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Healing Golden Bone Broth Latte
This Healing Golden Bone Broth Latte is an inflammation-fighting, immune system boosting, super drink and it’s full of comforting, healthful goodness!
Part of living life to it’s fullest and getting out there to travel and experience the world – is being exposed to things. Foods, illnesses, germs, bacteria, toxins – it can definitely take it’s toll on your immune system. I am proud that despite having several autoimmune diseases, my tireless work to maintain my health and vitality, along with how I’ve worked hard train my immune system and it’s little warriors to do their job and do it well – it’s all working! I feel great, I beat illnesses swiftly, if they do take hold and I am not knocked on my ass with every little life shift, stress or travel – which, truthfully, is basically what the majority of the first 30 years of my life was all about. The fight of one illness right to another, bronchitis, swine flu, respiratory infections, every stomach virus or flu around, I had chronic allergies and all the other usual signs of a compromised immune system.
(From September ’17) I can always tell, with loads of travel and eating a bit differently that I traditionally would at home when I am on the road, later nights and longer days – that I have definitely asked a lot of my little immune system army in a short amount of time. And while they’ve been keeping up with their end of the deal to keep me well, I can certainly feel that my body is definitely working overtime right now to keep it that way. I love that I can chill and know that all of my hard work protecting my immune system was important and now I sit back and let it do it’s work.
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Strawberry Honey Simple Syrup – Gluten-free + Refined Sugar-free
I am a sucker for summer beverages. I love a good refreshing cocktail, beer, sangria, champagne or prosecco cocktails, agua fresca, etc. Most times it is either the bubblies or the fruit that really attracts me. If you can get them both together in one drink, even better. I love a good, subtly sweet carbonated beverage.
I don’t drink much alcohol these days, I reserve that for special occasions, but I still love having fun with my drinks at home. Although making fruit infused simple syrups is one of my favorite things, I really don’t love consuming refined sugar, even if it is organic and raw, etc. Sure, you can absolutely just let the fresh fruit infuse or you can muddle it right into water, sparkling or flat, without any sweetener. But, there is something about the subtle sweetness from an infused simple syrup, even in the smallest amount, that gets me every time. Obviously I don’t consume traditional HFCS laced soda’s anymore, so I prefer to just make them myself at home.
In an effort to try making a fruity simple syrup without my usual raw organic sugar, I gave some local raw honey a try instead and I am sooo excited about the results. This strawberry honey syrup is thick, perfectly sweet and full of incredible flavors from both the fresh strawberries and the good quality local raw honey.
I would personally suggest always consuming raw honey over the processed stuff. Even though you cook it down in this recipe, raw honey is still the better choice. Raw honey provides a slew of amazing benefits, but regular pasteurized honey is processed with damaging levels of heat stripping it of these beneficial properties through the heating process, making it just as unhealthy as refined sugar. Also, many times store bought pasteurized honey is actually cut with corn syrup. YUCK! I prefer to get my raw honey from a local farmer, either at the farmers market or a local grocery store.
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Orange Chia Refresher – Gluten-free, Vegan + Sugar-free
For the last 4 weeks, I have been working on a running program. A gradual build-up to a 5K for beginner runners, such as myself. It is an 8 week program, so this week marks the halfway point. So far I am really loving it. First time in my entire life I have tried running and I actually didn’t adamantly HATE it.
I think the biggest difference for me, is with now living here in California, every single run brings the sun shining it’s amazing rays down on me, I am surrounded by the beautiful views of the ocean, lagoon, palm trees, amazing birds, etc. These amazing surroundings has really changed running for me.
That being said, the thing I have found most challenging is being alone with my thoughts. What I enjoy about yoga is with the practice being a moving meditation, it is a wonderful way to get out of my head for a while. I don’t look at yoga as an escape from my life, but a time to acknowledge, express gratitude and strengthen, in more ways then one. I am able to shut off the constant chatter in my head and my inner voice telling me that “I can’t” or “I am not good enough”. Instead I just am. I just do. It is such an amazing thing. Yoga has taught me to not just ignore those thoughts as they arise, but to acknowledge them and the place they are coming from, then set them aside and focus on my breath and being.
With running, I haven’t quite gotten there, yet. However, that is part of what I like about running, the time it gives me to think. To really focus on the things in my head, process them fully without distractions and deal with them in whatever way needed. There are lots of thoughts swirling in my head when I run, good and bad. So different from yoga, but a really nice compliment.
Sometimes I have deep thoughts when running and sometimes I think about food and recipes. The idea for this Orange Chia Refresher came to me during a run and I couldn’t wait to make it and share it with you guys. Based on the response on my Facebook page when I asked who would be interested, you guys couldn’t wait either.
In looking around, I realized I didn’t exactly have some unique idea on my run, I discovered a drink like this has existed in Mexico for a long time. They call it a chia fresca. I don’t recall ever seeing this, but either way I guess it was in my subconscious. This drink could be made with lemon, lime or grapefruit and be just as tasty, plus I bet it would also be amazing with a sparkling water. First time I tried chia seeds in a drink, was in kombucha and I wasn’t a huge fan. However, I do think there were WAY too many seeds in it, so it was super thick and weird. I went light on the seeds with this, but feel free to add as much or as little as you’d like and sweeten according to your own preferences. I find with these measurements, you end up with a delicious water drink that isn’t overwhelmed with seeds and isn’t thick or chunky. I particularly enjoy drinking this with a straw.
Chia seeds are a super food that provides a variety of wonderful health benefits. It a nutshell – by adding just 2 tablespoons of chia seeds to your daily diet it will give you approximately 7 grams of fiber, 4 grams of protein, 205 milligrams of calcium, and a whopping 5 grams of omega-3! OK, I won’t go into a huge rant about all of the many benfits of chia – instead I will ask:
What is your favorite benefit(s) of chia seeds?
[print_this]Orange Chia Refresher – Gluten-free, Vegan + Sugar-free
Makes 1 drink- 12 ounces (1 1/12 cups) of cold filtered water
- 1/4 cup freshly squeezed orange juice (grapefruit, lime or lemon would also be amazing)
- 2-3 teaspoons whole chia seeds
- Sweetener to taste (stevia, maple syrup, sugar, etc)
Pour water and orange juice into a glass jar with a lid (or a glass), add the chia seeds. Put the lid on and shake very well to combine (or stir if in a glass). Let stand for 10-15 minutes to let the chia seeds do their thing and get all puffy.
Take a quick sip and add sweetener to taste, shake (or stir) again, well to combine. Add ice and an orange garnish and enjoy.
*Fresher seeds will float throughout the liquid, while older ones tend to sink to the bottom. If they sink, that is totally ok, you will just need to stir them up a bit to keep them evenly dispersed as you are drinking it. [/print_this]
**Please don’t be turned off by the odd color of this drink in the photos, as the seeds soak, settle and swell even more, you will see the pretty and subtle orange hue more than the color of the seeds. I happened to only have black chia seeds on hand, but I bet white seeds would be even prettier.
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Blackberry Lavender Lemonade – Gluten-free, Vegan + Refined Sugar-free
I have really been enjoying playing around with different seasonal flavor combinations for the series of cocktail recipes that I have been sharing over on the Free People blog BLDG 25. This is my second post in my 5-part Summer Mocktail series for Free People.
I have been letting what I find at the market determine the drinks, instead of the other way around. I had been thinking up some type of twist on the standard “Arnold Palmer” of tea and lemonade, which we love over here. I wanted it to be brighter, more colorful and featuring a seasonal fruit. When I saw the blackberries I instantly knew that was the way to go. Not only will this quench the thirstiest of thirsts, but it is such a beautiful and bright color, to boot!
The delicate aromatics from the lavender, paired with the pleasant tartness from the lemons and the blackberries is absolute perfection and sure to please anyone on a hot summer day. I decided to use my go-to sweeteners for this since I prefer to not use refined sugar, but you can feel free to substitute whatever sugar or sugar-alternative you desire. I also go light on the sweetness since I prefer my lemonade drinks to be on the tart side. Make sure to taste and sweeten to your own liking. If you are looking to make this into an alcoholic beverage, simply add in 1 shot of your favorite vodka, stir and enjoy!
[print_this]Blackberry Lavender Lemonade
serves 4-6- 1/2 cup dried culinary lavender
- 5 cups water
- 1/4 – 1/2 cup maple syrup (raw honey, agave or raw sugar will also work)
- 1 cup freshly squeeze lemon juice (about 6-8 lemons)
- 4-6 teaspoons maple sugar (you can also use raw sugar or any other sugar of your choice)
- 6 ounces fresh blackberries
- ice
Bring 5 cups of water to a boil in a medium saucepan over high heat, stir in the lavender and reduce the heat. Partially cover and simmer for 10-15 minutes. Strain the lavender tea over a strainer or through cheesecloth, pressing down to get out as much liquid as you can, discard the lavender. Pour the liquid into a large pitcher. Stir in maple syrup, honey or whatever sweetener you are using, until it has dissolved. I prefer my lemonade on the tart side so I only used 1/4 cup of maple syrup, but feel free to use as much as you would like. Let cool. Once cooled, add the lemon juice to the pitcher and give it a good stir. Taste to see if it needs more sweetener or if you want to add some water to dilute it a little.
To serve, place 5 to 8 blackberries and 1 teaspoon of sugar in each glass. Muddle. Pour the lemonade mixture over to fill the glass about 2/3 of the way full, give it a stir, then top with ice. Garnish with lemon slices pressed into some dried lavender, or add a fresh sprig of lavender if you have it.
*For an alcoholic cocktail, add in a shot of vodka [/print_this]
This recipe was originally shared on the Free People blog. Check out my first post in the series here.
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Basil Watermelon Refresher – Gluten-free, Vegan + Refined Sugar-free
I am sure based on the sweat dripping down your brow (and likely other places) right now, we are all fully aware that not only are we at the peak of the summer, but it is a super duper hot-ass summer, at that! With record highs, excessive humidity and a lack of rain, it has been crazy unbearable in our parts and I know that is the case for most other areas in the US.
What else is there to do when it is crazy, stupid hot, then to have a refreshing beverage? And no, it doesn’t necessarily have to be an alcoholic beverage, “mocktails” (non-alcoholic cocktails) are just as refreshing, if not more, plus you can save on those empty calories. I am always playing around with different drink recipes over here and since I eat a very clean diet, I try to keep my alcohol consumption to a minimum at home. I feel so much better without it.I was elated when Free People asked me back as a guest-poster to share a series of non-alcoholic cocktail recipes with their readers through the month of August. Each week I will be sharing a different summertime inspired beverage that is safe for the whole family and is sure to refresh you on the hottest of days. And don’t worry, there will also always be a note on how to make each drink alcoholic, if you wish.
The first recipe I am sharing is Basil Watermelon Refresher. This drink is bursting with refreshing summer flavors. Frozen watermelon and lemon pair together for a sweet and tart treat for your mouth with a surprisingly subtle, sweet and almost spicy punch from the basil. Top the slushy mixture off with sparkling water for a fizzy kick or if you are looking for a kick of a different kind, you replace the sparkling water with Prosecco, a delicious and refreshing dry sparkling white wine.
Head on over to the Free People Blog, BLDG 25, for the full recipe and stay tuned for more “mocktail” recipes in this series that I will be sharing each week throughout August.
