MANGO BANANA SMOOTHIE with GINGER KOMBUCHA

Hello, darling readers. I've been away for 8 days in the far north of Turtle Island, in Kwanlin Dün lands (aka Whitehorse, Yukon Territories). The temperature was -20 most days, and whole rivers and lakes were frozen under many feet of pure, white snow. I hiked through the woods and took in the humble silence of earth in the absence of other humans. I wrote a lot of poetry and experienced some profound moments of realization atop tall hills, utterly and gloriously surrounded by icy blue peaks and deep green forests. I become a witness to my own existence in a way I've never been before. There are no words to express the emotions that found their way to me in those mountains. Since I am literally made of earth, I am always home, no matter where I am on the planet. However, in a more specific sense, I have returned to my regular living space, and bring you this recipe now. 

ALMOND, CINNAMON + GINGER LATTE

I received a lot of interest in this recipe when I posted it on an Instagram story last week, so here ya go! The latte is delicious in its own right, but also works as aid to anxiety and PMS. This is a rich, grounding drink for slow mornings, cloudy afternoons, with a book, or a meditation. I find it to be a wonderful snack before or after yoga as well. You have tummy-friendly, blood sugar-lowering, heart-healthy spices including cinnamon and ginger, which are also both anti-fungal foods, and beneficial to brain health. Ginger helps with menstrual pains. Ashwagandha reduces anxiety with its adaptogenic power. There are cordyceps mushrooms in here too; don't worry though, the flavour is so mild you won't actually notice (in fact I think cordyceps is kind of sweet and caramel-y). More scientific research is needed for this fungus, but it's been utilized in Traditional Chinese Medicine for centuries for promoting longevity, and helping with lung and kidney function. All these ingredients are anti-inflammatory and rich in anti-oxidants, which may help prevent or fight free radicals.

Content warning: I will now talk about my anxiety for a lil bit.

A NICE GREEN SMOOTHIE with MINT + TURMERIC

I was gonna call this a "healing" green smoothie blah blah blah but then I though, "Hmm, don't wanna buy into that pseudoscience stuff so I'll keep it simple." Because honestly I don't know if this smoothie will heal anything for you, but in my opinion it's at least certainly nice and yummy and green. I'll leave it at that. I am not a doctor. 

VANILLA CHERRY NICE CREAM

So. I shaved my head. (Well actually Jack shaved it, but only because I asked him to.) We're all voyeurs at heart so if you wanna see what I look like now, just check out the photo on Instagram.

blueberry hemp smoothie

yum! here's another smoothie recipe for you, my peeps. this one is sneaky, it's not green but it has kale in it. the colour of the blueberries hides it. oooh, deceptive (yes i DO personify my smoothies). you can personify THIS:

while you're enjoying the unprecedented 90's smoothness of that little diddy ("i like the way you work it, no diggity...") you should also enjoy the raw deliciousness of this smoothie. it's got extra protein from hemp so it's excellent for right after a work out; which was my situation. you like P90X? i do. das my jam.

anyways - smoothie recipe.

blueberry hemp smoothie: serves one

1 cup frozen blueberries
2 dates
1-2 tablespoons raw hemp seeds
1 cup kale
1 banana
1-2 cups water/nut milk, or as needed
stevia, if desired

blend all of it up in your high speed blender. add enough water/nut milk to make it all smooth; but not too much because then it will taste watery (as one might guess.) drink!

okay, oh kale

i love smoothies. i love kale. from that you can deduce: i love kale IN smoothies. or maybe not, because i also love garlic and ice cream... hm.

ANYHOO - we are running dangerously low on fruits and vegetables (meaning we have like seven apples) in my house this morning so instead of using a banana i used dates, and instead of fresh kale, i used frozen. it's still from our garden though! it was especially think and cold because everything i put was frozen: blueberries, strawberries and kale. i added ice cold almond milk and it was like a berry milkshake!

not exactly what is going to warm me up on a chilly vancouver morning but i just don't care - it's too freaking yummy to worry about regulating my body temperature. i made extra, so it will be a snack later too...

nevermind. i just drank it. 

berry kale smoothie: makes 5 cups

1 cup kale
1 cup frozen blueberries
3/4 cup frozen strawberries
2 cups almond milk
2 large dates

blend it all up. chug. 
actually don't chug it, you will get a brain freeze.

vanilla bean ice cream

you know that popular recipe i have for "the best raw vegan ice cream ever"? i am a liar. that stuff is off the chain, but nothing - and i mean, nothing - can compete with this recipe. it's one ingredient, stupid-easy, fat-free, around 150 calories, filling, full of fiber, dairy-free, delicious, and the best soft serve you will ever eat.

i sure hope you like bananas.

that's right, all that's in this recipe that's really necessary are frozen bananas. for the pictures you see here i added vanilla seeds, some sweetener and lemon oil. the possibilities are endless with this, feel free to add whatever you like. i'll be doing several variations in the future with ingeniously clever names such as: chocolate craze, caramel swirl, gone nuts... oh that's all i got. damn. that wasn't impressive at all. maybe you guys can help me think up some cute names? 

i am currently suffering a terribly uncomfortable sore throat and all i am capable of consuming is liquids; miso soup, tea, hot water. i've been having a lot of lemon (good for the throat and anti-inflammatory) to soothe my discomfort and hopefully bring the swelling down. that explains the lemon in the ice cream! this has been my dinner for two nights now, it's the closest thing to solid food i can have. grrr. 

the truly best raw vegan ice cream ever: serves one

2 frozen bananas

Optional add ons: 

seeds from 1/2 vanilla bean (or 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract)
1 tablespoon maple syrup/date paste

throw everything in your blender and blend until GORGEOUSLY smooth like vanilla soft serve - i can never get over how pretty this looks. make sure to keep pushing the bananas down into the blades otherwise they'll just get shredded into small pieces and stick to the side.

want long life and good health? drink your greens!

Do you want to have more energy without the crash? Do you want beautiful, glowing skin? Do you want strong nails, hair and a lean, mean fat-burning body? Do you want to say good-bye to mood swings, stress, headaches, sleepiness and depression? Do you want to live a long, healthy and happy life? DO YOU JUST WANT TO FEEL AMAZING? (If not... You're bananas.)

Well folks, you can have all those things and more. I'm not talking about some superfood David Wolfe just discovered in Bhutan, or some expensive powder at the health food store.

I'm talking about DINOSAURS.

Dinosaur KALE, that is. And spinach and lettuce and swiss chard rainbow chard, bok choy, arugula, cilantro, parsley, carrot greens, beet greens, dandelion greens, even broccoli; I mean the list goes on and on. DARK LEAFY GREENS HOLD THE THE SECRET TO LONGEVITY AND HEALTH.
But who wants to chew 6 cups of spinach? Not me. So what is there to do?  
Blend Green Smoothies. (What about juice? Check out my note at the end.)
Which blender is the best? There's no question: the Vita-Mix. It can literally liquefy a wooden block.
When we blend greens into a deliciously smooth drink, we are able to absorb them much faster because we're saving our bodies the digestive work.  

Did you know? Digestion takes the most energy out of any other biological function? Let's use that energy for other things!

We are able to assimilate those vital nutrients almost immediately. Now, we ALL know we should eat our greens (or drink them, in this case!) but most of us don't. Why is that? Because they don't taste that great to the majority of people. I personally find them delicious, but that's just me. Green Smoothies are not only one of the best things you can put in your body, they also taste FABULOUS! And if you get bored of one flavour, the other possibilities are endless. My smoothies usually have the same basics, but they taste different everyday because everyday I feel a bit different. Sometimes I want it sweeter, sometimes I want it more sour, some days I just wanna taste that fresh green kale.
In any case, the taste of your greens in smoothies is simply not an issue. You will learn to crave them, as I do.

I could ramble on about this FOREVER, so instead of typing down all the wonderful facts about greens, I'll let you find them for yourself. Seriously, just Google it. Basically, they are the most nutrient-dense, healthful foods on the planet. That's really all ya gotta know.
I will up this post with a simple green smoothie recipe.

Did you know?  Greens are full of chlorophyll (which is just like hemoglobin). And coconut water is almost identical to blood plasma.  Blood is made up of 55% plasma, and 45% hemoglobin - so when you blend a drink of 55% coconut water and 45% green smoothie - you get a blood transfusion!

NOTE - To Blend or Juice? That is the Question.

Personally I am a blender, not a juicer. (Nevermind! Check out all my juice recipes and read my posts about how I fell in love with fresh juice!) There are generally those two camps when it comes to greens and liquefying veggies. I agree that juicing allows the nutrients to enter your blood stream incredibly fast (about 15 minutes!) but the fiber - in the pulp - of those plants is thrown in the compost or added to crackers or other dishes later. I believe the fiber should be consumed with the food it came from, as nature intended. I don't like the idea of separating the elements of my food =/ It just doesn't make me feel totally comfortable. If I'm not 100% comfortable with the substances I'm about to make a part of me, I won't eat/drink them. But this is just MY OPINION.
When it comes down to it, there's no nutritional loss as long as you use that pulp eventually. It's more of a philosophical standpoint than anything else.
The best juicer, hands down, is the Green Star or any Omega Juicer. (unless you are crazy-rich and can afford a Norwalk, they're around $2,000 - Luuckky!)