WARMING CHAI ALMOND MILK

I like to work hard. I like to relax hard (if that's a thing... I mean 'power naps' are a thing so relaxing hard can be a thing too, right?) I generally don't like long-term routines, so my workout regime changes at least once or twice a year. For awhile recently it was bodyweight exercises in my room plus dancing really sporadically to music. Things have changed. Now, most days I do P90X (and my workouts are always in the morning by the way). For those of you who don't know P90X: I will direct you to the wikipedia page on it. Basically it's an awesome program of videos that focus on different muscle groups (biceps, back, legs, chest, etc.) and there's a few that are high intensity cardio workouts as well (lots of jump squats, oh mama). There's also one for yoga, which is like an hour of warrior poses (feel da buuuurn) and then another 30 minutes of less challenging yoga moves. The program is technically designed to be 90 days long, and you're supposed to do a certain workout each day of the week, but I don't like following rules so I just do what I feel like. I usually do one workout (they're all about an hour) every morning, but they're tough and every few days or once a week I need a break, so I use those days for stretching, because there's a DVD for that too. It's an hour of taking care of yourself, and it feels so good. Tony Horton, the guy who designed the program, is really into yoga - and he was actually vegan for a little while; there's a part in one of the videos when he talks about making non-dairy corn chowder! - so there's a lot of yoga in the stretching video too.

olive oil ice cream & vanilla coconut ice cream with caramel

I do not miss dairy ice cream. Usually it's full of chemicals, drugs, antibiotics and unhealthy fats. Even if that doesn't bother you - it's an abusive industry that steals baby food from another species. That's mean and weird.

But if you don't consume dairy then how will you survive without ice cream!? Do not fret: because I have something better (in every possible way). It's raw, vegan, healthy, creamy and equally delicious. Especially if you like coconut. If not, still no need to cry over spilled coconut milk; you can adjust the coconut flavour to your liking.

Today I have two majorly delicious recipes for you. The first I am sure everyone can enjoy, it is a vanilla bean coconut ice cream with a caramel swirl. The second is slightly less known but believe me - one of the best ice creams I've ever tasted. It is olive oil ice cream. I know, it sounds strange but I wouldn't joke about ice cream. It's outta this world. I had heard about it before and finally decided to face my skepticism and make it. It's hard to imagine the flavour of olive oil and ice cream complementing each other but as you taste you have an epiphany. I did, anyway.

The sweetness of the ice cream picks up the fruity tones of olive oil and the olive oil provides extra creaminess and a savoury layer of flavour to the ice cream. I'd say I just created a new pair of best friends. Apparently olive oil ice cream is pretty normal in places like Italy, which is not surprising when you think about it. Why not, right? Food is about experimentation and discovering new favourites!

I didn't calculate the nutritional information for this recipe because... well, I never do, since I don't think that it is important. As long as your diet is comprised mostly of plant-based whole foods, you're golden - and this recipe fits that category. Having said that, the fat content is probably quite high for this one so just make sure not to eat much other fat in your day.

vanilla coconut ice cream with caramel & olive oil ice cream:

Ice cream:
3 cups cashews, soaked in water for 3-4 hours
1 1/2 cups young coconut meat
2 1/2 cups coconut water (or plain water if you're not cookoo for coconut)
1/2 cup agave/maple syrup
seeds from 1 vanilla bean
1/4 cup coconut oil, melted
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil

Caramel:
1 cup dates
1/4 cup vegan milk (or more, as needed)
1 tablespoon nut butter

To make the vanilla ice cream: in your high speed blender, blend all the ice cream ingredients - EXCEPT the olive oil - until smooth and deliciously addictive. Add what you think it needs then pour about half of it into a freezer safe container. Set aside.

To make the olive oil ice cream: add the olive oil to the remaining ice cream mixture in your blender and blend until it is incorporated. Now the moment of truth - taste it. AMAZING, RIGHT? Put this into another freezer safe container.

To make the caramel: blend all ingredients until smooth, adding as much liquid as needed.

If you have an ice cream maker, I'm jealous. Use it according to its instructions for each ice cream (separately). If you want a caramel swirl in your vanilla ice cream, gently stir in the caramel by hand when the ice cream is the consistency of soft serve.

If you don't have an ice cream maker (like me), put each container into an ice bath until cold. Then put them in the freezer and stir them every 30 minutes until frozen. Same directions for the caramel swirl as written above. Serve with chopped nuts and sprinkle with salt.

the dairy dilemma

You must forget everything the media and your momma (who's only been influenced by the media) have told you about milk. The dairy board is extremely powerful. Plain and simple.

All dairy is, is nasty antibiotics, hormones and other chemicals they pump into the poor dairy cows to keep them alive in their disgusting factory farms. If they didn't have all these drugs in them, they'd die immediately because the conditions are so dirty and gross.
They don't even feed them the right food, so the milk you're drinking isn't from a healthy animal. All their stress, pain and fear while alive creates disease in their bodies. I don't want that in mine. I also don't want to support the immoral treatment of dairy cows.

If you don't believe dairy cows are treating cruelly, watch Earthlings. 
Beware though, it's not for the faint of heart... it's reality. 
 

So even if you don't care that the cows were treated like dirt, I would hope you care about your own body. Milk causes all sorts of serious health problems. From osteoporosis (you heard me), to cancer, to diabetes, to kidney stones, the list goes on and on. I'm not kidding, people.

Why do we drink milk? Vitamin D, calcium, and protein, mainly.
Vitamin D: We should really only get from the sun, period. Maybe 10-20 minutes a day in sunlight. So go for a walk.
Calcium: Because milk is acidifying, and our bodies require an alkaline environment; we try to buffer the acidity with calcium.We can't use the calcium in milk anyways so our bodies have to LEECH CALCIUM FROM OUR BONES. Yep, that's right. Over time, milk thins your bones, doesn't strengthen them.
The very-absorbable calcium found in broccoli, other greens and plant foods strengthens your bones.
Protein: Ever heard of a protein deficiency? Me either. That's because we hardly need any protein to survive. Many call it the Protein Myth. It's just not something you need to worry about, unless you're a bodybuilder. In which case, eat some hemp seeds and spinach.

If you want to learn more about the TRUE FACTS of what milk does to your body, read The China Study. It is called the "the most comprehensive study of nutrition ever conducted" for a reason.

Milk is not meant for us. Firstly: we aren't weening babies anymore so we shouldn't be drinking any kind of milk anymore. Secondly: WHY ARE WE DRINKING THE MILK OF ANOTHER SPECIES? Do you see piglets suckling at the tit of lions? No, because that wouldn't make any sense... see my point?

Would you do this? Of course not.. Then why do you drink milk?

If you must indulge on dairy, I seriously recommend you only buy local, non-pasteurized, humanely-milked dairy. If not for the cows - do it for YOUR HEALTH and the health of your FAMILY!
"Too expensive", you say? Then buy almond/rice/coconut/soy/cashew or any other non-dairy milk! It's cheaper and doesn't go bad. You can even make it yourself in bulk and save more money. This is far better for you than the best organic milk out there.
"Non-pasteurized - that's not safe", you say? If the only way you feel comfortable eating something is if it's been heated so that it basically kills the food and all it's nutrients... maybe you just shouldn't eat that food.

So what should you have INSTEAD of dairy? I mean, who doesn't like cheese, milk, ice cream, yogurt, or butter?! As humans, we love creamy fats. It's only natural. I will be posting a ton of raw vegan better-than-dairy recipes, and...
Luckily, there are countless other delicious plant-based alternatives. You won't miss a thing. Right now, I'm currently making two wheels of aged nut cheeses for X-mas! Recipe soon!

Here are two sites that list a few alternatives:
http://www.peta.org/living/vegetarian-living/our-favorite-products.aspx
http://vegetarian.about.com/od/cookingtipstools/tp/dairysubstitutes.htm
If you've got any questions about dairy or anything else, please contact me! =) 
Now, on to banana splits!