My body has a hard time with cold foods/drinks. I love my juicer, but I can only make fresh veggie juices in the summer, when it is very warm out and my body temperature won't get too cold when I consume a cold food. Raw salad, cold beverages, sushi- they are all very cold foods per Traditional Chinese Medicine, and when I started going to my acupuncturist she advised me to stay away from cold foods since I have a tendency towards a low body temp. I notice if I drink/eat something cold, I will get a little headache and a stomach ache, a sure sign that my body is unhappy. So I look for ways to use cleansing foods and herbs in warm ways, such as warm veggie soups and warm teas.
Dandelion tea is a great way to incorporate the highly cleansing plant into your life. I buy the Traditional Medicinals brand, I trust them and they make some great teas. Dandelion tea is a good substitute for coffee or black tea, if you are tying to limit your caffeine intake. My husband and I have been completely caffeine free for about a month now, and I tell ya, it is liberating! I stopped drinking caffeinated coffee about 2 years ago, after being a 3-5 cup a day-er in my past life as a grad student. Coffee makes me crazy jittery and sweaty, and I needed to get off of the "needing it to function" train. My real love is black tea- for me, there is nothing quite like a strong cup of good black tea with a splash of cream in it. But, alas, even my black tea was affecting me, albeit less then coffee, but I was still noticing some side effects. Since we are trying to get pregnant, and I knew I wanted to be caffeine free once we get a baby cookin' in there, I figured why not get a jump on it now and get through the groggy mornings post quitting caffeine before I was knocked up. Enter Dandelion tea. Roasted Dandelion tea has a great bitter roasted flavor, not unlike black coffee or black tea. Now, I'm not saying it's the same, IT'S NOT. But it's close enough for me to enjoy it for now instead of black tea, and the added health benefits of drinking it are worthwhile too!
Here is a simple Dandelion tea "latte" recipe:
Brew a strong cup of Dandelion tea (make sure it is organic!)
Add about 1/4 cup to 1/2 cup of coconut milk to it.
Drink and enjoy.
The coconut milk adds good fats to the drink, and lends a hint of sweetness to cut the bitterness of the Dandelion tea. I make my coconut milk at home, to avoid canned coconut milk which always contains emulsifiers and other weird ingredients, as well as to avoid BPA. It is super easy to make:
Put 1 cup shredded unsweetened coconut into a blender. Add 2 cups boiling water. Blend until well shredded, to a nice creamy consistency. Let it cool. Poor it through a very small gauge sieve or cheese cloth to separate the coconut meal from the liquid. The liquid is your "cream" and you can use the leftover coconut meal for any number of baking projects... it can be used to make some super yummy macaroons! This makes about a cup to a cup and a half of coconut milk.
I hope you give the humble Dandelion a try this spring, and let me know if you try the Dandelion latte. Cheers!
I just wanted you to know how much I enjoy reading your blog. Since reading I have become totally Gluten Free, I use more natural cleaning products and read labels more carefully now. I am really thinking about jumping on the anti toothpaste bandwagon too. thank you
ReplyDeleteJennifer
That makes me SO happy! My whole goal for writing this blog is to share my journey and make it easier for others to make positive changes in their lives in terms of natural health. I hope you have seen positive results from going gluten free- it changed my whole life. I love hearing feedback, it keeps me motivated to learn more and share more!
ReplyDeleteHi Steph! What brand of Dandelion Tea do you buy and where can I find it? Sounds like something I want to try
ReplyDeleteI have another question for you. Have you ever tried a cleanse? Do they work? Are they worth it? I am really trying to go all natural products one by one and came across different cleanses. If you have any feedback it would be great to hear your point of view.
ReplyDeleteHi!!! I really like Traditional Medicinals teas, I trust them as a company and they are the only herbal teas I can find without "natural flavorings" in them (natural flavorings can be aspartame, MSG, pretty much anything)- that is the brand I recommend for Dandelion tea in bags- you can probably also get Dandelion root herb loose in the bulk herbs at Whole Foods- I get mine at New Leaf in SC. You should be able to find Traditional Medicinals tea at most grocery stores, for sure Whole Foods. As far as cleansing goes- it really deserves it's own post, and I have actually been mulling over doing one on cleansing... I don't think any cleanse that greatly restricts calories (juicing, etc) is a good idea- your body needs fuel, and if you don't give it food you are basically just starving yourself. That said, I think the Whole30 and 21 Day Sugar Detox are great whole foods "cleanses"- I had huge success with Whole30 and have continued eating with a Paleo template after the Whole30 because I found that when I added gluten free grains back in after the 30 days, I had a huge flare up! I have a few friends who have had great success with the 21 day sugar detox- it seems to have helped reset their sugar cravings- I personally recommend Whole30 because it worked for me. I will get on a post about healthy ways to cleanse and some supplemental helpful herbs this week :) Take care!
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