Choco Coconut Almont Banana Smoothie

Chocolate! Coconut! Almond! Banana! In a smoothie! This is my go-to quick breakfast of late, but it could also double as a dessert!

Makes 1 Super Delicious Smoothie

1 banana
1 cup coconut milk
1 tablespoon almond butter
1 tablespoon unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 teaspoon vanilla (optional)
1 scoop unsweetened protein powder (optional)
1 teaspoon flax seed meal (optional)

For breakfast smoothie, I include the protein powder and flax. For dessert smoothie, I omit those and include the vanilla.

1. Add all ingredients to a blender and mix on high until well blended. For an icy treat, add 4-5 ice cubes to the blender.

Strawberry Chocolate Almond Milk

The other day I experimented by making homemade almond milk. I looked through a few of my clean eating & raw food cookbooks and browsed online before settling on this recipe from Tasty Kitchen, mostly because it included photographs with step by step instructions. The recipe calls for the addition of vanilla and honey, but I opted to omit those ingredients as I prefer using plain, unsweetened almond milk.

The process was simple enough. Soak the almonds, add them to food processor with water and blend, strain through cheesecloth (I used mesh jelly bags from my canning supplies). Overall I found the experience messy and not really worth the time and effort. Homemade is less expensive than store bought (1 cup of almonds yields approximately 1 litre of almond milk), but the ease and convenience of store bought just cannot be beat.

If you do give homemade a try, be sure to keep the resulting almond meal. Many people throw the byproduct of homemade nut milk production away but almond meal is very nutritious and useful in its own way. You can add it to baking, toss on salads, serve over yogurt, mix in with oatmeal or use it any number of different ways.

With an abundance of homemade almond milk on hand (another downfall - it only lasts a few days), this morning I mixed up a concoction using fresh local strawberries. It was quite refreshing and perfect for my post run pick-me-up.

Strawberry Chocolate Almond Milk (serves 2)

- 2 cups almond milk
- 1 tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1 cup fresh, whole strawberries, stems removed
- 1/2 tbsp agave syrup (optional)

1. Add everything to a blender and blend on high until mixed.

2. Pour into glasses and serve immediately

My Favourite Beverages

I don't drink soda pop, I don't often drink juice and I hate plain water. What's a girl to do? Here are some of my go-to tricks for quenching my thirst.

Water with Cucumber Slices
I first fell in love with cucumber flavoured water while dining at my favourite local Thai restaurant. It's such a simple and refreshing twist on plain old tap water. And when the water is done, you can still eat the cucumbers! Try it with fresh mint leaves too.

Soda Water with Fresh Muddled Lime & Soda Water with Cranberry Juice
These are my "cocktails". Soda & lime is a staple at home and soda with a splash of cranberry juice is my "going out" treat. To kick it up a bit I occasionally add fresh mint. Make sure your soda water is sodium free. In a pinch Perrier Lime is tasty too.

Clean Iced Tea
Fresh brewed tea, lemon slices and a bit of agave. It doesn't get much simpler than that.

Chocolate Peppermint Tea
For an evening treat, I brew a cup of peppermint tea (which aids in digestion) and add a teaspoon of Torani Sugar Free White Chocolate Syrup. Chocolate and peppermint - it's dessert in a mug!

I also drink a lot of tea at home. My favourites are Celestial Seasonings Bengal Spice, Twinning's Lemon & Ginger and when I'm sick, Traditional Medicinals Lemon Echinacea Throat Coat.

What are your favourite beverage alternatives?

Peach Kombucha Smoothie

Kombucha is a fermented tea beverage that is thought to have similar health benefits as Kefir and other cultured foods. It has been served for centuries in Europe and Asia, where it is considered a health tonic. Read more about Kombucha here.

I have read much about this supposed wonder drink but I had yet to try it myself. I bought two bottles ($3.49 each!) and set about taste testing.

Kombucha is, in a word, bad. It smells like vinegar and tastes about the same. But that didn't deter me. Instead of drinking it straight up, I did what I do with Kefir and poured it into a blender to make a smoothie. The results were pretty darn tasty. This particular smoothie is vegan but you could add a bit of greek yogourt if you wanted. I added a bit of flax seed meal to boost the fibre.

Peach Kombucha Smoothie

Serves 2

- 1/2 cup water
- 1 cup Kombucha (plain or peach flavour)
- 2 whole fresh peaches, skin on, sliced or 2 cups frozen peach segments or combination of fresh & frozen peaches to equal 2 cups
- add ins of your choice, about 2 teaspoons (flax meal, chia, protein powder, wheat germ etc)
- 1 cup ice

1. Add the first 4 ingredients to a blender and blend well.

2. Add ice and blend again to crush. Pour into two tall glasses.

Cherries in Brandy

Week four of Preserve the Bounty and Jenny challenged us to preserve using alcohol. Fruit and booze. How can you go wrong with that? Along with making a jar of Jenny's Vanilla Rum Plums, I also put together a jar of cherries preserved in brandy, with cherries from the farmer's market.

You will need:

Fresh cherries*
Brandy (can substitute vodka)
1/3 cup sugar
1 L canning jar, snap lid and ring

*You can either pit and de-stem the cherries or leave them intact. I chose to make a jar of each. The ones with stems on will be perfect as garnish for drinks and on dessert. The ones with no stems and pits will be perfect for baking.

1. Add cherries to a clean, sterilized 1 litre canning jar. Add 1/3 cup sugar.

2. Fill jar with Brandy to the bottom of the neck, leaving at least a half inch of head space at the top. Secure lid tightly.

3. Shake jar well to dissolve sugar. Leave jar on the counter for a few minutes for the remaining sugar to settle, then shake again until all the sugar is dissolved.

4. Store jar in a dark, cool place. Turn and shake lightly 3-4 times a week. Wait at least 4 weeks before eating.

Eat cherries on their own, in pies or on top of desserts. When the cherries are done you will have about 3/4 of a litre of delicious cherry brandy! The longer the cherries and brandy sit and mingle, the better the results!

Now... what to do with your cherry flavoured brandy? Mix up a drink!

Cherry Cola:
4 oz cherry brandy
8 oz Coca Cola
1 preserved cherry for granish

1. Pour brandy over ice in a tall glass. Add Coke. Garnish with a cherry!

Cherry Champagne Cocktail:
1 oz cherry brandy
3 oz champagne or sparkling white wine
2 preserved cherries

1. Drop two cherries in a champagne glass. Add cherry brandy. Top with champagne or sparkling wine.

Check here for more recipes using Cherry Brandy. It's from the BOLS website, makers of commercial Cherry Brandy. But be happy because you saved $20.99 (BC Liquor Store price) by making you own!


This post is linked to Slightly Indulgent Tuesday at Simply Sugar & Gluten Free

Clean Iced Tea

Nothing says summer like a tall, cool glass of sweet iced tea! Iced tea is my favourite (non-alcoholic) beverage. Unfortunately, most commercially produced iced tea brands contain MORE sugar per serving than a can of pop! I don't know about you, but I could do without all that added sugar... and water (even with a wedge of lemon or lime) just isn't quite refreshing enough on a hot summer day. Instead, I brew my own iced tea and sweeten it with natural, low GI agave syrup. I can adjust the sweetness and use different tea flavours to suit my tastes.

4 Individual Bags of your favourite Tea (I used plain old Lipton black tea today)
1 lemon, sliced thin
3 tbsp agave syrup
5 cups boiling water

1. Place tea bags and half the lemon slices in a large pitcher. If your tea bags have paper label tabs, remove them prior to adding the bags to the pitcher.

2. Add water to pitcher and stir. Measure in agave syrup and stir again. Steep tea for 10 minutes or longer if you like it strong.

3. Remove tea bags from pitcher and place pitcher in refrigerator to cool. Once cooled, add more agave if desired.

4. Serve over ice with a slice of lemon.

Variations: Experiment with different flavours of tea. Also try making tea blends, using a few bags of flavoured tea and a few bags of regular black tea. My favourite is using 3 bags of green tea with 1 bag of black tea. For added flavour, add a teaspoon or two of honey - just be sure to reduce the amount of agave!

Hibiscus Tea Smoothie

Hibiscus Tea is often referred to as the "Super flower" tea. It is said that Hibiscus Tea can lower blood pressure, lower cholesterol and, since it is rich in vitamin C, contribute to a healthy immune system. Sounds great, right? Only one problem. I can't stomach Hibiscus tea. The smell is too floral and overpowering so I have a very hard time getting it down. Instead I thought I would try to mask the strong scent by using the tea in a smoothie of frozen berries and yogurt.

Marianne has been looking for pure Hibiscus Tea all over Vancouver. I found mine while visiting the States (can't remember if it was in Palm Springs or North Carolina). If you have trouble finding Hibiscus Tea (or any other variety), check out The Republic of Tea.



Their Be Well Red Tea Collection is great; the Get Clean Tea for daily detox is my favourite. It's red rooibos based with milk thistle seed, sarsaparilla root, danelion root, chicory root and other things to help flush out your liver and kidneys. It's all natural and flavoured with a hint of vanilla and almond. Much tastier than drinking straight dandelion root tea!

Anyway, back to the Hibiscus Tea Smoothie...

Makes 1 large Smoothie

3/4 cup strongly brewed Hibiscus Tea, cooled slightly
1/4 cup milk
1/2 cup plain or Greek yogurt
1/2 cup frozen berries (I used blueberries & strawberries this time. Raspberries are great too!)
1 tbsp ground flax seed or flax oil

1. Add everything to a blender and blend until smooth. Pour into a glass and enjoy!

Try Green Tea or other herbal teas in place of Hibiscus!

Holiday Gifts from the Kitchen - Limoncello Liqueur

Limoncello is a sweet Italian liqueur. It is easy to make and tasty to drink. The traditional way to enjoy this treat is ice cold, straight up in a shot glass. Or try it in a martini. My favourite Limoncello martini recipes follow below.

Limoncello Liqueur:

8 organic lemons
1 750ml bottle vodka
2 1/2 cups water
2 cups sugar

1. Wash lemons with a vegetable brush in hot water. Rinse well. Using a vegetable peeler or zester, peel off the rind, avoiding the white pith. The pith is bitter tasting and will affect the outcome of your Limoncello. You can also grate the zest using a Microplane, just be careful to only grate the yellow skin and not the white pith. If you end up with pith on the back of your rind, gently scrape it off using a paring knife.

2. Place the rind in a large airtight jar. Pour in vodka and seal the jar. Leave vodka in a cool dark place for at least five days and up to thirty days. The longer you leave the mix to steep, the better. The more time it has, more lemon flavour will be infused and the vodka will become brighter yellow.

3. After steeping your vodka for the desired length of time, prepare a simple syrup by mixing 2 1/2 cups of water with 2 cups of sugar. Bring to a boil and simmer gently for 10-15 minutes until sugar is all dissolved and mixture has thickened. Let cool to room temperature.

4. Mix the cooled simple syrup with the vodka/lemon mixture. Re-seal and allow to rest in a cool, dark place for another five to thirty days. If you are in a rush, you can skip the second rest period, go right to the straining in step five and instead allow the mixture to rest after it has been strained.

5. After the second rest period, strain the mixture through a coffee filter or cheesecloth lined funnel into bottle of your choice. Discard the lemon rind.

6. Store finished Limoncello in a cool, dark place for up to one year. "Connoisseurs" advocate storing your Limoncello in the freezer until ready to serve. I DO NOT advocate storing yours in the freezer because, as I learned, it actually freezes! A cold fridge is sufficient enough.



When giving as a gift, I include a scroll of Limoncello drink recipes. Here are some of my favourites:

Limoncello Limon Blush Cocktail:
1 oz Limoncello
3 oz lemonade
½ oz cranberry juice
½ oz soda water
1 lemon wedge for garnish

Add first three ingredients to a cocktail shaker with ice. Shake vigorously and strain into a tall glass filled with ice or a chilled martini glass. Top with soda and garnish with a lemon wedge.

Killer Limoncello Martini:
1.5 oz vodka
1 oz Limoncello
½ oz lemon juice
Lemon wedge or lemon peel spiral

Combine liquid in a cocktail shaker with ice. Shake vigorously and strain into a martini glass. Garnish with lemon peel or wedge.

Limoncello Fizz:
1 oz Limoncello
3 oz soda water
1 oz Ginger Ale
Squirt of lemon juice
Lemon wedge for garnish

Mix all ingredients in a tall glass filled with ice. Stir well and serve with a lemon wedge.

Holiday Gifts from the Kitchen - Vanilla Vodka

This is one of the easiest homemade Holiday gifts. It is a little on the expensive side when it comes to homemade gifts, only because vanilla beans are not cheap but the expense is worth it.

In case you are wondering, I bought my glass flasks at The Container Store. They offer a wide assortment of glass bottles and jars.

Vanilla Vodka:

Per 250ml glass jar, you will need:

1 vanilla bean
250 ml vodka (cheaper the better!)
1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
1 coffee filter

1. Split vanilla bean. Using a small knife, run the blade up the bean to remove the seeds.

2. In a large re-sealable container, add vodka, vanilla bean and extracted vanilla seeds. Cover and store in a cool, dark place for 1-2 weeks.

3. After 1-2 weeks, set up a funnel on the glass jar and line with a coffee filter. Strain the vodka through a coffee filter, into the jar. Add pure vanilla extract. Place the vanilla bean in the jar and seal.

4. Store in a cool, dark place for up to 1 year.

Incidentally, if you concentrate the vanilla flavour (reduce the amount of vodka and increase the amount of vanilla beans), you will eventually create homemade vanilla extract!

Thanksgiving - Moist Bread Sausage Apple Stuffing +BONUS

Photo: Before Cooking

This is my mom's classic stuffing recipe, created by merging two recipes from a cookbook so old that the cover has been ripped off and the spine is barely holding together. This stuffing has been served at every major holiday dinner in my family at least the last 15 years. This stuffing won over my stuffing hating brother-in-law. It's THAT good. Unfortunately, I didn't manage to get an "after cooking" picture of this or any Thanksgiving dish. You'll have to use your imagination!

Serves 8 with a bit of leftovers

1/2 cup butter
2 cups celery, chopped thin
2 cups onion, diced small
1/2 cup fresh parsley, chopped (or 3 tbsp dry)
1 1/2 tsp salt
2 1/2 tsp poultry seasoning
1/2 tsp pepper
1/2 lb ground pork sausage
2 apples, peeled, cored and diced
1 cup cranberries
1/2 cup agave syrup or honey
1 loaf multi grain bread, cut into 1/2 inch cubes (about 8-10 cups)
2 eggs, beaten
1/4 cup chicken broth

1. Melt butter in a large saute pan. Add onions and celery and cook until onions are translucent and celery tender. Add seasonings and mix well. Remove from heat and pour into an extra large mixing bowl or stock pot.

2. In the same saute pan, cook sausage and apple until sausage cooked through and apples are soft. Add mixture to the bowl of onion and celery.

3. While sausage is cooking, simmer cranberries and agave syrup in a small pot of boiling water (2-3 cups of water) just until cranberry skins start to split. It will only take a few minutes so keep an eye on it. They are ready when you hear them pop. Drain the liquid into a bowl and place the cranberries in a second bowl. Set both aside to cool. Save the liquid for the BONUS RECIPE below.

4. Once vegetable mixture has cooled slightly, add bread cubes to the bowl. Using salad spoons, toss everything to mix well.

5. Add cranberries and gently fold into mixture, careful not to crush them!

6. In a small bowl, lightly beat eggs together with the chicken broth. Pour over the stuffing and gently mix to coat.

7. Pack stuffing into greased loaf pans. Cover with tin foil.

8. Bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes, the last 15 minutes uncovered.

Note: It may seem like a lot of butter, but this is what will help with the "Moist" part of the stuffing. The seasoning amounts are a guideline. Add more or less to suit your own tastes. I prefer a bit more poultry seasoning so I add a 1/2 tsp extra. The cranberries can be prepared the night before to save some time. You may chose to stuff the turkey instead of baking the stuffing separately. Go for it - It's even better that way!

Bonus recipe: Jill's Honey Crantini



Use the cooking juice drained from the cranberries to create a tasty holiday martini.

3 oz drained cranberry cooking liquid
2 oz unsweetened REAL cranberry juice (if using Cranberry Cocktail, only use 2 oz cooking liquid)
1 oz vodka
1 oz triple sec
2-3 cranberries per glass for garnish

1. Mix the liquids in a cocktail shaker filled with ice.

2. Shake and pour into chilled martini glasses.

3. Garnish with cranberries.

4. If it's too tart, add another splash or two of agave syrup while mixing.