Balanced diet recipes Archives - Page 2 of 12

Tropical Smoothie Cool Drinks

Tropical smoothie drinks is something we gravitate toward in the hot months. 🥭

A smoothie is one of the easiest meals you can make. You need no cooking skills. A little imperfect chopping and peeling is about all you need.

Oh, and a little clean up skills never hurts.

And with restaurant prices going up, up, and up, you can save money making your own fresh smoothies at home.

The cost of smoothie ingredients is a fraction of the cost. You save money when you’re the smoothie maker.

There is no waiting time.

So let’s begin with… these tropical smoothie treats that are made with an easy blender that’s all you need.

I use a Magic Bullet that’s a small, easy blender. It looks like a capsule. You add your chopped ingredients and pulse.

Then you have a delicious and nutritious smoothie with no added sugar. You can let your imagination go wild.

With a Magic Bullet, it’s important to maintain a good seal. The machine comes with a rubber seal ring, but be sure when you’re cleaning that you don’t accidentally throw it out.

And when you replace, get a good, same size one… otherwise you’ll get leakage.

These are a few tropical smoothie drinks that’ll remind you of being poolside or in the tropics somewhere with blue waters:

Pina Colada Avocado – cream of coconut, pineapple. I find this drink is naturally super sweet, so I ground with a balancing avocado and greener banana. You can also add a layer of greens.

Mango Green Smoothie – a mango smoothie stands on its own. And like a pina colada, it can be sweet so balancing with a kale or spinach layer will tame down the drink.

You can also try a green mango smoothie.

Green Mango Smoothie

This is a two layer smoothie.

Course Breakfast

Cuisine American

Author Brandy @ Healthy Happy Life Secrets

Ingredients

1 mango
milk of choice
cinnamon
spinach or kale
ginger

Instructions

Blend mango and milk until thickness consistency desired.
Add cinnamon for another taste dimension.
Pour about half of the mango smoothie into a drinking glass. Freeze.
With the remaining mango smoothie add chopped greens. Blend.
After the first mango layer is frozen, add the greens layer to the glass.
You can start drinking the greens layer or freeze the glass.
When you pull out, let it melt at room temperature and watch the mango and green colors change.

Frozen Cocoa Cherry Pistachio Beverage

Frozen cocoa beverage…whaattt? Cold cocoa (vs hot cocoa) is probably not what you think of when you think of cozy Christmas-y holiday vibe drinks in December. ❄️

And not a beverage you would hold with mittens around a dreamy outdoor cozy fire.

…But before you turn away the idea, a frozen HYGGE-cozy flavored and FUN layered cocoa variety can be a welcomed chiller! 🧊 Think of it like an unusual frozen smoothie. And that is great for cooling any stress-irritated moods that can sink in.

Like this one I share how to easily make…

…It’s layered, and looking like a sand art glass (yes?). And one you can imagine maybe finding at a Christmas market or art show.

Oh, except this one is deliciously drinkable made with drink slip away ingredients (and not slipping sand)! 🧋

And this frozen cocoa beverage is inspired by dairy-free spumoni ice cream flavors dreamt up from a childhood travel experience in Italy. 🇮🇹

Each layer is frozen and when the drink melts, it’s more fun to watch than a snowman melting. ☃️

You can use anti-inflammatory cocoa like I did with Hershey 100% raw cocoa, and then layer with cherry juice… and then add almond milk with a few drops of Pandan (for natural mint green color) and pistachios.

If you’ve never tasted Pandan 🌱, it’s a plant-based ingredient with a vanilla-nutty vibe that taste mixes well with plant-based milks like almond or cashew milk.

For healthy cocoa, instead of going to the cocoa mix beverage aisle of the grocery store, visit the baking or seasonal aisles instead to find the pure multi-purpose cocoa.

The cocoa can be used to make a drink like hot or cold cocoa, or used to bake with and make desserts like healthy chocolate cake, brownies, and cookies.

You want to find an unsweetened, raw cocoa that is not alkalized (processed or Dutched cocoa) for the healthy tastes. And this is the best kind to bake with too!

Most marketed drinking cocoa coming in packets or pouches with the options of marshmallows are the processed kind often loaded with sugar.

You can always sweet treat yourself with marshmallows (sugar) ontop at the end. Or simply zhugh with coconut chips or pistachio crumbles.

You can also substitute the cocoa with a healthy coffee milkshake or pure cold brew coffee.

And then after you’ve made your frozen cocoa beverage artwork 😁, you can serve with cocoa desserts like this cocoa brownie cake with cashews and dried raspberries.

Which btw, polyphenol-rich cocoa and raspberries are an anti-inflammatory power couple.

…But me-thinks 🧒🏻 that a frozen cocoa beverage is just what these healthy un-iced and faceless molasses gingerbread men ordered. The mystery remains… 😊

Orange Coffee You Can Make at Home

Orange coffee as in orange juice in the coffee is a powerful tasting combo. You may be scratching your head wondering how that odd combo is… that works unlike other citrus.

Below I share a couple orange photo inspiration as to what brought this on me…

And I understand if you need a ‘lil nudge because we’re used to separate cups and glasses for the two drinks.

Part of a popular American breakfast has both OJ and coffee.

But you gotta admit adding orange juice to your coffee sounds convenient (one less cup). ☕️

If you’re at a breakfast buffet, it’s one last cup you have to carry.

I’d say… also a smart idea that makes sense for boosting the immune system during holiday travel season… and calming anxious moods that oranges do. It’s good to carry one on ya!

Plus, orange 🍊 adds a nice flavor to your black coffee. Think of it like orange and chocolate or cocoa… another drink idea. 💭

Oranges brighten up your cup o’ joe choices.

And if you’re a Vata, you love the variety and oranges!

In a cup of coffee ☕️, the orange flavor comes through nicely… half orange (or at least 1/3) to half coffee makes it a brightened, pleasant taste…

The best way is with liquid orange juice you can freshly squeeze or mix with prepared juice. You can also use orange zest if you don’t mind the solid textures.

Those are the best ways for the zesty flavor punch to come through.

And the home healthiest way is with fresh orange juice and cold brew coffee.

…Cold brew coffee has less acidity than regular brewed coffee ways. And fresh orange juice has less acidity than concentrated juices you would buy at the grocery stores.

If acidity is a concern, you can add spices like cinnamon and ginger to help tone down and counteract effects.

The caffeine in coffee btw is loaded with antioxidants that are good for not only quick cognitive reasons, but also improving heart health.

We all love that! ❤️‍🔥

And when you use fresh whole oranges, you bypass sugar added to processed orange juice from concentrate.

You get the Vitamin C and A antioxidants plus minerals and fiber.

Orange juice sales ramp up in the cooler winter months when people are thinking about ramping up on Vitamin C for cold and flu season.

And as helpful nature would have it, oranges are winter fruits.

That’s a great way to start the morning!

They support happy hormones and reducing stress hormones. Gotta love that too! 😀

Your choice of orange is based on your preference and where you are.

For a sweeter orange, you could select a blood orange, navel orange, or a Cara Cara orange.

You can also sometimes find oranges year-round depending on if there’s a good sunshine season.. That’s why Florida and California are the abundant king and queen orange states. ☀️

A Florida orange has thinner skin than California navel, and are more like Valencia oranges that are the most common kind internationally and around the world.

You can tell where you are located just by the oranges in the stores and trees. 🍊

…Like these Spanish ohh-ahh orange trees I saw. Can you imagine these fresh ones for breakfast?

I had my first Sevilla orange for the first time years ago and it was coffee life changing. That was one of the years I spent Thanksgiving overseas.

And then back home n the States, had Sevilla orange coffee that was inspired by my fun visit to Spain.

…As fun as these peppermint arches in Cordoba. 🎪

Cranberry Juice to Tea

Cranberry juice is one powerful antioxidant drink that’s good to keep in your food-as-medicine kitchen cabinet. It’s a festive, easy drink to serve up to your dry and under age guests that wins health points for all.

Cranberries have stood the test of time over centuries like many healthy, plant-based foods. That helped people survive.

The fruits were originally named crane-berry because it was a popular food for cranes, as in birds. Machines 🏗️ aren’t drinking or eating yet.

…Also, wouldn’t it be fun to name fruits because many are still being discovered in our New World? 💭 I remember when elderberries came on the scene as good for cold immunity… I feel like an elder berry. 😊

These days, we share these same foraged foods with other small wildlife creatures like squirrels, deers, and other birds. 🐿️🦌

And humans turn this cranberry fruit (that’s not a berry) into a drink for good reason.

For one, cranberry juice is known to be good for preventing urinary tract infections, even though it hasn’t been made fact.

But preventing infections mean less antibiotics in your body that always helps gut health. The rise of antibiotic resistance and contaminated meat is costing over $2 billion annual in the U.S., so it’s worth believing cranberry as preventative medicine.

Pure 100% juice version is the one to source and buy. 💯 without added sugars like the common cranberry cocktail version you find in convenience stores. Buy it when you’re inconveniently in the big grocery stores with a cart and the juice will last long after opened.

It’s one healthy holiday tradition that you can stand by…

And on-travel, ordering a cran-apple juice on the airplane can be a good next-to-water hydrating drink with vitamins and minerals.

At home, besides as a glass of cranberry juice, you can make a cranberry tea… either iced for warmer months or warmed tea for colder or transitional months.

And the way to keep this a low-sugar, healthy beverage is to change the taste. 100% cranberry juice is tart, so adding other natural flavors will enhance the tartness and make it exciting. ♥️

For warm tea, use dried fruits, flowers, and spices to naturally spice-up the tea, like these pairings:

-Hibiscus & rose hips

-Elderflower

-Raspberry

-Apple

-Orange Peels

-Ginger

-Cinnamon

Use a strainer for the dried bits, and if they’re finely ground, you can use a paper coffee filter that you can cut down to the right size for your strainer.

I actually like when a few tea leaves seep through as it keeps the tea homemade and rustic feeling. Turn on the moody jams and you have an enjoyable break. 🎶

But that’s a nice choice you get to make in the moment…

And at the end, zhughing with some ruby red fruits like cranberries and pomegranates sinking to the bottom make it a bottomless tea party!

In my drinks, you can even find some shredded coconut streamers or rosemary spikes, and a ‘pick of cranberries for tasty interest.

Those details come naturally from my event and party planner days where it’s all about the special zhugh. This one is good for the heart.🫀

For an iced tea version, use fresh fruits, flowers, lemon… and omit the spices.

You can also use your cranberry juice tea to make other wild fresh drinks or mocktails…

You can add cranberry seltzer water to make a big fizzy punch that’s a pink champagne color and bring up happy spirits! 🎉

Malt Loaf to One Bowl Molasses Cake

Malt loaf bread is comfy country bread that I could eat regularly as in weekly. It’s hearty, comfort food like a raisin bread. And this similar molasses cake (yes, you heard right!) recipe needs no proofing.

Learn more below 👇

malt loaf with early grey tea. — Recipe below 🧡

Molasses is one of the star ingredients in this loaf or cake (depending on how you want to look at it) and one of my favorite sweet ingredients. ⭐️

Watching the slow as molasses dark glossy liquid glide down the jar to the opening is joyful.

And when it does and makes contact with its destination, it comes with multi-dimensional tastes.

…I like to call it dark caramel and one that Grandma’s from the south grew up with. (That’s also the common household molasses brand most of us know).

It’s got the old-fashioned flavors mixed in…

Along with regular molasses comes a bit of sweet, bitter, and black licorice tastes that gives gingerbread cookies its distinct flavor.

The acidity in the ingredient also helps to activate the cake rise if you use a common household ingredient like baking soda (that’s usually stored in the fridge for other purposes).

Also, unlike white table sugar as a sweetener, amazingly molasses has anti-inflammatory effects. If you’re a food science nerd like me then you get excited about these nuances in daily sustenance that affect the body! 🎉 …and whether the ingredient will be used.

Not as common is blackstrap molasses that comes out after the third boiling, so most of the sugar has dissolved like Houdini. It has a lower glycemic index and polyphenols compared to regular molasses. PLUS it has minerals and Vitamin B-6.

With the dark flavor, the dark color matches.

It’s perfect for the cooler months and warming inside if you think of a warm fireplace playing jazzy tunes. 🎶

…And just in time for holiday baking season.

Malt loaf was a challenge on the The Great British Bake Off where I heard of the cakey bread.

And I don’t know anyone who doesn’t love a cakey bread because that means no proofing, but is Prue-fitting, as in Judge Prue Leith who sent the loaf popularity waves across the pond… and into my sound waves vicinity.

…And what makes this loaf so out-of-the-ordinary great is the plumped up raisins from the Earl Grey tea.

It’s a strong brisk black tea that is what you expect for an afternoon high tea. 🫖

I had first heard of the intriguing “raisin plumping” idea in a food class where I collaborated with dieticians.

I loved the idea then… and loved it even more when I added them to this recipe.

You can see how bold and dramatic the raisins become. Who knew raisins could grow and not more wrinkly old? 😁

And to top off this breakfast dessert, you can add a glaze if you wanna shine! ✨

But I like the rustic and plain… like the simple raisin bread. But with bananas, this one is even BETTER.

Not needing butter.

And however you bake your cake or bread, you can make this in one bowl or even in the same baking pan it will end up in! That’s what happened here…

I mean, it doesn’t get much easier than this for fall foods, breads, and baked goods. That makes it so easy to FALL for! 🍂

You in? 😊

Easy Malt Loaf Cake

A moist malt loaf that has molasses as a star ingredient.

Author Brandy @ Healthy Happy LIfe Secrets

Ingredients

1 tbsp Early Grey tea, brewed
1 tbsp raisins (plumped up from tea)
1/3 cup currants, chopped dates, or additional raisins
1 cup mashed bananas
1 tbsp coconut oil (in addition to coating the pan)
1/3 cup molasses
2 eggs, room temperature
1/4 cup almond milk or milk of choice or more
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup flour of choice
walnuts, chopped (optional)

Instructions

Coat your baking vessel with coconut oil that helps to give a nice thin outer crust and help prevent sticking to the pan. If you prefer less crust, then you can use a light dusting of flour to coat your pan or use a non-stick baking spray.
Brew hot tea and add raisins to the tea. While you're waiting for the tea to steep and raisins to plump up, make the loaf.
Mix the wet and dry ingredients together. Easy tip: you can do this in one bowl and even the same baking pan/vessel that you will use to bake the loaf! This is/should be a very liquid-y batter (like pancake) depending on the flour(s) you use tthat will come out moist. Bake on 350°F for 65-80 minutes until outside is the brown color preferred.