Tag Archives: beverage

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Vanilla Chai Almond Smoothie

This smoothie blew me away. Its base is almond milk and the only remotely “heavy” thing in it are 4-5 dates. The rest is comprised of spices and cocoa powder. One thing I never liked about raw food circles is their obsession with crazy “super” smoothie concoctions – hemp powders, raw protein powders, cashews, spirulina, etc etc etc. The bottom line is that if the result ends up too dense, your body won’t even be able to absorb the inherent nutritional qualities of the beverage. Keep it simple and you won’t have to worry about that happening.

And don’t be fooled by the cocoa powder. While there are 2 teaspoons of it in this smoothie, the finished treat doesn’t have a chocolate taste – the powder simply adds some depth, complementing the caramel flavor brought on by the other ingredients. The secret ingredient is ground cardamom, which adds a lot of character and essentially makes this smoothie what it is!

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Cardamom: improved digestion and relieves stomach cramps, cleanses the blood, improves blood circulation to the lungs, helps relieve asthma and bronchitis symptoms, enhances appetite, treats sore throats, treats mouth ulcers, treats nausea, and can be used to treat urinary tract disorders.

Vanilla Chai Almond Smoothie

by Aylin @ Glow Kitchen

Keywords: raw beverage breakfast dessert chai cinnamon cardamom almond milk smoothie

Ingredients (1-2)

  • 5 pitted dates, soaked in water for at least 1 hour
  • 1 1/2 cups unsweetened almond milk
  • 2 tsp unsweetened cocoa powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom
  • 1/8 teaspoon vanilla extract

Instructions

Soak the pitted dates in lukewarm water at least one hour before you plan to have the smoothie. Add all the ingredients to a food processor or blender.

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Blend until smooth and enjoy!

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This could go down in one. Easy.

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…almost done and already dreaming of another…

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Bon Appetit!

xo Aylin

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Spring Smoothie

To mark the first day of Spring, I wanted a thirst-quenching smoothie that would keep me full for a few hours before lunch. Enter the smoothie:

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Grapefruit: is high in enzymes that burn fat, has a high water content, helps shed pounds, prevents arthritis, works as an antiseptic, lowers cholesterol levels, prevents cancer with its antioxidant compound naringenin, treats cold and fever, dissolves gallstones, boosts immunity, promotes better digestion, and contributes to healthy and smooth skin.

While banana is an ideal base for all fruit and veggie smoothies because it adds an element of creaminess, it can be a bit bloating and sugar-heavy. It’s always a challenge to make a smoothie without the crutch of the banana, so keeping things simple, as I do, I simply pulled together two cucumbers, one apple, and one grapefruit, blended them together, added a few drops of liquid stevia (everyone should have this on hand—such a lifesaver!) to cut the grapefruit’s bitterness, and then had me a delightful start to a sunny day.

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Yeah yeah yeah…the color. I know. Slurp it away!

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Enough fruit sugar to get me through the morning and feeling awake and ready to conquer the day!

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Bon Appetit!

xo Aylin