Chocolate Mint Tea Blend

I've never figured out the whole meditation thing. I know, I know, it would probably do me a lot of good. But my patience is fleeting, my focus is like a pin ball and my energy boils over like an unattended pot on the stove. Which, some of you may take as further evidence of my need for meditation, but trust me on this: all of those things make it very had to get started. 

Everywhere I've ever looked, meditation was described as simply not thinking or clearing your mind, or for beginners like me, focusing on something simple, like your breaths. It's a beautiful thought, it really is, but do you know how long I last simply not thinking? 

If your guess was you don't, then you nailed it. 

But then I was out at dinner, and someone described meditation in a totally new way: it's focusing your energy on visualizing the best expression of your compassion.

I'm just going to let that sink in for a minute there. 

Ok, did that resonate with you at all? Guys, this makes me want to meditate! I also now have this voice following me around, one that just pipes in every once and a while. Was that the best expressions of compassion you've got? 

Anyways, I've always found I can more successfully focus my energy into one thing if I have a cup of tea in hand. Trying not to think about anything is also easier with a cup of tea in hand, especially one that is soothing. You know how crazy I am about chocolate, so you can imagine that this tea is right up my alley. ❤︎

Chocolate Mint Tea

Paleo, Gluten-Free, Grain-Free    |   Caitlin Sherwood    

Yields: 1 cup finished tea blend; 48 cups brewed tea   |    Total Active Time: 30 minutes

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Ingredients:

• 1/4 cup cacao nibs
• 2 tablespoons desiccated coconut
• 1 teaspoon whole cloves
• 1/4 cup spearmint
• 1/4 cup peppermint

Directions:

1. Using a clean coffee grinder (make sure there’s no leftover coffee grounds in it) or a mortar and pestle, grind the cacao nibs just slightly— until they’re broken up. Don’t not grind them all the way into a powder. Then, place ground cacao nibs, coconut and cloves in a small sauce pan. Place sauce pan on the stove top over medium-low heat. Gently toast the spices/coconut, stirring occasionally until ingredients become fragrant. Remove from heat.
2. Once cooled, combine the cacao nibs, coconut, and cloves with the spearmint and peppermint leaves in a 1-cup jar. Place lid on jar, and shake until everything is combines and well distributed.
3. To make a cup of tea: Heat 1 cup of water to a boil. Put 1 teaspoon of tea blend into a tea strainer, and place over mug. Pour water through tea, and allow to seep for 5 minutes. Remove tea strainer, sweet tea to taste, and enjoy. (Scale this to make a whole pot of tea using the ratio 1 teaspoon tea blend to 1 cup hot water)

Homemade Loose Leaf Masala Chai Tea

Update! This recipe is one of my faves. I shot new photos in December of 2018, and updated the recipe a little bit. Watch the video below!

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My first introduction to this spicy drink was in middle school, when my mom brought home a carton of Oregon Chai concentrate. Little did I know that single discovery would take me on quite the Chai-adventure!

I quickly learned to love plenty of other types of chai — and began to prefer spicier flavors over sweeter ones (if you’ve tried Oregon Chai, you know it’s pretty dang syrupy!). Bhakti Chai was a small start up in my home town at the time, and I fell in love with the pungent ginger in each sip. A mug of Bhakti Chai became a very special treat when I went to college — something I’d buy myself when I went to the school library during finals week.

I visited India with my dad when I was about 15. There, chai was served out of little carts on every street corner. It was called “Masala Chai,” because the word “chai” in Hindi simply means “tea.” Each cart served up their own recipe, a proprietary blend of spices and served with raw sugar. I scribbled down one recipe from a woman in Udiapur, and have been using that as my baseline ever since. But that’s the thing with Masala Chai: everyone’s version is slightly different. Some people want it sweet and cinnamon-y. Others want the ginger to be bright and bold and in your face. Me? I’m a cardamom lover, though I don’t object to the ginger, either. I also prefer honey over sugar. Lately I’ve been digging this Lazy Bee Ranch Whipped Honey, made locally in Colorado.

Once you’ve made Masala Chai three or four times, you’ll start to realize which camp you sit in, and you can adapt your own recipe to match exactly that.

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Making chai at home is far superior in terms of flavor than buying tea bags. It’s also far cheaper than buying pre-made concentrates. If I’m going to make a big batch of chai at home, I’ll use fresh ginger root and simmer it with spices in a soup pot. It usually doesn’t last more than a day — we drink it non-stop until it’s gone.

This recipe, however, calls for ginger tea (not crystallized ginger, buy dried ginger — like this or this) instead of fresh ginger. Why? Well, sometimes a girl wants her chai and she doesn’t want to bowl a whole soup pot just to get a mug of it! 🙃Using dried ginger means you can keep this tea in your cupboard with the rest of your teas, and brew a mug at a time on demand whenever you please. It’s the best for when I need a pick me up on a work day.

I also almost always make a hot mug of chai in my thermos when we go climbing or hiking in the spring, fall, or winter. It keeps me warm when it starts to get chilly, and I enjoy the caffeine lift in the afternoon. (P.S., this is my favorite Thermos to take climbing — keeps my tea cozy and super easy to drink from! (Affiliate link))

Chai is my reset, my comfort zone... a happy moment in a mug. Nothing feels more like hitting the reset button than sitting down with a steamy mug and slowly sipping.

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Homemade Loose Leaf Masala Chai Tea

Published June 10, 2015 by Caitlin Sherwood

Yield: 15   |    Active Time: 40 minutes

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Ingredients:

12 cardamom pods

4-5 whole cloves

8 black peppercorns

3 whole allspice berries

Pinch whole anise seeds

1 cinnamon stick (about 2-3 inches long)

3 tablespoons black Assam tea (English breakfast works too, if it’s all you can find!)

2 tablespoons dried ginger tea

For serving: water for brewing tea, and honey and milk to taste

Directions:

1. Place cardamom pods, cloves, peppercorns, allspice berries, anise seeds and cinnamon stick in a small skillet. Toast over low heat, stirring, until spices are fragrant.
2. Scrape spices into a mortar and pestle, and roughly grind the spices.
3. Combine Assam tea, ginger, and ground spices in a bowl or jar. Stir to combine.
4. Tea can be stored at room temperature in an air tight jar for quick some time — it may start to loose some of it’s flavor after a few months.
5. To brew: Heat 8 ounces of hot water. Place tea in a fine mesh tea stainer in a mug, and pour water into mug. Allow to steep for 5 minutes, then remove tea and strainer from mug. Sweeten with honey and milk to taste.
6. You may find that the bottom of your mug had spices in it — that’s where all the flavor comes from! I avoid drinking that very last sip, just like I might avoid taking the very last sip of sludgy French press coffee. Personal preference!

2 Paleo Cocktails with No Added Sugar

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My go-to Paleo-friendly cocktail recipe is a Pineapple Ginger Margarita. It gets its natural sweetness from pineapple, so there's no need to add simple syrup or agave. Pineapple is quite acidic, so it pairs well with tequila, and ginger adds a spicy kick that makes it interesting. I rimmed the glasses with a Vanilla-Lime Salt and used some cocktail "swords" my Grandmother bought in Toledo in the '50s to finish the deal.  

Even since my trip to Chile, my favorite liquor has been Pisco. It's actually made from grapes, so it's a Paleo-ish beverage, in the same sort of way tequila is. Traditional Pisco Sours are made with lemon juice, sugar, and egg white.  That sounded 1) way to simple for me--yawn- and 2) like too much white table sugar. I reimagined that classic to make this summery Cucumber Melon Pisco Sour with Mint. The final result is not even in the same realm as a classic Pisco Sour, but it's still amazing! With a little muddled mint, it's like a Pisco Sour and a Mint Mojito went on a date to a juice bar. 

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Pineapple Ginger Margarita

Paleo, Gluten-Free, Grain-Free,    |   Caitlin Sherwood    

Pineapple makes this Marg naturally sweet, while ginger adds a kick!

Yields: 1 cocktail   |    Total Time: 5 Minutes

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Ingredients:

For the drink:
• 1/2 cup frozen pineapple chunks
• 2 oz lime juice
• 2 oz tequila, (I used Sauza Silver)
• 1/2 teaspoon ginger, minced
• Lime wedges and ginger slices for garnish

Vanilla-lime salt:
• 1/4 cup salt
• 1/8 teaspoon Vanilla powder
• Zest of 1 lime

Directions:

1. Mix the ingredients for the Vanilla-Lime Salt in a shallow bowl that is wide enough to fit the entire rim of your glasses. Wet the rim of your glass with a lime wedge, and then dip the rim in the salt to coat.
2. Add pineapple, lime juice, tequila, and ginger to a high powered blender. Blend on high until completely liquified. Pour into glass.
3. Skewer a lime wedge and a slice of ginger with a cocktail pick for garnish.

Cucumber Melon Pisco Sour

Paleo, Gluten-Free, Grain-Free,    |   Caitlin Sherwood    

This cocktail gets its sweetness from honeydew, but a grown-up twist of cucumber keeps it complex.

Yields: 1 cocktail   |    Total Time: 45 Minutes

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Ingredients:

For the drink:
• 3 oz Cucumber Melon Juice (see below)
• 2 oz pisco
• 1/4 cup ice
• 1 tablespoon mint leaves, chopped
• Cucumber and mint leaves for garnish

Mint coconut sugar:
• 1/2 cup coconut sugar
• 1 tablespoon minced mint leaves

Directions:

1. Mix the ingredients for the Mint coconut sugar in a shallow bowl that is wide enough to fit the entire rim of your glasses. Wet the rim of your glass with a lime wedge, and then dip the rim in the sugar to coat. Shake off any larger pieces of mint.
2. Place mint leaves in your glass, along with the Pisco. Use a fork or a cocktail muddler to mash the mint leaves a little bit. Add the ice, and then pour the juice over top. Stir briefly.
3. For garnish: use a vegetable peeler to slice a long ribbon of cucumber. Skewer a mint leaf on a cocktail pick, and then fold the cucumber ribbon over on itself and skewer that as well. (I do this twice per cocktail pick).

Cucumber Melon Juice:

• 2 cups melon
• 1/2 cucumber
• 1/4 cup lemon juice
• 1/4 cup water

Directions:

1. Roughly chop and peel the melon. Dice the cucumber (leaving the peel on the cucumber adds nice color to final juice).
2. Place all ingredients in a high powered blender. Blend on high until completely liquified.
3. Position a nut milk bag over a large bowl. Pour the juice mixture through the nut milk bag to filter out the pulp. Massaging the bag a bit can speed up the straining process.
4. Store in an air-tight container in the fridge.

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