Healthy Cucumber Cooler Cocktail

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 Mmmmm… healthy alcohol.

As the name suggests, this is a healthy cucumber cooler cocktail.

The only calories in this drink come from the liquor and it also doesn’t taste like shit!

A lot of times, when I desperately google “healthiest cocktail” after too many glasses of wine and horrible food decisions I am met with the horrendous “vodka tonic with a twist of lime” which just tastes like sour, watered down vodka.

This cocktail, my friends, has the same amount of calories as a vodka tonic, except it’s more nutritious and has more flavor and also gets you fucked up!

Fabulouuuuuuuuuuuss!

*said in a high pitch voice at the end, or if you’re like me, cracking deep voice and then uncontrollable coughing*

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Moroccan Mint Green Tea

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When I was in Morocco I kept being offered the most amazing tea known as Moroccan Tea, which is basically green tea with mint and if you like, sugar. 

Moroccan mint green tea is sooooo good. When you drink it it’s like you can’t imagine how you lived life without it and then you get really mad thinking of all the years that passed in which you could have had this tea after each meal and also at other times, because it’s that good.

I never really liked green tea and always tried to force myself to drink it because it’s healthy and all that shit and now I discovered a way to drink green tea and enjoy it!

It’s my teaha! moment. 

Get it?

Like, aha! moment.

But with tea.

So like, teaha! moment.

Oprah. Continue reading »



Saffron & Cardamom Syrup

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 This saffron and cardamom syrup is so easy and versatile. All you need is 3 ingredients.

Plus water.

It’s perfect for sweetening teas.

Or in place of simple syrup in cocktails.

It’s also great for desserts. Drizzle it on freshly baked cupcakes or into frosting, or both.

You can also chug it.

This is what you need:

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Detox Spa Water

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Again with this heat!

Ugh. What the fuck happened to spring?!

The heat makes me angry.

For my own safety, and that of those around me, I couldn’t turn on the oven or stove or any device that emanates heat of any sort. I would have gone into a seething rage. I only wanted things that were chilled or ice-cold. Nothing hotter than room temperature was entering my body.

So, I made water.

Detox Spa Water, to be exact.

In case someone hasn’t had “spa water,” it’s basically just water infused with fruits, veggies or herbs.

This is how it all went down:

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I used a lot of ingredients in comparison to the water. I like an intense fruit taste and as many of the detoxifying properties as I can get, then I just top it off with more water when needed. If that doesn’t tickle your fancy, or your business casual, just use the same amount of fruits but place them in a pitcher. Or keep the glass but use less fruit. Whatever.

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So pretty.

I’m a sucker for pretty food floating in liquids.

Plus the all of these ingredients aid in purifying the body.

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The strawberry & mint was my favorite.

The lemon & lime is going to be my new water to start the day, very good for digestion and metabolism.

The cucumber was very cucumber-y. Not bad. Not my fav, but it’s an appetite suppressant.

Let me know what variations you would make.

I wanna try making a chia seed water. I’ll post it on Instagram.

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East Meets West Chicken Stock

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I’m sure you’ve already heard how much better it is to make your own chicken stock. I’m not going to go out of my way to make chicken stock all the time, although now that I type this I feel like maybe I should. Usually, I only make stock if I make a roast chicken, which I did the other day. 

So I pulled off all the leftover chicken and discarded all the skin, saving all the bones.

A lot of “all’s” in that sentence.

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Add the carcass (hardcore, right?) to a large stock pot.

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Now, you need the following items:

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I used onion, garlic, ginger, lemon, cinnamon sticks, cardamom pods, coriander seeds, black peppercorns and herbs de provence.

east meets west chicken stock 14 See how the East meets the West in this chicken stock? So inspiring.

Add all the veggies and lemon to the stockpot. Then add a 1/2 teaspoon each of the following spices:

Coriander seed:

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Herbs de provence (a French spice blend that can be found in some grocery stores, or online):

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And finally black peppercorns:

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 Add them all to the pot.

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Then add enough water to cover the chicken.

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Bring it to a boil, then reduce to simmer right away. You don’t want to hard boil your broth the whole time, it can result in a bitter stock. A gentle boil for at least 45mins is my general rule for stocks. 

Once the stock is done simmering, strain it out.

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east meets west chicken stock 25 This recipe makes lots of stock. About 3 quarts and 4 cups.

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Btw, I didn’t add salt because I wanted to keep it as low sodium as possible so I can adjust the salt depending on what dish I’m using the stock for. 

Store in the fridge for a week or freeze indefinitely. A good test to see if it’s still good is to smell it.

If it’s funky, toss it. 

Also, boiling stock for about 10 mins kills any bacteria incase you really need to use that stock sitting in the back of your fridge. You know who you are. Ok, fine. I’m talking about myself. Ahem. Oh, look! What’s that? A little box  right below! I wonder what would happen if you typed your email in it? Only one way to find out! 

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Mint & Fruit Cooler

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Man. Yesterday was hot. 90 degrees hot. Between sticking my head in the freezer and taking ice-cold showers like a serial killer, I made a cool and refreshing drink to beat the heat. 

I think the mint in this drink is really key. It’s cooling (hence the name, cooler) and light. The fruits and sweetener are flexible for this cooler. All you need is the juice of any fruit you like and, if you like, a little extra sweetness which you can get from honey, stevia or agave nectar. Or regular sugar. Pick your poison. I chose to use my lemongrass syrup and it added the perfect fragrant, citrusy sweetness. 

Any fruit for garnish is fine. Blueberries would look nice, or some round citrus slices of orange, lemon and lime. Use your imagination.

So this is what I used:

mint cooler ingredients

First thing you want to do is make the mint tea, so it has time to cool. If you’re in a rush, a trick I love is called pulling. It’s just pouring the tea back and forth from one container to another to help it cool quicker. It’s an art-form in some countries. Check this guy out. It’s just a 30 second video. And if you have 2 minutes to spare, this dude just takes it to a WHOLE other level.

Then you can just stick it in the freezer to chill really fast.

Anyway, you need two tablespoons of dried mint leaves in your teapot. Or french press. Oh la la. Bevery Hills, Chi, Chi, Chi! (Do you know who I’m quoting?)

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Steep for about a minute, depending on how strong you like your mint tea.

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Strain out the leaves and allow the tea to cool down. In the meantime, squeeze about a cup of juice out of the oranges.

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I got 1 1/4 cups out of 4 juicy oranges.

Once the mint tea has cooled add the orange juice to it.

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Then add your simple syrup (a cup of sugar dissolved into a cup of water over heat, can be flavored with any herb, spice or fruit you like).

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Remove your mint from its stems and leave the leaves whole. Then slice your strawberries.

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Add both to the pitcher you will be using.

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Pour the mixture into the pitcher and chill in the fridge.

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Make sure your dog doesn’t try to knock over your mint cooler while you try to take a picture of it. Poor guy was loving the mint smell and just couldn’t take it anymore.

Pour over ice and enjoy! And spike!

mint and fruit cooler

Oh and type you email in the box below. I won’t tell you what happens if you do that, but word on the street is that you subscribe to my blog if you do. But you didn’t hear that from me. Ok bye.

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Homemade Spiced Rum

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Spiced rum is a classic. It’s like a warm and fuzzy blanket for your insides and your emotions. Making your own is as easy as pie. Or actually, it’s easier than pie. 

You need the following items (use a vanilla bean pod instead of the paste if you want, it’s a bit pricier though):

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You can also use aged golden rum to start with to give the final product a bit more depth. I decided to go with white rum so that I would have a cleaner flavor base to allow the different notes of the spices to really shine through. Ppppft. Buuuullshiiiiiit. I’m lying. They only had white rum at the store and I was NOT about to make another stop. You almost believed me though? Riiightt???

Oh ya, and you need these spices. You can play around with the proportions if you particularly like a certain spice.

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From top left: Nutmeg, allspice, cloves, black pepper, cardamom, cinnamon sticks and lonely little coriander seed at the bottom.

Ok. Let’s begin spicing up the rum. First thing you wanna do is take out your frustrations by beating the shit (ew or the flavor) out of your spices.

Observe:

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Ahh. I feel better just looking at all that crushing and cracking. It’s therapeutic. 

Ok, now put all your crushed spices into an airtight container large enough to hold the spices and the rum. I find that a quart sized mason jar works perfectly.

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Next, add 2 teaspoons of vanilla bean paste (or vanilla bean pod, split open) to the spices.

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Add the rum.

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Seal the container and shake it a little to begin the process. It’s fun to see it begin to change color. 

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Let it steep in a cool dry place for about two days. Taste it everyday until it reaches desired taste and color.

This is how it looked after one day:

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The next day it looked a bit darker and tasted perfect. So that’s when I strained it.

Some close ups of the rum on Day 2, right before I strained it:

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Yum. It’s like hard liquor and chai had a baby.

Time to strain:

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I double-strained (not to be confused with double-fisted).

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Store in the fridge and enjoy on the rocks or in a cocktail.

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