Recipe: Healing Fresh Ginger Tea

Happy New Year everyone! It’s been one of those weeks full of craziness over here as the kids have been home from school and a few girls and I were preparing to throw a baby shower for our favorite person in the world.

Yesterday we gathered 20 girls together to wish our beloved best friend well in her motherhood journey. There really is something very special about spending time with a close group of inspirational women, and it is something that as I get older I have wanted to do more. It’s okay to be real, and to get real in those situations, and yesterday we were (roller coaster of wild emotions and all). Thanks ladies, my heart is full today and I can’t wait to see what’s next! 🙂

Given the time of year, today’s recipe is all about warmth, digestion, and healing. This age-old remedy for good health has been around for ages, and for good reason. When we were kids, this was what we were given when sick, livened up with fresh lemon juice, cayenne pepper & honey. Ginger is spicy & warming and does wonders for settling a tired tummy that could use a little rest from perhaps (just a little) holiday over eating.

I’ve been nursing a pot of this on the stove for a few days now and have to thank a friend for reminding me just how amazing this drink is…so thankful. Between this and the high from being around so many cool ladies yesterday – I think I’m set for a great week to come!

The Less:

Less burden on the tummy means it can feel nourished with little food. Fewer bagged teas means less cost, waste, and more freshness. Less caffeinated & sugary drinks means health is just a cup away, so warming up & wellness come together at less cost.

The More:

More spicy, healing ginger means more warmth & aid to your guts. More aid to your guts means happy tummies all the time. More fresh ways to warm up means less reason to seek them outside, so keeping a pot on the stove makes sense all year round.

Healing Fresh Ginger Tea:

• (2) large pieces of fresh ginger, peeled, and cut into thumb sized pieces
• (6-8) cups fresh water for boiling
• Optional additions: fresh mint in summer, a cinnamon stick in winter, honey, fresh lemon juice, cayenne powder

Clean up your ginger and slice it into small thumb sized pieces. Combine the ginger in a medium sauce pan and fill with 6-8 cups of fresh water. Bring the water to a boil, and turn the heat down to medium and simmer the mixture at a gentle rolling boil for 20-30 minutes.

For cinnamon ginger tea, add a half or a whole cinnamon stick to the pot in the beginning. For mint ginger tea, add fresh mint to the pot for 5 minutes at the end.

Once ready, ladle into warm tea cups and add fresh lemon juice or honey, or both. To help ward off a cold, add a pinch or two of cayenne pepper to each cup. Enjoy by the fire with your favorite book or magazine (not required but highly recommended).

You can keep this going by adding more water to the ginger as you run low and re-boiling again. Simply leave the pot on the stove and add water and re-heat as desired. It really is the never ending ginger tea!

Wishing you all a wonderful, healthy, and feel good week – I am so excited for this year I can’t even tell you. Well, maybe I could 😉

• Are you taking any measures to restore well-being after holiday over indulgences? If so, what are they?

I’d love to know..for now I am off to make a green smoothie…

Yours in less,

Recipe: Healing Green Tonic & Tummy Smiles

Green juice that will make your tummy smile!

Feeling gratitude and not expressing it is like wrapping a present and not giving it.

~ William Arthur Ward

Good day dear IPOM readers and friends! Need a little something to pick you up mid-week like I do?

How about a quick little shout-out to a most virtuous glass of nourishing and delicious fresh green juice?

I’ve mentioned before that it is tough for me to throw away the pulp that is left over after extracting fresh juice.

And it’s true, it is hard (for me).

Eating foods is definitely the preferred way for me to ensure there is plenty of nutrition being served up at our table, and all that fiber and goodness that comes from consuming roughage and delicious foods in their whole state is ideal (IMO).

Except when it’s time for a change up.

When we are no longer able to change a situation, we are challenged to change ourselves.

~ Victor Frankl

There are times when the body might be sensitive to things. There are times when we might be stressed. There are times when we just crave a glass of pure vital energy.

For these times, and often on short fast days, this drink is my go-to elixir.

Super-energizing, super-alkalizing, super-tasty, and super-charged, this drink brings together everything an ailing tummy or mind might need. Eating can be stressful on the body sometimes (especially foods that are not good for you), and that’s okay. Just knowing a good safe way to rest the body and mind is a good place to start.

Of course, you need a juicer for this (which I know we don’t all have) – thankfully juicers are easily found these days in all price ranges, so if you are inclined, with a bit of research you can pick one up without breaking the bank account. It is an investment that will pay dividends, regardless of whether you juice once a day, once a week, or once a month.

Live out of your imagination, not your history.

-Stephen Covey

Here is the lowdown on my favorite take on Natalia Rose’s Green Lemonade from her book ‘Raw Food Detox’. It’s simply divine, and actually tastes delicious!

The Less:

Less solids in your tummy means a little rest when its needed. Less pressure on the tummy means more time to just be. Less cooked and stored juices means more vital enzymes and goodness, and hopefully less time feeling less than the best.

The More:

More fresh lemon juice means more alkalizing health benefits. More fresh greens means more chlorophyll and minerals. More fresh simple fruit juice means easily digested sugars, without all the nasty highs and lows, because something this happy can’t bring you down.

Healing Green Tonic:

~ Adapted from Natalia Rose, Raw Food Detox

• 4 apples, skin on, cut into pieces
• 10 leaves kale
• 1 head celery
• 2 lemons, with skin on, cut into pieces
• knob of fresh peeled ginger (optional)

Simply wash all ingredients – try to use organic vegetables and fruits for this if you can. Chop apples, lemons, and ginger. Be careful when juicing to put the greens and lemon pieces in with a stalk of celery or a piece of apple to prevent clogging (depending on your juicer’s strength).

Strain through a very fine sieve (or not if you don’t mind a little pulp at the bottom), and enjoy right away for maximum life force and vital energy. Letting juice sit will oxidize the released nutrition, but if you like you can put some away in a sealed container (keep cold!) for enjoyment later.

I drink this when I need a nice boost. It keeps me going for hours and leaves a wonderful aftertaste and and even more glorious happy tummy smile.

It sounds extra-super-corny, but trust me it’s true!

I don’t juice too often as I get annoyed cleaning the juicer as well as I feel sad if I produce too much pulp – though it does certainly make a lovely addition to gardener’s compost 🙂

I’ve got nothing to do today but smile.

  ~ Simon and Garfunkel

The bamboo that bends is stronger than the oak that resists

~ Japanese Proverb

My weekend reading!

The power we have to create good, and to impact positive change both within ourselves and within a greater collective community is never lost on me.

There is always, always, always something to be thankful for.

~ Author Unknown

So keep up your own unique brands of awesomeness, dear IPOM readers and friends, for it is your energy and enthusiasm that keeps us all going, and I can only speak for myself and I know this to be true for this blogger!

I also have to let you guys know there are so many exciting things happening here this week with regards to Not So Fast. Honestly, I can’t wait to share….all in good time!

• Are you a fan of juicing?
• What is your favorite fresh juice of all time?
• What are you MOST excited for right now (share anything!)?

I just adore hearing from you all, we’d all love to know!

I am off to enjoy the glorious Vancouver sunshine…and it sounds as though it is here to stay for a while!

Yours in Less,