Green Olive, Mandarin Cake and Sweet Almond Tea

Why people make this tea

Children who start school quickly discover that the classroom is also a very efficient way to share respiratory viruses. Small children don’t know how to cough phlegm up and out, so when they don’t drink enough water, mucus accumulates in the airways and sets the stage for repeated infections and sensitivity. The challenge for parents is finding something the child will actually drink — most bitter or strongly medicinal teas meet immediate resistance. This simple tea has a mild, slightly sour-sweet flavour that most children accept without complaint. Green olives soothe and clear the throat; dried mandarin cake dissolves phlegm (the white dusting on the outside of a good mandarin cake is the naturally fermented active part — don’t wash it all off); and sweet almonds gently open the airways and moisten the lungs.