Green Citrus Smoothies + Thoughts on Eating Seasonally

I, like many of you, finally found myself sick with the first cold of the season last week. The combination of travel and lack of sleep did me in. Also, it's that time of year. I found myself sitting at home with a stuffy nose and a foggy head trying to pull myself together enough to be able to teach. Working while sick is rough, but when your work is teaching yoga, complete with demonstrating handstands and not being able to excuse yourself to blow your nose because that would be both awkward and really embarrassing, it's really rough. So I do the best I can, sub out classes, and attempt to heal myself with food. 

The more I think about food, and specifically seasonal food, the more I marvel at how masterfully designed our planet is. Am I getting too spacey for you? Hear me out, because maybe, like myself, you've never really sat back to think about it. It's no coincidence that watery cooling fruits like watermelon and juicy peaches pop into season when everyone is parched by the heat of Summer. It's no coincidence that when the sun goes down early and the seasons change to windy, often turbulent Fall that grounding, hardy, root vegetables like squash, carrots, and potatoes spring up to give us the exact stability most of us lack in the Fall. And it's no coincidence that citrus explodes right during the time of year everyone has colds and needs that extra boost of vitamin c. The earth literally gives us exactly what we need exactly when we need it. It's growing all around us, we just have to open our eyes and utilize it's resources. Mind blown? Mine was. And don't even get me started on how much money you save when you embrace what's in season. Strawberries in February? Common Valentine's day, get it together. This year we did pomegranates . 

But seriously. It's all about the citrus right now and the timing could not be more perfect. Thank you God/Universe/Divine Spirit/Whatever you choose to believe. It's no coincidence I tell you. 

So today I'm sharing my favorite green citrus smoothie packed with mandarins, spinach, kale, and frozen pineapple. I've been making some version of this pretty much all winter, throwing whole oranges and grapefruits in my vitamix. Because whole citrus can be finicky, I've had the best luck with clementines and mandarins, probably because they have less pulp and fewer seeds. I'll occasionally throw in additional fruit I have on hand, and sometimes add greek yogurt for creaminess - though when I have a cold I avoid dairy like the plague. And this smoothie is fantastic for cold season. You've got your vitamin c from the oranges, and bromelain from the pineapple which apparently helps reduce mucus and clear sinuses (yum!), and spinach + kale which are packed with protein and vitamin A. Woohoo! 

Green Citrus Smoothie 
Makes about 1 quart 

1 medium banana 
1 small handful Kale, de-ribbed (about 5 large leaves)
2 large handfuls baby spinach 
1/2 cup frozen pineapple pieces 
4-5 small mandarins or clementines, peeled
1 1/2 cups almond milk (or any other non-dairy beverage) 

Blend all ingredients in a blender until smooth. 
 

Creamiest Vegan Hot Chocolate

My definition of hot chocolate was forever changed a little over a year ago while visiting Prague. Prague is known for a lot of things, but of those things in my opinion, their hot chocolate is the most life-changing. We drank it a least once a day while we were visiting and with each sip I remember thinking "oh my god, this must be straight up heavy cream mixed with a chocolate bar" because literally it was that thick, creamy, and rich. We're not talking some weak-ass american cocoa powder mixed into milk, or worse, water, with marshmallows so stale they barely constitute as food. This stuff was the real deal, and it put every hot chocolate I'd had beforehand to shame. 

Obviously I knew we had to re-create it at home, so a couple weeks ago when I discovered that the hot chocolate pellets we'd taken home as a souvenir were looking a little worse for the wear, I knew we had to use them fast. So late one night while my husband was in the shower, I whipped it out. When I looked at the directions, and saw that it recommended over a cup of chocolate per half cup of whole milk, I figured that had to be a typo and thinking it'd be best to preserve this precious chocolate I used way less. When Nate got out of the shower and found out what I had done he was pissed and preceded to make his own following the instructions exactly, despite the massive amount of chocolate and small serving size. His was better. A lot better. 

A couple days later he made us the remaining chocolate but confessed that he'd combined his whole milk and my almond milk together. I don't drink milk, for a lot of reasons, so I skeptically sipped it down, determined to make my own version, completely dairy free. 

I knew I wanted to keep the high percentage of chocolate, but I wanted a creamier consistency than store-bought almond milk alone would give me. It needed cream. Coconut milk! Seriously, that stuff is magic. And because I wanted dairy-free chocolate that meant it had to be dark and seriously rich. So rich it became bitter. I wanted to avoid pouring sugar in, so I went for my favorite sweetener of choice- maple syrup. Perfection. The result is chocolatey. Super chocolatey. You absolutely cannot taste the coconut or the maple and are just left with the creaminess and sweetness they each provide. I've made this what feels like a dozen times this holiday season for vegans and milk drinkers alike and everyone loves it. And best of all, it tastes just like some brilliant person melted a chocolate bar in heavy cream, poured it in a mug and called it hot chocolate. Genius. 

Creamiest Vegan Hot Chocolate 
Makes 5 1/2 cups; Serves 4-6 

Hot chocolate: 
3 cups almond milk 
1 can full-fat coconut milk 
7.5oz dark chocolate, roughly chopped (see notes)
2 tsp vanilla extract 
4 tbsp pure maple syrup 

For the coconut whipped cream: (optional) 
1 can coconut cream, refrigerated (I use the Trader Joes brand) 
1/4 tsp vanilla extract 
3 tbsp powdered sugar 
pinch of salt 
cocoa powder for dusting (optional) 

Heat almond milk and coconut milk in a medium saucepan, I used cast iron as it retains heat well for serving. Once the liquid comes to a full boil turn off the heat and stir in the chocolate. Continue to stir until completely melted, then add in vanilla, salt, and maple syrup to taste (see notes). Depending on how warm you like your hot chocolate, you may need to reheat slightly before serving. 

To make the coconut whipped cream pour cream into a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment, if it's started to separate that's ok - it will incorporate again, and whip on medium speed for about two minutes until fluffy. Add in vanilla extract, sugar, and salt and whisk for another minute. Adjust to taste. 

Pour about 1 cup of hot chocolate into each mug - this stuff is seriously thick so a little goes a long way. Top the hot chocolate with whipped cream and dust with cocoa powder before serving. 
 

Notes: Contrary to what I'd previously thought, just because it's not milk chocolate doesn't mean it's vegan. So if you're wanting to keep this completely dairy-free, check those labels carefully. I ended up using Trader Joe's "Pound Plus" dark chocolate bar with 55% cocoa. If you go darker than that you will most likely need to up the amount of sweetener you use to combat the bitterness. I found 4 tablespoons of maple syrup made it just right, not sweet, but also not bitter. If you're into the super dark, bitter, more "european" chocolate flavor you could totally reduce the amount of sweetener as well. 

You're more than welcome to put alcohol in it too! My dad had his with Kahlua and I'm sure bourbon would be great as well. 

Served cold this stuff is a whole different beast. I've inevitably had extra a couple times so I pop it in the fridge. It's shockingly as good cold as it is hot. 

DIY Sports Drink

I'm dedicating recipes this week to my sweet family. There was a second I almost named this blog "You, Me, and Little P" because I just love my little fam so dang much. But then I figured that was way too cheesy, and a more appropriate name wouldn't stop me from writing about them. In case you live under a rock, or just don't follow me on instagram, little p (pumpkin) is our dog. 

My other half is pretty incredible. The other day while cooking dinner together, he brought up the fact that once upon a time I thought I wanted to marry a tall, dark, and handsome sweater-wearing artist of a man, and what I ended up with was a dorky balding engineer. But turns out that dorky engineer is the man of my dreams in so many ways (and he's really barely balding). And next month just so happens to be our second anniversary, and he just so happens to be taking me to Napa, whose food scene I just so happen to have researched for almost three hours today. To say I'm excited is a huge understatement. But more on that later. 

My dorkalicious love of a man is huge into mountain biking. So huge that he leaves me in bed almost every Saturday morning to wake up at the ass crack of dawn and go for a 2-3 hour ride. Then he comes home covered in a combination of sweat and dirt, which blended together has formed mud, and spandex. Nothing sexier, people. Kidding.

With only minimal resistance he's jumped on the my bandwagon of eating a healthier, plant-based diet, cutting out pretty much all processed foods. That is, with one exception. Gatorade. Have you ever looked at the ingredients on the backside of gatorade? Well it wouldn't really matter if you had because the ingredient list is completely filled with chemicals, additives, and colorings that a normal person could never pronounce nor understand. It's gross, people. "But the electrolytes!" says every person has who ever exercised. 

Enter: my DIY Sports Drink. Complete with all the electrolytes of gatorade and oh so much more! I did my research people, and both citrus and coconut water are natural sources for electrolytes. They contain vitamin C, potassium, and coconut water in particular is cooling to the body, which is perfect after a sweaty hot work-out. The fresh-squeezed citrus and coconut water are naturally sweetened with agave and topped with just a touch of salt which dissolves into the drink (I wasn't kidding about the electrolytes, people). 

The result is a fresh, real, version of gatorade. Don't believe me? Try it yourself. 

DIY Sports Drink 
Makes 1 quart 

1.5 cups freshly squeeze citrus juice (I use 2-3 oranges, 1/2 lemon, 1 lime) 
2-3 tbsp agave nectar (or honey)
1/2 tsp sea salt 
1 cup coconut water 
1 cup water 

Place water, salt, and agave in a saucepan over low heat until salt completely dissolves. Remove from heat and set aside. Using a citrus juicer, juice oranges, lemon, and lime (or whichever citrus fruits you'd like). In a quart size mason jar, combine juice, sweetened water, and coconut water. Refrigerate until cold.