Schnapps

Last month, when Mr. ETB had a terrible cold and cough, I suggested he buy a bottle of peppermint schnapps. My dad swore by it, along with tea, and sitting in a steamy room wrapped in a wool robe. As he probably missed less than a handful of work days in his life, there's probably something to it. Mr. ETB saw the sort of money they get for peppermint schnapps these days, and decided to go without. Really, most of it isn't very good, why should it be so terribly expensive? No wonder middle school students have resorted to drinking bottles of cough syrup to the point of hallucination...they can't afford schnapps.

Right. So I still had the candy canes we hung on the Christmas tree last year, and finally I had a good use for them. Soaked in vodka, they make a reasonable substitute for peppermint scnappps-for a whole hell of a lot less money. Sure, you have the bright red colour to deal with, but I like something cheerful and uplifting when I have a bad cold.

If you didn't plan ahead by hoarding peppermint candy canes when they were reduced to .10 cents a box after Christmas, you can probably give this a shot with Altoids-but that will add to the cost. Let me know if you try it. I'll bet if you look around at dollar stores you can still find peppermint sticks from last year. You can be all middle class about it and use peppermint oil, or extract, but go easy with that stuff as it is potent, and you will need to make a sugar syrup to add later.

Next terrible cold, pour yourself a shot of homemade schnapps, turn the shower on as hot as possible, and sit on the loo reading a newspaper until you feel better. Plaid wool bathrobe optional.