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!
