly demeanour and treasure at the end. And a roaring fire, too.

In winter, any one of us, setting off with purpose on a walk, has a small swagger of the intrepid explorer about us. You may be more shambling than Shackleton and more Ambridge than Antarctica, but this can still be an heroic expedition.

But it does require a little preparation. So here are our suggestions.

1. Dress as though your nan chose your outfit. At least one vest, two pairs of socks, waterproof shoes. You’re not covering up, you’re battening down the hatches.

2. Take a Thermos. A morale-boosting cuppa is just what you need at the top of a frosty hill, or after you’ve got pond water in your shoe. If you have a Thermos full of nice, thick soup you’ve really won at winter walks.

3. Make a collection. Why do only children get to have ‘nature tables’? We think grown-ups should have a nature table, too. So take a bag with you and pick up anything of interest you find on your walk: a pine cone, a nice acorn, a pebble with a hole in it, and take them home to arrange on your nature table and bring a little of the wild home to your garden.

4. Leave a surprise, too. Find a little hole in a tree or a niche in a stone wall and leave one of your finds there for someone else to happen upon. A gift to the winter walking community.

5. Say a cheery hello to everyone you meet. Even if you never say hello to anyone you pass usually. Bonus point if a really good dog runs up to you and licks your waxed jacket.

6. Have a plan. A hilltop to conquer, a wood to explore. You don’t need to follow a specific path but it helps to have something in mind so you can say: “Right, we’ve done what we came to do. Time to go home.”

7. Have somewhere to escape to and hunker down at the end. Ideally this should be a pub with a log fire, but your living room will do just fine as long as the kettle is ready to go on and you’ve got a nice cake in the tin.

In our February issue, we interviewed Emma Mitchell, author of Making Winter and, more recently, The Wild Remedy (Michael O’Mara books). Emma (follow her at @silverpebble2) documents her winter walks in beautiful ‘wreaths’ which she photographs, like the one pictured above.

And suddenly, a stroll out in the cold feels like a project we all want in on.

Buy the February issue to read all about The Wild Remedy and for the details of our reader offer on the book. For more winter walk inspiration, visit The National Trust’s Winter Walks page.

Get hold of your copy of this month's The Simple Things - buy, download or subscribe

More walks…

More from our February issue…

The frost report

The Simple Things’ Lia Leendertz talks us through frost in all its forms

We’re unlikely to have snow at this time of year (though never say never) but what we can enjoy is the delicately beautiful arrival of frost. Read on for an explanation of the different types and how and why they occur.

Hoar frost

From ‘hoary’, meaning aged and whitened, in reference to the shaggy and feathery coating that hoar frost leaves. It occurs under calm, cloudless skies, when there is no (or very little) wind, and under ‘inversion’ conditions: when cold air is trapped under warmer air.

Advection frost

Strong, cold winds prettily rim the edges of objects and plants with tiny spikes of frost, usually pointing in the direction of the wind.

Window frost

Also known poetically as fern frost or ice flowers, this is the frost that creeps across window frames forming swirls, feathers and other patterns, caused by the difference between the very cold air on the outside of the glass and the warmer, moderately moist air on the inside. The growth of the patterns responds to imperfections on the glass surface.

You can read more about Lia’s winter adventures in her veg patch in our December issue. Follow her on instagram @lia_leendertz. You can buy Lia’s book The Almanac: a seasonal guide to 2019 (Hachette Books) in shops now.

Get hold of your copy of this month's The Simple Things - buy, download or subscribe

Read more about winter…

Read more from our December issue…

Playlist | Songs about snow

In the meadow we can build a snowman…

Listen to our songs about snow

More playlists…

Seasonal winter shots

Ginger tops the list of effective natural home remedies. Try these combinations to help settle upset tummies, soothe migraines and ward off viruses

To make: Peel and juice the ginger first, then feed the herb or spice through the juicer. Finally, juice the fruit.

Each of the following recipes makes one winter shot.
Asian Pear Drop: 2cm piece of ginger, 1⁄4 of a stick of lemongrass and half
a pear.
Sunshine Ginger: 2cm piece of ginger, 1 blood orange or 2 clementines and
a dusting of cinnamon.
Winter Ginger: 2cm slice of ginger, 1 apple and a drop of oregano essential oil.
Blushing Ginger: 2cm piece of ginger, 2 cardamom pods (feed whole through a juicer or grind the seeds and add later after juicing), 4cm piece of rhubarb and 1 small or 1⁄2 medium-sized beetroot. Solo Ginger: 2cm piece of ginger,
1⁄4 lemon (zest and all) and a dusting of cayenne pepper.
Persian Ginger: 2cm piece of ginger, 1 tbsp fresh rose petals or 1⁄4 tsp rosewater and 15 pitted cherries.

From Tonics & Teas by Rachel de Thample (Kyle Books).

Get hold of your copy of this month's The Simple Things - buy, download or subscribe

View the sampler here.

More from the January issue:

More homemade remedies:

Vietnamese lemongrass tea

A simple, aromatic brew that’s brilliant for taming achy tummies, soothing coughs and helping to prevent colds and flu

Makes 2x250ml servings
4 lemongrass stems
1 thumb-sized piece of ginger
1⁄2-1 tbsp coconut sugar or raw honey, to taste
Lime slices to garnish (optional)

1 In a medium saucepan, bring 600ml water to a boil over a high heat. Bash and cut the lemongrass into thin shreds. Peel and julienne the ginger. Add both to the water and boil for 5 mins.
2 Reduce the heat to low and simmer the tea for an additional 5 mins. Sweeten to taste with coconut sugar or honey.
3 Serve warm, or refrigerate and serve over ice, garnished with lime slices.

WHY LEMONGRASS?
With its distinct lemon flavour and citrussy aroma, lemongrass offers an impressive array of medicinal benefits. The main component of the grass is lemonal, a compound that has powerful antiseptic and astringent qualities. It’s widely used in Southeast Asia for its well-reputed health benefits that also include lowering cholesterol, treating insomnia, improving respiratory function and aiding digestion.

Recipe from Tonics & Teas by Rachel de Thample (Kyle Books)

Get hold of your copy of this month's The Simple Things - buy, download or subscribe

View the sampler here.

More from the January issue:

More homemade remedies:

How to cross a frozen lake

No skating on thin ice, if you follow these solid suggestions

Be prepared
Don’t go alone. Carry 15m of rope, an ice pick or ice claws, as well as warm, thick clothes in a waterproof bag.

Study the ice
Clear blue, black or green ice is strongest. Avoid white, milky ice and danger signs including slush, cracks and seams. Ice underneath snow will also be thin and weak. 

How to move
With your ice pick, measure the ice depth at least every 50 metres. 10cm of clear, newly formed ice can support walking (20–30cm, a small car). Wear skis or snowshoes and, in a group, walk about 15 metres apart.

If you fall in...
Keep clothes on but lose shoes. Put your hands and arms on the ice and kick. Use your claws to pull yourself onto the surface, then roll away from the broken ice. Change into dry clothes and seek shelter and hot drinks.

Get hold of your copy of this month's The Simple Things - buy, download or subscribe

View the sampler here.

More from the January issue:

More how to posts:

Seasonal tonic

Make a batch of these immune-boosting shots to prevent a cold from ruining your Christmas

Opt for fresh, organic produce to maximise benefits – and if one ingredient is unavailable, just double up one of the others.

Makes 6 x 50ml shots
2 tbsp chopped garlic
2 tbsp chopped onion
2 tbsp grated fresh ginger
2 tbsp grated horseradish root
2 tbsp chopped cayenne pepper (or any other chilli)
350ml raw apple cider vinegar

1 Pile the garlic, onion, ginger, horseradish and pepper into a 350ml lidded sterilised jar. (To sterilise, wash it in hot soapy water, dry with a clean cloth, then place in a 200C/Fan 180C/ 400F oven for 10 mins.)
Fill the jar with raw apple cider vinegar, close the lid tightly and shake.
2 Store in a cool, dark place, shaking at least once a day for two weeks.
3 Filter the tonic through a clean piece of muslin, pour into a sterilised bottle. Take a 50ml shot three times a day (on an empty stomach) as soon as you feel the symptoms of a cold. It will keep at room temperature for up to six months.

Recipe from Tonics & Teas by Rachel de Thample (Kyle Books)

Get hold of your copy of this month's The Simple Things - buy, download or subscribe

View the sampler here.

More from the December issue:

More homemade remedies:

Homemade cough drops

These antiviral lozenges help to soothe sore throats and ease tickly coughs. Make in advance for the winter months ahead, or boil up a batch for a poorly friend

You will need:
5cm piece of fresh ginger, sliced
1 tbsp whole cloves
4 tbsp dried elderflowers (or 5 fresh elderflower heads, main green stalks removed)
Elderflower cordial (optional) 
400g unrefined sugar
250ml honey
Juice of 1⁄2 lemon
Icing sugar, to dust or for covering

1 Take a very large, heavy based saucepan (2-litre capacity is ideal). Put the spices into the pan with 300ml water. Bring gently to boil, then simmer, covered, for 10 mins.
2 Remove from the heat and add the fresh or dried elderflowers, set aside to infuse for 20 mins.
3 Strain the liquid into a heatproof jug and measure it – you’ll need 250ml of the infusion for this recipe (if it needs topping up use water or elderflower cordial for extra flavour). Return the 250ml liquid to the pan and then add sugar, lemon juice and honey.
4 Carefully heat until the mixture comes to a gentle rolling boil. Continue boiling gently until the sugar reaches hard crack stage (149–154C on a sugar thermometer), about 15–20 mins. This is the point at which a drop of liquid turns to brittle strands when dropped into chilled water (caution: the liquid is extremely hot). Take off the heat.
5 Drop teaspoonfuls onto a tray lined with greaseproof paper and leave to set. Then, once hardened, sprinkle with icing sugar to prevent them sticking together.
6 Suck one sweet as needed. Store wrapped in greaseproof paper individually or covered in a thick layer of icing sugar in an airtight container.

Taken from The Handmade Apothecary by Vicky Chown and Kim Walker (Kyle Books). 

Get hold of your copy of this month's The Simple Things - buy, download or subscribe

View the sampler here.

More from the November issue:

More homemade remedies:

Reading mindfully | How to quiet your butterfly mind

Book lover and academic Martyn Evans suggests ways to focus when you read

1 Switch your phone to silent or leave it in a different room.
2 Don’t rush ahead in your mind before you reach the end of a sentence.
3 To help remember what you’ve read, engage in debate and discussion. Book clubs are great for this*

• randombookclub.co.uk brings “the thrill of browsing dusty shelves to your doorstep” by delivering a monthly hand-picked book and access to an online forum of book lovers.
• Feminist book club ‘Our Shared Shelf’ is founded by actor Emma Watson in her role as UN Women Goodwill Ambassador and includes book recommendations, essays and a reader forum (goodreads.com).

4 Read with a dictionary and a pencil to hand. Look up words you’re not sure of and underline sentences that catch your attention.
5 If a book isn’t working for you, take a break and come back another time.
6 Switch genres as much as possible and keep your reading material varied.
7 Allow yourself an hour or two to get lost in a good bookshop.

Get hold of your copy of this month's The Simple Things - buy, download or subscribe

View the sampler here.

More from the November issue:

More bookish posts:

The art of cosiness

When keeping warm can be this much fun, bring on the darker, chillier days

• Although the temptation to lie in bed can feel insurmountable, a walk or yoga class or gentle jog will fire up your circulation and lift your mood. Make sure you have a good hat, warm socks and gloves – treat your extremities well and you’ll be a lot happier within.
• If the house feels chilly, wake up and bake. Kneading and mixing will quickly banish any chills and fill your home with good smells as well as warmth. 
• Make yourself a spicy soup to take to work in the week.
• And finally, get snuggling. Pets are so good for this but if you don’t have one, curl up with a hot water bottle, soft woollen blanket (or willing human).

Get hold of your copy of this month's The Simple Things - buy, download or subscribe

View the sampler here.

More from the November issue: