This swirl looks like a Magnolia cupcake frosting, doesn’t it? Ok maybe only a little..right?
Someone told me my blog was boring because there are only pictures and recipes. Uh-huh. Perhaps. To that I say, Cheers! To your health. Tequila! And my boring blog that is slowly but surely going to become less boring or not. Happy mixing. Let’s face it, don’t most of us skip to the recipe anyway?
Chocolate Chia Seeds Smoothie
Ingredients
1 scoop of Sprouts Epic Kingdom Protein and Greens powder
1 cup of Whole Foods 365 frozen black cherries
1 cup of Whole Foods 365 frozen passion fruit chunks
1 cup of Costco Kirkland’s unsweetened vanilla almond milk
1 tablespoon of chia seeds
1 tablespoon of dark chocolate chia seeds
Method
Blend all ingredients together in a blending machine except the chocolate chia seeds. The chocolate chia seeds are for the garnish but who and I to say you should add some to the mix. As for blending machines, You know I love a Cuisinart.
Glass: bucket glass
Garnish: chocolate chia seeds
Where to buy the goods? Blonde Behind the Bucket Storefront and may I add, please pardon the appearance of the store. Enhancements are in progress. Need something I don’t have listed in a category, lemme know. I’ll add it. Thank you so much.
*i may receive commissions from eligible purchases
Years ago.. I’m talking twenty plus years I met a friend on a random job in NYC.. we became friends after a few hours and went to shop at Bloomingdale’s for swimming suits after work that day…. When I moved to Los Angeles, she came to visit. We went to a restaurant in Westwood and after my first doogh I was hooked.. I bought mint a few times but it went bad as I was working on something else…today I finally made it. I blended some ice and mint with plain non fat yogurt (this one is cow as I ate the vanilla sheep yogurt the other morning at 4:am). I added dried rose petals sugar and a raspberries rose probiotic drink and of course rose water…
AND No! No! no.. This drink is not sweet and isn’t meant to be although it translate to mean« treaty ».. Maybe that’s what I will do with my mangoes…
Doogh 2.0
Ingredients
6 oz of plain nonfat yogurt (this Norr organic sure does taste full fat to me)
10 sprigs of mint (and one for the garnish so 11 sprigs of mint)
1 cup of ice
2 oz raspberry rose probiotic drink
2 Tablespoons of agave or honey one for the drink and one for the sugar rim
Pinch of fine salt (think Maldon because it is a fine flakey sea salt and dissolves almost instantly)
Dried edible rose petals to mix with sugar or premade rose petal sugar
Method
Place rose petal sugar on a saucer. Add honey or agave to the rim of a glass. Roll glass in the sugar mixture and set aside or refrigerate. The remainder sugar in saucer can be used to top the drink.
Add all ingredients to a blending machine except sparkling water and one sprig of mint. The sparkling is the topper and that one extra mint sprig is for the garnish. Blend until see a crushed ice consistency. Kinda slushy like. Pour into rose petal sugar rimmed glass. Top with sparkling raspberries rose water. Top with rose petal sugar sugar and mint.
Before we get to the recipe, let’s talk about what Cynar is and how to pronounce it. Cynar is an Italian artichoke bitters digestivo that belongs to the amaro family. It is pronounced Cee-NAHR or CEE-nahr, depending on who you ask. The suggested serving recommendation is to enjoy it on its own or with cola and lime. You can find more information on the back of the bottle. I decided to have a little fun with it on a couple of occasions, adding fruits, molasses, and agave. Last October, I featured it in a post (see last October’s post here), and just recently, I created a delicious concoction with it. After all, who doesn’t love a frozen boozy treat to complete dinner?
Arti Berry Cynar Granita Slushy
Ingredients
1 cup of mixed berries (blueberries raspberries strawberries)
8 oz Cynar
1 oz agave
1 oz molasses syrup
Scrape using a fork to break up the mixture
Aren’t these ice crystals beautiful
In the glass..
Method
Muddle mixed berries. Add Cynar and berries together in a plastic container with a lid. Store at room temperature for about three to five days. Remove the berries by straining them from the mixture, if you like. To slow the infusion process refrigerate for the same amount of time to about a week. Check and taste to determine whether more time is needed for the berry infusion. Add agave and molasses. Stir. Place in freezer. Check it every few hours and break up the forming solid with a fork. I forgot one batch longer and left it I there longer than a week and after removing I did the scraping process with a fork and it worked fantastically. The mixture only partly freezes because of the alcohol content. I figured that out once by leaving my Lillet in the freezer. Once you have scraped a few times, add to a coupe glass and enjoy.
This is the mocktail of your dreams. I say that about all of them, I know. You won’t miss the vodka or bourbon, I promise. Sweet without being too sweet, thanks to the date syrup. Thanks, date syrup! This A-team brings it. Yes, pear and ginger, I’m looking at you. Don’t you just feel healthier looking at them? The thirst-quenching lemon sparkling water tops it off, bringing it all together. Oh, and the two dots of caffeine from Tazo ginger pear green tea provide a subtle jolt—just enough to leave the caffeine-sensitive unaffected. So, not to worry; you shouldn’t be climbing the walls. I wasn’t, and I haven’t had coffee in over two years. Besides all of the above, who can resist the extra botanicals and aromatics from nonalcoholic bitters for that final je ne sais quoi? Who can resist all the bitters and aromatics they bring? This mocktail certainly has a certain something, alright. I’d be surprised if you didn’t want to drink more than one. Cheers!
Pear Mocktail
2 different types of pears (Bosc, Comice, Anjou, Bartlett, Starkrimson—you choose) were given to me.
1 small knob of ginger for slicing ginger chards
1 oz Trader Joe’s date syrup
2 ounces of Tazo ginger green tea
1 oz of sparking lemon mineral water (I use Pellegrino)
3 drops of baking spice, ginger All the Bitter aromatics alcohol-free bitters
Method
Place bucket glass with ice into the freezer.
Wash all produce.
Boil water. Remove tea bag from packet. Add both to a glass or mug. Steep ginger green tea for 3 minutes. Refrigerate until cold. Best results overnight.
Add several slices of fresh ginger, equal to about 1/2 teaspoon. If you like it spicy, increase it to 1 teaspoon. Next, add 3/4 of a chopped medium-sized pear to a mixing glass. Muddle until the juices are extracted. Then, add 1 oz of date syrup and 2 oz of ginger green tea. Add ice and shake well. Strain into your chilled, ice-filled glass. Don’t forget the 3 drops of bitters. Top with lemon sparkling water. Garnish with a slice of pear or the whole pear—your choice! I prefer the whole pear.
The topper
The pour
Glass: bucket glass
Garnish: whole pear
Bar Chef Notes: For an adult version, sneak in a little Grey Goose La Poire when no one is looking—if you must! The recipe may need to be modified as a result though.
1 cup of fresh mango from Erewhon market or your local farmers market or favorite supermarket
1/2 cup of Whole Foods 365 brand frozen pineapples chunks
3/4 cups of Pitaya Foods frozen passion fruit chunks
2 tablespoons of hemp hearts shelled hemp seeds -the protein comes from these babies. The recommended serving size is 3 tablespoons
1 tablespoonful of Manukora MGO 200+ manuka (or any of your favorite manuka honey) Manuka honey that I use is from New Zealand
1 tablespoonful of a local honey (I use Topanga honey with honeycomb. Fun fact: taking a small dose of honey helps with some allergies)
1 scoop of Agent Nateur & Dr. Will Cole holi (mane) hair ski nails supplement
1-2 tablespoonful of La Tourangelle Avocado oil
3/4 cup of unsweetened almond milk
5-7 Whole Foods 365 brand mango passion fruit fruit bites for the garnish and eating while making the smoothie. Let’s be real. This will happen. At least for me it did.
Method
Add all ingredients to the Cuisinart To-Go blending cylinder. Blend on the smoothie setting until the mixture is smooth. If you don’t have a Cuisinart, any blending machine should work. Pour into a glass and garnish.
Bar Chef Notes: a pinch of saffron is great too. I tried both ways, with and without.
Glass: glass bucket glass
Garnish: several passion fruit mango balls
Passion Fruit Pineapple Mango Protein SmoothieProtein SmoothieProtein Smoothie
1/2 cup of Costco Signature brand unsweetened vanilla almond milk
1/4 cup Whole Foods 365 frozen black cherries
1/2 frozen banana (peel and freeze your bananas)
1 1/2 cups of Whole Foods 365 brand chopped frozen kale
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 scoop Sakara Organic Protein + Greens Super Powder
1 scoop Agent Nateur Holi (mane) Hair, Skin, Nails Supplement
1 tablespoon Trader Joe’s agave (just enough to take the edge off the cacao nibs and greens)
12 fresh mint leaves and a sprig for garnish
1 1/2 tablespoons Navitas Organic cacao nibs and some to garnish
Handful of Pitaya Foods Aloe Vera pieces
Top with water for fluidity if consistency seems too thick as it should be l similar to a milkshake. The reason I needed water is because I ran out of almond milk and added the powders last. It worked out. This smoothie is a smooth creamy icy texture.
Method
Add all ingredients to your smoothie blending machine of choice. Hey Cuisinart, hey. Blend blend blend and maybe a pulse or two until smoothie. Pour into your glass and garnish.
If you like a mint and chocolate flavor profile, this is the smoothie for you. Packed full of antioxidants and does a body good goodness. Hemp seeds, flax seeds, pumpkin seeds.. you don’t need to worry about adding all that FYI. Sakara Protein + Greens has you covered; All in one scoop in fact. And since our largest organ, our skin, radiates starting from the inside out, why wouldn’t use want to add the Agent Nateur pearl collagen calcium hair skin and nails powder supplement? Mint is for freshness. Kale because we need our greens. Cocoa nibs adds a bitter chocolate flavoring and which plays off the sweetness of the banana and pineapple’s acidity. Not to mention crunch. No added sugar with the unsweetened vanilla almond milk. Duh. There is a skosh of blue agave syrup though. Think if it as a balancing ingredient rather than sweet. Cinnamon a warming spice and blood sugar friendly.
Mint Cacao Nibs Smoothie #1T
Ingredients
1 1/2 cups of Whole Foods 365 brand frozen kale
1 small chopped frozen banana (or half if it’s larger size)
1/2 cup Whole Foods 365 brand frozen pineapple chunks
1 cup of Signature unsweetened vanilla almond milk
1 scoop of Agent Nateur Holi (mane) Hair, Skin, Nails Supplement
1 scoop of Sakara Protein + Greens protein powder
1/4 teaspoon of ground cinnamon
1 tablespoon of Trader Joe’s blue agave
Pink of pink Himalayan salt
10 fresh mint leaves or about three mint springs and a sprig for the garnish
3 tablespoons of Navitas cacao nibs and some for the garnish
Method
Add all ingredients to the blending machine. I recommend adding powders after the almond milk as they have a tendency to sink to the bottom and/or clump. Blend until smooth. Pour into a bucket glass. Garnish with the cacao nibs and mint sprig.
An earthy, nutty, creamy green glass of goodness. Yup, that’s what this one is. Drinking a smoothie like this one can’t help but make you feel good. A simple and easy blend of all ingredients together, pour into a glass (or not? I see you drinking from the blender) and you’re done type of easy. Easy like Sunday morning, as they say. If nothing else, it will be something to satisfy your hunger until you make it to that champagne brunch later.
Sunday Morning Smoothie
Ingredients
1 cup 365 Whole Foods brand chopped frozen spinach
1/2 cup Pitaya Foods aloe vera chunks
1 teaspoon of Naoki Matcha powder
1 cup Signature Costco brand unsweetened vanilla almond milk
1 scoop of Agent Nateur Holi (mane) Hair, Skin, Nails Supplement
1 scoop of Sakara Greens+Protein Protein powder
2 tablespoons of Manitoba Harvest hemp seeds
1 teaspoon of ground cinnamon
1 1/2 tablespoons of Trader Joe’s brand blue agave
Pinch of Natierra Himalayan pink salt
Method
Add almond milk to the blender. The add all other ingredients. Blend until smooth.
Glass: bucket glass
Garnish: none-elegance in simplicity and the flavors make up for no garnish
