Skinny Chai Tea with Green Tea

Green tea contains the superfood antioxidant EGCG. This component, along with other polyphenols in tea, has been shown to help protect against and improve cancer, diabetes, and heart disease. Green tea can protect the brain, improve memory, and repair mitochondrial damage. Our mitochondria create energy and ward off disease. Green tea has also been studied for it’s ability to burn fat and doesn’t interfere with food intake. This popular beverage energizes, burns fat, protects against disease, and improves brain health. And that’s only the first ingredient in this fat burning chai! (source, source, source).

Add a Little Spice to Boost Metabolism

I’m a bit of a wuss when it comes to spicy food. Cayenne pepper has so many health benefits though, it’s a must in this skinny chai tea recipe. Capsaicin gives spicy peppers a kick, but it also improves circulation, boosts metabolism, and protects the heart.

Quick lesson on fat: We have two kinds, brown fat (the good kind) and white fat (the bad kind).

Brown fat burns calories to create heat and keep body temperature regulated. This healthy fat protects against obesity, helps us withstand colder temperatures, and may even be the key to a healthy bodyweight.  Capsaicin enhances metabolism and stimulates the body to turn white fat into healthy brown fat.

I add a pinch of cayenne to my fat burning chai, but if you like it spicier then feel free to use more. The more the merrier … or skinnier in this case.

Cinnamon for Better Blood Sugar

Cinnamon adds a sweet, spiced flavor to foods and it’s often used in treats. This spice has potent health benefits. Studies have shown cinnamon regulates blood sugar levels, helps diabetes, and fight obesity. Cinnamon is also anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, and fights free-radical damage which can lead to cancer. If that wasn’t enough, it’s also anti-microbial to help prevent infections (source, source).

Healthy blood sugar levels are vital for a healthy weight and hormone balance. Out of control blood sugar can lead to weight gain, diabetes, and hormonal issues like polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS), (source).

Sweeten Your Skinny Chai Tea

The secret is out that  refined sugar is linked with nearly every disease imaginable, from heart disease to diabetes. I prefer to use natural sweeteners in my desserts like raw honey or maple syrup. However, even natural sweeteners raise blood sugar, so I’ve been favoring stevia lately. I use liquid stevia because it’s easy, portable, and doesn’t have a strong aftertaste.

There are mixed opinions on stevia. Some people tolerate it, other not so much. I prefer to use the liquid stevia as opposed to the processed powders, which often have other things added. Stevia is a plant and I even have some in my backyard I use. However, if you prefer to use another sweetener, then raw honey is an option. Honey will still raise blood sugar though.

Stay Full Longer

I eat when I’m bored, I eat when I’m stressed, and once I ate before getting on a roller coaster (I’ll never that again!). When I have something to sip throughout the day, I’m less likely to consume empty calories. This skinny chai tea has coconut oil with healthy medium chain triglyceride fats (MCTs) to boost metabolism and stave off hunger pains. MCT’s also help blood sugar to balance hormones and prevent mood swings (source).

This fat burning chai is a multi-tasking health ninja …If only it could fold my laundry too.

Drink it Iced:  For an iced version, decrease the green tea to 1 cup, but still use 2 tea bags or 2 tsps of tea leaves when brewing. The coconut oil will also need to be melted, then slowly poured in while the blender is running. This extra step prevents it from clumping.

Note about the essential oils: Ingesting essential oils is controversial, but they’re commonly used in foods like mints, baking extracts, drinks, and more. I can pretty much guarantee we’ve all eaten essential oils at some point without even knowing it. You can read more about my take on it and the evidence behind safely ingesting essential oils here.

The post The Best Skinny Chai Tea to Supercharge Metabolism appeared first on The Herbal Spoon.

I struggled with the title for this one, because this lemon mousse is really so many things. It will boost your immune system, help you detox, increase digestion, strengthen hair and nails, improves skin elasticity for wrinkle reduction, and can slim your waistline. Not only will it do all that, but it tastes fantastic while it’s making you healthier. I like putting this lemon mousse into small mason jars. It’s portable, snackable and easy to grab this way.

To low fat or not low fat

The base for this  lemon mousse is protein rich Greek yogurt. You can strain regular yogurt if you don’t have Greek on hand. I’m a big fan of whole fat dairy products, but if you’re focusing on weight loss, then you can use low fat. Since cream will naturally rise to the top of un-homogenized milk, the lower fat milk on bottom is what’s used to make low fat yogurt, without any weird processing going on. 

Detox and boost immunity

The flavor of course is coming from lemon, and here we’re using a fresh lemon. The acidity from the lemon increases stomach acid production to improve digestion. It also helps to flush toxins from the body and cleanse the liver, our main detox organ.

This recipe for lemon mousse uses the whole lemon though, including the pith, which is super high in vitamin C and kicks your immune system into gear. Make sure you use an organic lemon to avoid the high amount of pesticides in the peel.

Better nails without a manicure

And you can’t have  lemon mousse without some way to thicken it. I love using grasssfed gelatin here since it’s so nutrient dense. This isn’t the same stuff found in the artificially flavored and neon colored box at the grocery store though. Gelatin gives your body the amino acids and proteins it needs to have healthy and vibrant nails, hair and skin. You can find gelatin in my superfood vanilla latte or gingerbread latte recipes.

A sweet combination

Raw honey is amazing in so many ways, and I frequently use it as my sweetener of choice. It’s perfect for sore throats and respiratory issues, and it tastes great in some honey sweetened caramel. Too much though, and it will spike blood sugar, which can give you a sugar crash, resulting in weight gain. Since the lemon is so sour, and the pith can be bitter, you really need enough sweetener here.

I use a combination of raw honey and stevia in this recipe. Most stevia is either highly processed, or terribly bitter. I’ve been using this liquid stevia, or this stevia powder lately since they’re both minimally processed and not bitter. To round the flavor out though, you really need some honey. By using both you’re getting a nice, full sweet flavor, without a blood sugar spike.

What’s your favorite afternoon snack? Let us know in the comments below, and be sure to share this recipe with a friend!

The post Lemon Mousse Cups – Nourishing and Detoxing appeared first on The Herbal Spoon.

Trying something new

I’ve been trying to finally lose some of that baby weight, before it becomes elementary school weight. Lately I’ve been dabbling in trim healthy mama, but doing it whole foods style. That means no artificial sweeteners or weird ingredients. I am fine with stevia however, which is an herb that you can grow yourself. You can read more about the safety and historical use of stevia here. Just be sure you’re getting something that’s minimally processed and from a trustworthy brand. Hint: grocery store brands like truvia aren’t actually stevia!

I have a bad habit of binging snacking on sweets late at night, so I’ve replaced it with a healthy and filling shake. While this isn’t a super nutrient dense snack, it does help to satisfy the sweet tooth and keeps me from turning to other things… like these dark chocolate salted cookie dough truffles.

So…how does it work?

Since this is what’s called a fuel pull in the trim healthy mama world, it will actually help you lose weight. Basically, our bodies use either fat or carbs for energy, and by eating something that has very little of either, we burn more fat. You can also add a bit of coconut oil to the shake, which is known for it’s weight loss properties and will help you feel fuller. I’ve chosen not to though as I don’t need the extra calories in my shake, as I prefer to add coconut oil to other things, like my morning gingerbread latte.

Since this uses stevia, it won’t spike your blood sugar either. If you really don’t want to use stevia though, then you can use some raw honey instead, though that will spike blood sugar, so keep it as an occasional treat.

Adding essential oils

You may be tempted to add a few more drops of essential oils to this, but resist the urge. Too much will take you over the edge from culinary use, to therapeutic use, which can be dangerous if you don’t know what you’re doing. You can read more about safely ingesting essential oils here. 

Even 3 drops was so overpoweringly minty, that it made the shake go from a tasty treat to something reminiscent of Vick’s vapo rub shoved up the nose. So, go easy on the essential oil here. You can also omit the glucommanon if you don’t have any, but it really turns this shake from a watery/icy consistency, to a pleasant creamy texture.

Gluco what??

Glucomannon (also known as konjac root) is a completely natural ingredient, and it’s also what’s known as a resistant starch. These resistant starches aren’t used as fuel by the body, but they offer prebiotics for better digestion and gut health. Prebiotics are difficult to find in our modern society, so I find adding a bit of the dried and powdered glucomannon to things is an easy way to get more in my diet

What’s your favorite late night treat? Let us know in the comments and share this post with the buttons below!

The post Peppermint patty shake – THM fuel pull appeared first on The Herbal Spoon.