Almond Milk & Puree

Almonds are a great source of healthy protein, and they're also good for your skin. This simple recipe makes almond milk from scratch--and you can use the puree as a homemade facial scrub.

Ingredients

1/2 cup sliced almonds
2 cups water
1 teaspoon honey

Soak the almonds in water for at least 6 hours, or overnight, at room temperature.

Blend in a blender for a couple minutes, add honey, and blend a little longer. Use a coffee filter to strain the liquid from the almond puree, scooping out the puree from the filter as you go.

Refrigerate the milk and enjoy by itself or in cereal or a smoothie. You can add a little cinnamon, sugar, or more honey if you want it sweeter. Use the puree as a facial scrub to cool and exfoliate dry skin. The milk will stay fresh in the refrigerator up to 4 days; the puree will stay up to 2 weeks.

Strawberry Mint Smoothie

Sweet and minty and so good--a perfect accompaniment to those Valentine's Day chocolates.

Ingredients (for 2 smoothies)

2 cups frozen strawberries
1½ cups vanilla soymilk
10 mint leaves
2 teaspoons honey
7 ounces love  :)
extra mint leaves for garnish

Mix the ingredients until smooth in a blender. If desired, garnish with heart-shaped mint leaves.

Rica Horchata

A sweet and refreshing Mexican drink--prepare it in the morning and enjoy it as a cool afternoon treat!

 

Ingredients

1 cup white rice

5 cups water

½ cup milk

½ cup sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 teaspoon cinnamon

Blend the rice and water in a blender for about a minute.  Let sit for at least three hours.

Strain the liquid into a pitcher with a coffee filter or other straining device.  Put the liquid back into the blender and mix in all the other ingredients.  (You can use the soaked rice to make rice pudding if you like.)

Refrigerate and enjoy!

Love-it Lemonade

Ingredients

1 cup fresh-squeezed lemon juice (about 4 lemons, plus extra for garnish)
5 cups water
¾  cup sugar
optional: raspberries, blueberries, or sliced strawberries 

Use a citrus juicer to squeeze the juice from the lemons.  Mix the ingredients in a large pitcher and taste, adding more sugar or water if necessary.

For an extra twist, throw some berries into your glass!

Orange Julius

Ingredients
(for two glasses)

3 oz. orange juice concentrate
2 cups vanilla ice cream*
½ cup milk
1 organic egg

*For a slightly less creamy, more smoothie-like texture, you can substitute another ½ cup of milk and 2 cups of crushed ice instead of ice cream.

Throw all of the ingredients into a blender and mix until smooth.  Quick and delicious!