Spicy Ginger Soda

Spicy ginger soda! The end product of something that started out as African ginger beer once upon a time for somebody else's school project. African ginger beer takes hours to make and involves a lot of effort and fresh ingredients. Which is wonderful. But you'll have to google that recipe yourself if you want it, because I'm presenting its cheap, fast, and easy incarnation. The most difficult part of this recipe will be hauling off to the nearest Asian market for instant ginger tea. Let me tell you about instant ginger tea.

INSTANT GINGER TEA: is found in Asian markets. This is not leaf tea or tea that you steep in a bag. It is individual packets of weird little orangish pellets that dissolve instantly in hot water. And are very, very strong. You should be keeping this stuff on hand for sick times. It's perfect for stomachaches and even more perfect for sore throats. To sum up: ginger tea = miracle drink. One package costs about three dollars and contains I don't remember how many packets. Unless you want ginger coming out of your pores, you'll only be using about 1/3 of a packet for any given drink, so one package will last you for months. And now, let us move on to:

SPICY GINGER SODA: Dissolve 1/3 - 1/2 of a ginger packet in a small amount of hot water. Stir. Or put it in a cocktail shaker and shake, if you're that kind of fancy. Add ice cubes and cool things down. Add a small splash of almond extract or - and I highly recommend this - a bigger splash of Disaronno. Fill up with ginger ale (7-up could work in a pinch). Garnish with lime. Or don't. I never have, it just sounds like a classy idea. Serve cold.