Healthy Southern Comforts » drinks

Change your mind, change your life

healthysoutherncomforts — Tue, 14 Jun 2011 18:16:03 +0000

I’m always really surprised when people tell me they skip breakfast because they just don’t have time to make their food in the morning. Women especially are the masters of making time and food for everyone else. However, many of us only find time to do our nails and hair and sometimes we exercise, but skip the most essential meal of the day - breakfast.

But missing breakfast is like driving without gas in your car. Many of us make breakfast for our husbands and children but only grab a cup of coffee for ourselves on the way out the door. Imagine trying to run your car with no fuel. Even though most cars have about a gallon of gasoline after the line hits E, you still shouldn’t ride around for too long without re-fueling. Our bodies are similar, and we should not expect that we’ll perform well if we don’t eat in the morning. Breakfast literally means breaking the fast. Your body has been digesting and distributing the nutrients from the last meal you ate overnight, so it’s most important to re-energize yourself in the morning. With summer just around the corner, we’re in a good time of the year to transition our diets and take advantage of the fruits in season, such as strawberries, blueberries and raspberries.

And that’s where the blender comes in handy. If you’re on the run like so many of us are, using the blender to make fruit smoothies is the perfect tool for making sure that you are nourished before you leave the house.

Add berries to orange juice, almond milk or unfiltered apple juice, along with yogurt, a little bit of ice and a banana for thickness and you’re good to go. If you want to get protein, folic acid or fiber into your morning meal, just add a tablespoon of wheat germ or spirulina.

The best thing is that by having a morning meal even while on the run, you will find yourself feeling more energized for longer periods throughout the day.

Water, water everywhere but not a drop to drink ?

healthysoutherncomforts — Thu, 17 Feb 2011 14:43:46 +0000

I was awakened from my sleep by an intense thirst recently, just to find that we had run out of spring water. The water filter also needed to be changed and it was 5:30 in the morning. A quick trip to the store was definitely out of the question, but I needed a drink of water and fast .

I went to take a quick drink from the bathroom faucet, but when I got there I just couldn’t do it. At least put a lemon in it, I thought to myself as I shuffled half asleep down to the kitchen. I really wasn’t happy that I’d dropped the ball in securing good water for my family. But at the crack of dawn and half asleep, I would just have to make do.

No doubt about it – tap water is about as appealing as cardboard. Especially in Philadelphia, where old faucets seem to run water that has a hard taste, not soft and smooth like the water is in New York. But try not drinking enough water and see how your body responds. Based on my cracked winter feet, mine was already showing evidence of dehydration.

Not getting enough water is a major cause of disease, according to Dr. F. Batmanghelidj who found a treatment for ulcers through water therapy.

Bcfoto70 captured the pictured water drop with a Nikon SB-800

Although tap water here in Philly does meet government standards, it still taste awful as is. So at the very least, we drink our water from a filter attached to the kitchen sink and usually have one or the other, so I couldn’t believe that I slipped up on both the filter and bottled water.

There are several options for improving water quality and it’s imperative that we understand how essential it is and how we need to drink enough daily to maximize the proper functioning of the human body.

Pomegranate – fall’s best fruit

healthysoutherncomforts — Fri, 17 Sep 2010 18:38:33 +0000

Every fall when I was a child, I went in search of pomegranates, which in our house were a forbidden fruit. Mom didn’t like them, not because they were not healthy but because she didn’t want us to put our juice-stained hands on the furniture or mess up wallpaper and paint throughout the house.

Pomegranates are without a doubt very messy to prepare. The skin is tough, and getting to those juice-filled seeds not only requires patience but also a very sharp knife. Both needs were a huge worry for our mother, who always kept a meticulous house. And the stains that seep into the pores on one’s hands usually last for a few days, despite scrubbing them with soap and water. But there’s nothing sweeter than a perfectly ripe pomegranate that leaves the juice dripping down your chin. And fall is when they are the best, at least on the East Coast.

In addition to being great cancer fighters, the health benefits of pomegranates are endless.

I still love pomegranates, which these days days can be found in specialty stores like co-ops already skinned with the inside sections separated. The only challenge is that when you buy them this way, they will last for only a few days in the refrigerator. They’ve also become big in teas and juices. One red tea is called pomegranate and passion fruit.

Pomegranates are also quite delightful in salads or in stuffing, replacing cranberries that are much tougher and not as sweet.

Making fruit bars at home

Water with a taste

sherry — Wed, 11 Aug 2010 18:47:50 +0000

Sherry Howard, who pens the Auction Finds blog, writes here about transforming water into a tasty drink.

I come from a background where everything was fried in lard or pork fat. Years ago, I eliminated all of that from my diet. I eat no pork. I rarely eat beef and mostly eat turkey. I know that I should increase my intake of fish.

I drink a lot of water and recently learned from a friend a cool way to add pep to it. I served the drink to another friend who gave it the name ”fruit water.”

This is how it evolved:

I was having lunch at a friend’s house and she served water with strawberries floating in it. It was a bit tart for me and I asked her, “Where’s the sugar?” It was a joke because I no longer add white or processed sugar to anything. I sweeten with honey or raw sugar – and I even do that sparingly.

She said that this was a drink that she served to her son and daughter when they were growing up, and they loved it. Surprisingly, I adapted pretty quickly to her “strawberry” water.

About a month later, I was going on a long drive with a friend to pick up her daughter from college, and I wanted a refreshing drink to take along. I found a recipe in Ebony magazine for red Sangria, and kept all the ingredients except the vodka and wine.

It called for a lemon, orange and lime cut in wedges; 1 cup of cherries, blackberries and chopped pineapples and 3 cups of ginger ale.

It was delicious.

But since I don’t imbibe soft drinks that often, I knew that I had to find a healthy substitute. I love bottled water, so I now add fruit to my water (I’m sure you can also use tap water). This isn’t sweetened water (I never add sugar); in fact, it can be a bit tart. For me, it was an acquired taste, but one that I’ve learned to enjoy.

Sometimes, I add different fruits, but strawberries are always the base. As the seasons change, I’ll try other fruits.

This fruit water is my new choice of drink with dinner. I also have added peaches (and left out the blackberries) because they are so plentiful this time of year. I have found that pineapples sweetened the water a bit. When the color has drained from the strawberries, I dump the fruits and start anew.

I’ve served this water to friends, and they, too, find it very refreshing.

Water, water everywhere but not a drop to drink ?

Beating the heat with a cool fruity drink

healthysoutherncomforts — Thu, 08 Jul 2010 00:39:12 +0000

Every time I even form my lips to complain about 100-degree temperatures, I think about our ancestors and all of the heat they endured during slavery. It’s a testament to all “New World Africans” and anyone who endured slavery that we made it through those horrific times.

So, when I compare our circumstances to those of our ancestors, I realize that beating this unbelievable heat wave in this day and age should be a snap for most of us. I dislike intense, suffocating heat just as much as the next person, but when I think of them, my whining subsides immediately! Imagine what it must have been like to work in hot southern fields picking cotton, tobacco or vegetables, or cooking in hot kitchens while being malnourished, mistreated and most likely very thirsty.

We’re at least two generations past slavery, but circumstances are still really tough for some folks. And just in case you aren’t fortunate enough to have air conditioning throughout your house (or any at all), here are some tips that folks used just a generation ago on hot summer days.

My mom says that she would visit my great Aunt Louise at her house in North Philadelphia back in the 1940s. There was no air conditioning and most likely only one fan in the house.

“There were just the two of us ladies, so we often walked around in cotton slips (remember slips?) all over the house,” my mom tells me. Aunt Louise, who made a twice-daily ritual of opening and closing her blinds and curtains, would always keep them closed in the summer to keep the sunlight out. And there was always a fresh pitcher of fresh squeezed lemonade to quench their thirst.

One of the best things we can do for ourselves in the heat is drink water, water, water. Infuse the water with any type of citrus (lemons, grapefruit, oranges or limes), because they are all loaded with vitamin C.

So keep an abundance of citrus fruits around to squeeze in the water. Citrus drinks are always worthy hot or cold, but on sweltering 100-degree days like we’ve been having for the past few weeks, a nice cool citrus drink is essential.

For that one special drink, the following will tickle your fancy.

Burst of sunshine blender drink

Blend the following on high for five minutes in a very large blender:

1 quart of orange juice with some pulp

1 cup vanilla yogurt

1 cup fresh blueberries

1 cup fresh strawberries, raspberries or blackberries (or a mixture)

2 ripe bananas

1/2 cup ice

Garnish with sprigs of fresh peppermint.

Refreshing lemonade on a hot summer day

healthysoutherncomforts — Thu, 03 Jun 2010 22:53:55 +0000

Ask anyone who has southern roots what they used to drink on a hot summer day and they’ll most likely tell you a tall glass of ice cold lemonade. It quenches the thirst like no other drink on the planet, and it has many health benefits as well.

What I love most about lemonade is that you can drink it hot or cold, and blend it with many other fruits, like strawberries, blueberries, peaches or oranges. It’s delicious, helps to cleanse the palate and is great for our insides, too. It’s also my favorite drink, with or without …

Lemons can also be used medicinally to treat many ailments, like colds and infections. And they can be utilized as a natural disinfectant or a deodorizer on the body and in the house.

The other day, I ran out of hand soap and had garlic on my hands. I wanted to get rid of the smell fast to take a letter from the postman. I remembered my grandmothers telling me to use fresh lemon juice to get rid of the garlic smell, and it worked like magic.

Another drink I make is ginger tea, which is good for upset stomachs. Whenever my children have upset stomachs, I make them tea from fresh ginger root. I also use it to enhance my voice if I’m broadcasting on the radio or I mix it with Turbinado sugar, shea butter and olive oil as a foot scrub (but that’s another blog). The only time I didn’t use ginger was during my pregnancies (those days are long past), because it can be dangerous to the mother.

But both ginger and peppermint can also be used as natural remedies both internally and externally.

So in the midst of a heat wave, a cold glass of natural lemonade is both soothing and refreshing. Just imagine how wonderful it tastes with both ginger and fresh peppermint.

Fatimah’s Peppermint-Ginger-Lemonade

Ingredients:

1 handful of fresh peppermint leaves washed and pulled from the stems

1/3 cup of ginger root, skinned and sliced lengthwise

Juice from 8 lemons (no seeds)

1 cup boiling hot spring or filtered water

½ gallon of cold spring or filtered water

2 cups of ice

½ cup of raw honey or Turbninado sugar (or more to taste)

Directions:

Dissolve honey or sugar in hot water, add the ginger and boil for one minute.

Allow mixture to cool. Mix with lemon juice, cold water and peppermint.

Pour in tall glasses over ice. Garnish with peppermint leaves.

When life gives you lemons …

healthysoutherncomforts — Thu, 29 Apr 2010 15:14:06 +0000

… of course, you learn how to make lemonade. There’s nothing like a cool breeze on a hot summer day and sitting on the front porch with a glass of fresh-made lemonade. Since I have a yard full of peppermint, I also float that on top. And if you have southern roots like I do, chances are you’re very familiar with drinking lemonade from a mason jar. My friend Sherry, also the co-owner of this blog site, wrote an entire post on mason jars.

Most people I knew down south always had an assortment of mason jars when I was growing up. They used them for a variety of things, including canning, storing leftovers, rooting plants in and drinking from. My grandmother Muddie always had a collection of them, and at several of the homes I used to frequent in Greensboro, NC, some of the elderly women always had one special jar that they liked to drink from. Usually, they chose a specific jar because it was the right size and had a top. They’d claimed it as theirs exclusively by putting a rubber band around the neck, and we all knew not to ever touch it.

Lemonade is my favorite drink, and I throw it in the blender with strawberries or blueberries. My children like it better than Kool Aid or juice.

But lemons are also useful for a variety of other things besides making lemonade. They are a great disinfectant either for cleaning the house or to use on and inside of our bodies. Lemons have great medicinal powers.

We use fresh lemon juice on small cuts (although it really burns when you do this, but just for a minute). It can also help freshen up your breath, and it makes a nice air freshener. I even like a nice bowl or vase of lemons to use as a centerpiece on my dining room table.

Internally, lemons are a blood purifier, and also help lower blood pressure and clean out the intestinal track.

Finally, get used to squeezing fresh lemon juice into your glass of water. Of course it will be sour at first, but you’ll get used to the taste and thrilled with the health benefits (which you’ll realize almost immediately). Then you’ll wonder why you ever drank water without it.

Strawberry-mint lemonade

12 lemons juiced and seeded

½ lime washed and sliced

½ lemon washed and sliced

½ cup of honey (more to taste)

½ cup boiling hot water

6 cups cold filtered or spring water

1 cup of strawberries, washed, with tops removed (fresh is better but frozen is acceptable)

3 sprigs of fresh peppermint (washed and cut to fit in the glass)

Directions

Stir honey into hot water so it dissolves completely.

Pour into blender along with lemon juice, strawberries and water, then blend.

Pour into a large pitcher with the lemon and lime slices floating on top.

Pour into glasses over ice and garnish with sprigs of fresh peppermint.

Healthy joy juice

healthysoutherncomforts — Tue, 15 Dec 2009 22:29:01 +0000

With flu season hovering everywhere we go, there’s nothing like having a good set of home remedies in your kitchen cabinets.

In my house, healthy brews include an assortment of herbal teas, apple cider, honey, fresh ginger, and plenty of lemons and limes. Citruses are loaded with Vitamin C, a known immune-booster that helps keep colds and flu away, and treat them when they catch you unexpectedly.

Nothing beats a cold and wintery day like a hot mug of your favorite drink. Whether it’s cider (my favorite) or hot chocolate (my children’s favorite) or simply hot lemon and honey, hot drinks soothe both the tummy and the soul. Not only are hot drinks delicious, but they also create wonderful aromas wafting through the home.

Remember when your grandmother’s home remedy for a cold was a Hot Toddy? Hot apple cider, peppermint teas and fresh ginger taste wonderful, are simple to make, and can be served with or without alcohol at parties. Best yet, they can also be used medicinally as remedies as well.

Aside from the typical childhood illnesses as measles and mumps, neither my sisters nor I were sick very often while growing up. That’s because our mom, who during our early years was a housewife and full-time mother, took excellent care of us and made sure that we stayed healthy.

Her stringent house rules included three square meals daily and very little snacking. Vitamins, exercise and plenty of water were included in her own personal routine. She led by example, played tennis and worked out regularly at the spa. And unlike many women her age, our mom looked good in a two-piece bathing suit well into her 40s. And even today at age 79, she can out-swim me in laps.

Those rare times that any of us did get sick, Mom nursed us round-the-clock. Her routine was to wait on us hand and foot, and she ordered us straight to bed with plenty of fluids. Even today, I can still remember her bedside trayfilled with aspirins, a thermometer, juice, and hot tea with honey and lemon.

Today, I try to keep my kids healthy with as many home remedies as possible. I stock plenty of herbal teas such as rose hips that is loaded with Vitamin C, peppermint and ginger. Whether or not you use them as home remedies or serve them for the holidays, hot drinks are a great addition straight from your kitchen.

Fatimah’s cold and flu remedy

1 1/2 cups of boiling hot water

2 ginger or 1 peppermint tea bags

2 tbs honey

Juice from ½ lemon

2 slices fresh ginger

1 tsp of 1000 mg crystalized vitamin C

Directions

Stir and drink three X daily to help treat colds and flu.

Refreshing lemonade on a hot summer day