Nothing quite warms me up like a cup of delicious hot chocolate when it is cold outside, and there is something about the holidays that make this even a more enticing treat! The kids and I love to come home after our school and work days and make a hot steaming mug… YUM! This is our favorite recipe. Not only it this recipe healthy but it is down right decadent and a nice pick me up in the afternoons!
Chocolate contains natural antioxidants(photonutrients flavonol and polyphenol,) the alkaloids (theobromine, phenethylamine and anandamide) and is rich in magnesium. Chocolate can lower blood pressure, reduce the risk of heart attack, stroke and diabetes and dementia, balance brain chemistry, help build strong bones, help prevent cancerous activity and, last but not least, help with weight loss. On top of all that, it contains and has been linked to higher levels of the mood-altering serotonin, which boosts our energy and mood, and is a natural aphrodisiac!
As a sidenote, when you are shopping for the ingredients, it is important to look at the label and make sure that the chocolate powder you are buying is pure chocolate and does not contain sugar, butter or oil. Try to find raw cacoa, which is the actual pure cocoa bean and not only tastes better but has not been roasted and processed into powder and is much more nutritious!
Recipe
2 cups vanilla almond milk
2 tbsp unsweetened dark chocolate powder (or, even better, raw cacoa powder)
1 tbsp agave nectar (or more or less depending on how sweet you want it)
If you have a Vitamix blender then it is beyond easy to stick all of the ingredients in the blender and turn it on and viola! Vitamix blenders will literally heat up the mixture and make your hot chocolate for you. If you don’t, just put the almond milk and chocolate powder in a sauce pan and stir. I like to add in the agave at the last minute so you don’t literally cook it. If it does not seem to want to mix, then put it in a regular blender for a bit and back into the sauce pan.
With the winter season in full swing, now is the perfect time to strengthen your immune system and integrate new healthy patterns into your life. In the summer, we naturally eat more fresh green vegetables and lettuces; however, in the fall and winter when we need the nutrients the most, we tend to gravitate toward more-hearty fare. While this may make us feel warm and cozy inside, all this heavy food just taxes our bodies and, eventually, we get sick. The single most important thing that we can do for ourselves this winter is to add more greens to our diets.
t always amazes me that athletes will scrutinize their diets with a fine tooth comb and then use processed sports products packed with fructose and even high fructose corn syrup to boost their performance during – and replenish after – strenuous workouts! When we use sugar and other carbohydrates to temporarily boost our performance, we may see immediate effects, but in the long term this creates a roller coaster ride that is not good for our bodies. So, what do I recommend and personally use to replenish electrolytes after a tough workout? Coconut water!
This morning I took a trip to the Union Square farmer’s market to visit my favorite vendor 
Leave a Comment