Cherry chocolate kale smoothie

Anytime I can incorporate chocolate into my breakfast, I typically jump at the occasion. I've been making this smoothie for months now, and don't know why I posted it sooner because it is one of my favorites. Feel free to substitute spinach for kale, or use a combination of both. Either way, it's a healthy morning meal, and even more healthy if you use Ovaltine instead of chocolate syrup.

Yes, I still use Ovaltine.

Cherry Chocolate Kale Smoothie (makes enough for one)

- 1 handful of kale, de-stemmed

- 1 cup of black cherries, with pits removed

- 2 t Ovaltine

- 4 skim milk icecubes

- 1 cup skim milk

Place all ingredients in blender (kale first!) and blend until smooth.

Chocolate banana breakfast power milkshake

Any time I can avoid drinking coffee in the morning I do, especially if I can replace it with a healthy breakfast drink that's going to give me lasting energy throughout the day. Oddly, I only drink coffee for its taste, and it leaves me jittery rather of ready to face the day with an extra spring in my step. 

I try to make one or two green drinks a week (seriously, the amount of kale I eat has to be an overdose of vitamin K), but it's always a little more enticing if you have chocolate incorporated into your breakfast, right? I was inspired by this recipe to make a chocolate breakfast smoothie of my own with oats, bananas and a Carnation Breakfast Essentials packet. Instead of the jittery, not-so-satisfied feel I always get from coffee, this kept me full on its own and ready to start my morning. 

Chocolate banana breakfast power milkshake 

- 1 packet of Carnation Breakfast Essentials powder drink mix in rich chocolate

- 1 1/4 cup skim milk

- 3 ice cubes

- 1 frozen banana

- 1/4 cup uncooked oats 

Pour all ingredients into a blender and blend on high for 30 seconds, or until well blended. 

Photo via

Kentucky Derby Week: Derby drinks

No Derby party is complete without a mint julep. The signature drink of choice for the weekend, it has been a tradition for nearly a century, and each year there's nearly 120,000 served at the actual Derby. However, I wanted to share a few other options in case mint juleps aren't your thing. Below are a few recipes for cocktails so good, your friends won't be able to hold their horses to get their hands on these. 

1. Raspberry Beer Cocktail

- 1 cup of fresh raspberries or frozen

- 4 bottles of corona (12oz) beer, chilled 

- 1 container frozen raspberry lemonade concentrate, thawed or pink lemonade

- 1/2 cup good quality vodka

- Garnish: lemon slices, or raspberries.

In a large container stir together the first 4 ingredients. Serve over ice.

Garnish with raspberries. To make ahead, stir together lemonade concentrate and vodka in a large container. Stir in raspberries and beer just before serving. Garnish, if desired.

2. Strawberry Infused Bourbon (note: this recipe takes a bit longer than most)

- Organic strawberries

- Bourbon

Rinse the strawberries, then chop off the leafy tops and discard them. Chop the strawberries into bite-sized pieces. Transfer the strawberries into a jar large enough to hold all the strawberries and leave a couple of inches of room at the top.

Pour bourbon over the mixture, screw on the lid tightly and give it a shake. Store the jar in a dark place, like in a cupboard, for anywhere from 3 to 7 days. Try to give the jar a shake once a day (I kept the jar in a cabinet right next to my coffee so I remembered to shake it every morning).

When you’re ready to strain the mixture, place a mesh colander over an appropriately sized bowl. If you have one, you can use a nut milk bag, clean paint straining bag, cheese cloth or even a coffee filter in place of or in addition to the colander. Pour the mixture over the colander/bag/filter to catch the strawberries and any strawberry debris. Discard the strawberries. If you see any debris in the bowl, pour the vodka through your strainer once or twice more to remove it.

Store the strawberry bourbon in the refrigerator for up to a month, or in the freezer to retain its fresh flavor even longer.

3. Lavender Mint Juleps

- 6 mint leaves 

- 2 oz. lavender simple syrup

- 3 oz. bourbon whisky

Fill glass with mint and simple syrup. Muddle until crushed. Fill with ice and top with whiskey. Garnish with a lavender or mint sprig. 

4. Savory Peach Cocktail

- 2 peaches, peeled, pitted and chopped

- 2 teaspoons sugar

- 2 ounces fresh squeezed lime juice

- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil leaves

- 4 ounces bourbon

Garnish:

- Fresh lime juice

- 1 tablespoon fresh lime zest

- ¼ cup super-fine sugar

In a large cocktail shaker, fitted with a strainer, combine the peaches, sugar, lime juice, basil leaves and bourbon. Shake vigorously to blend. To serve, thoroughly blend the lime zest and sugar and pour onto a plate. Coat the rims of two cocktail glasses with lime juice and dip into the sugar mixture. Fill the glasses with ice and strain the liquid from the cocktail shaker.

My cup of tea

Cold fall and winter weather usually has my skin screaming for lotion and any ounce of moisture it can get. I usually load up on Aveeno body lotion and Olay body wash for the shower, but another way I like to keep my skin feeling healthy is by staying super-hydrated. It's not fact, but drinking coffee in the morning always makes me feel dehydrated (I usually guzzle down a glass of water after I finish my coffee), so during the colder months I'm prone to drinking excessive amounts of tea. 

Regular consumption of correctly brewed tea has been shown to reduce oxidation of fat, so that's a plus if you're looking at it from a health perspective. Since I've tried many, many types over the past years, I wanted to share my favorites with all of you. Hopefully you are hot tea connoisseurs like myself and can comment with your faves as well!

xxo

R.C. Bigelow's Orange & Spice Herb Tea: All of the fall-flavors you desire without the pumpkin taste. This is definitely one you want to drink during the fall/winter months, because it both smells and tastes like the season (if that's even possible).

TAZO China Green Tips: One of my favorite green teas. It has a fresh flavor that is all the better when paired with lemon and honey.

Lipton Green Tea with Pomegranate:  Lipton green tea is top three for me, but I love the added flavor you get with their pomogranate green tea. Similar to how I take my green tea, I simply add lemon and honey to perfect the taste.

Dilmah Passion fruit Pomegranate and Honeysuckle: No one has really heard of Dilmah, because it's not technically sold in the US. It is made in Sri Lanka, and my mom always brings home boxes and boxes of it when she goes to Europe for her business. This flavor is the best mixed with a little bit of lemon. I was first introduced to it when it was served cold, with an orange slice, strawberries and blueberries, but I love it hot as well. If you happen to see it in the US, make sure to try it.

Celestial Seasonings Black Cherry Berry Herbal Tea: I am always so blown away by this brand. Honestly, who thinks of coming up with "Sleepytime Tea?" It's genius! While this isn't one of their "Sleepytime" teas, the flavor in this is phenomenal  it doesn't need anything added to it because the taste of the mixed berries and cherry compliment each other well enough alone. 

Pumpkin smoothie

We all go overboard with pumpkin when the fall season hits, and I can admit I am no exception. However, I will disclose that I had my first ever Starbucks Pumpkin Spice Latte last week. I did not have high hopes for it, because I hate the syrups coffee shops use, but I was impressed. I heard on the news that Starbucks is starting to have a nationwide shortage on the syrup, which most likely is going to lead to a mental breakdown for over half of my age group's female population.

Don't fret PSL obsessives; whenever the inevitable "pumpkin spice latte" extinction occurs for this year's fall season, I'm here to offer you a good alternative. Enter, the pumpkin smoothie. I had to add sugar to get rid of the bitter taste so it's not completely healthy, but I can promise you there are less calories than in a latte!

Pumpkin smoothie

- 1/2 banana
- 1/3 cup pumpkin puree
- 3/4 cup vanilla almond milk
- 1/3 cup Greek yogurt
- 4-5 ice cubes
- 2t cinnamon
- 1t nutmeg
- 3T powdered sugar

Combine all ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth.