turmeric smoothie + homemade hemp milk

Between now and all the holiday partying, we have a lot of in-between days to psych our appetites up for the inevitable holiday binging. It's those in-between days that are what keep us going, and feeling normal (and not like UG). It's a marathon, friends, not a sprint.  

After a night or two (or five) of eating and drinking, I like to reset with a smoothie, salad, soup, and generally lighter fare for as many days possible, until I have to do it all over again. Food that makes me feel light, happy, and healthy. A few days of happy food and I am game ON for another night that involves eggnog, cookies, and pie. On those reset mornings, I usually start off with a hot water with lemon and turmeric, and a green smoothie. This time I wanted to switch it up and put the turmeric into my smoothie, because it's always good to switch up the smoothie color, and we all can use more bright yellow on these cold, gray days. 

Turmeric is hands down my favorite spice. Sometime you hear about super-foods that are meant to do this or that …. sometimes I buy into it, sometimes I feel like it is just a small part of the bigger picture of living an overall, healthy lifestyle. But turermic is one of those magical ingredients that after incorporating it daily for a few days (with that healthy living to back it up), I can actually feel certain aches go away, and my body actually starts to feel a bit lighter. It truly does work wonders, and adding it to a smoothie makes it that much easier to incorporate it often. 

Sooo, hemp milk …. it's like almond milk, but 10 times easier to make. It does not require soaking, and you can get away with straining it through a fine mesh strainer if you do not have a nut milk bag handy. It's always good to switch up your nut and seed milks so that you're not drinking the same kind all of the time. If you're not already making hemp seed milk, get on that train. Hemp milk is loaded with omega-3s and will feed your inner-hippy soul. 

At first, you might think this is one of those smoothies you have to guzzle down and tell yourself "it's all for health". Don't worry, I wouldn't do that to you. This is one of those smoothies that you will drink up, and run back to the blender for seconds. I made this for a few testers, and after I placed the glass down in front of them, myself included, no one said a word until a few gulps were taken. Then we all chimed in with a big …… woahhhh. This smoothie is soooo good. The spice give it an earthy-ness that grounds the sweetness of the banana, and makes it totally crave-able. You are going to be sad when the hemp milk runs out, but you know that just means you will have to make some more. 

turmeric smoothie + homemade hemp milk 
 

As with most smoothies, feel free to play around with the ingredients, depending on what you have available to you. If you do not have the extra few minutes it takes to make the homemade hemp milk, any unsweetened nut or seed milk will work as a substitute. 

MAKES
1 smoothie (recipe and easily be doubled, etc - depending on how many you want to make)
and 3 servings (cups) of hemp milk

INGREDEINTS

for the hemp milk:
1 cup of hemp seeds
3 cups of filtered water
a pinch of sea salt
1/2 teaspoon of vanilla exract
1 tablespoon of coconut oil
1-2 dates, pitted and diced (optional)

for the smoothie:
1 cup of hemp milk
1 banana
1/2 teaspoon of turmeric 
1 tablespoon of coconut oil
a small pinch of cinnamon

METHOD

Make the hemp milk:

• Place the hemp seeds and filtered water into a high powered blender and blend on high until the hemp seeds are blended (liquified). 
• Pour the milk through a fine mesh strainer or nut milk bag into a bowl, and squeeze or push the milk through. Set aside or discard the leftover pulp, and pour the milk back into the blender along with the rest of the ingredients: salt, vanilla, coconut oil, and dates (if using), and blend until everything is combined. Transfer the milk to a container for storing (I like to use a glass milk jar). 

Then, make the smoothie:

• Add the ingredients for the smoothie to the blender: 1 cup of the hemp milk, banana, turermic, coconut oil, and cinnamon. Blend on high until smooth. If you like, add a couple of ice cubes and blend again until smooth. Serve immediately. 

Storing notes:

• The smoothie will keep for 1 day in an air-tight container in the fridge, or you can freeze it for about 2 months. The hemp milk will keep for 2-3 days in an air-tight container in the fridge. What I like to do is make the hemp milk, and then make a smoothie fresh every morning until the hemp milk is gone. Enjoy.