Healthy Beverages for the Road

Stay fresh and hydrated while on the road with these simple  refreshing beverages and smoothies. It's easy when traveling to run out of steam, but rather than spending your money on unhealthy energy drinks found at gas station continence stores,  grab your blender and whip up something healthy and delicious.

With a stop at the farm stand and few pantry ingredients you will have all the energy you need to take that detour to the world's biggest ball of string.
 

Fruit and Herb Waters Basic Recipe

 Serves 1-2

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Cooking Time: zero

 

1 quart canning jar with lid

1 cups fresh, washed and prepared fruit

3 cups of cold water

3-4 sprigs of fresh herbs

Ice

Place fruit in jar, add water and distribute herbs. Top with ice. Close jar and refrigerate a few hours. May add water and ice to replenish as you drink it. It is best to drink it within 24 hours. If you want to save the water to drink later, you can remove the fruit and herbs (they start to break down after a day) and refrigerate the fruit and herb infused water.

Combinations that we made:

• Watermelon and Rosemary (once you have made this, you can puree the water soaked melon to make delicious watermelon juice)
• Cucumbers, Strawberries and Mint
• Lemons, Limes, Oranges and Thyme

 Ideas for combinations:

• Blackberries and Sage
• Raspberries, Lemons and Mint
• Pineapple and Basil
• Plums, Ginger and Thyme
• Cantaloupe and Basil
• Honeydew Melon, Lime and Mint

Get creative. What do you have on hand? What do you like? Have fun with making new combinations.

Hibiscus Tea

2 Tbls. Hibiscus flowers (also called Jamaica-you can find them in bulk herb departments or in Latino markets)

4 cups cold water

Combine and let sit for a half hour or so. Hibiscus has a nice tart flavor that combines well with tropical fruit, fresh herbs, ginger, honey and all types of fruit juice.  Some people enjoy it with a little sweetener. I use agave or honey because they both combine well and dissolve easily in the tea.

My favorite combination is the basic recipe with 2 slices of orange, one peppermint tea bag and a little honey to sweeten it. Let it steep a few hours, then pour over ice and enjoy. If you have fresh mint, garnish it with a sprig. I often have a pitcher of hibiscus water in my refrigerator and add water to it as I use it for up to three days.  Hibiscus is high in vitamin C and has a calming effect along with being very refreshing!

Three quick steps to a great smoothie

 

Serves 1         

Prep Time: 5 minutes    

Cooking Time: Zero

Basic Smoothie Recipe

 8-12 ounces of your favorite unsweetened liquid (milk, nut or coconut milk, coconut

   water, water, kefir or ½ yogurt plus ½ cup water)

1-4 Tbls. protein (hemp, whey or rice protein powder, nuts or nut butter)

½ to 1 cup fresh or frozen fruit

Place in Magic Bullet in order listed and blend until smooth.

Smoothies are a great on the go meal or snack. They are a great way to use over ripe fruit and add dark leafy greens to your diet. You can freeze fruit in Ziploc bags and it will be ready to go and also add a nice creamy texture to your smoothies. If you don’t have frozen fruit you can also attain a thicker texture with a few ice cubes. If you make ice cubes with coconut water or your milk of choice it will not water down your smoothies. If you do not have a freezer, no problem-your smoothies will just be a little thinner in consistency. Follow these easy steps and your smoothies will be both full of flavor and packed with nutrition! You can also make smoothies ahead and refrigerate or put them in a cooler on ice to consume later. The idea for maximum nutrition is to keep the sugar content low and the protein content high.

Step One-Liquids:

• Water
• Unsweetened almond, hazelnut or coconut milk
• Cow or goat milk
• Diluted plain yogurt or plain kefir (liquid yogurt)
• Rice milk (keep in mind rice milk contains a signifigant amount of carbs and sugar)
• Concentrated teas made into ice cubes:try green tea, fruit zingers, passion or wild sweet orange flavors

Step Two-Protein:

• Whey, rice or hemp protein powders-follow serving directions on the container
• Nuts or nut butters: almonds, hazelnuts, cashews, sesame seeds, sunflower seeds. ¼ cup nuts or ¼ cup nut butter

Step Three-Flavor with Fruits and Veggies

Choose fresh fruit in season or frozen fruit in the winter. You can use sweet potatoes or winter squash too. You’ll need about ½ to 1cup fruit or ½ cup cooked, cubed sweet potato or winter squash.

• Berries
• Peaches
• Nectarines
• Cherries
• Mango
• Papaya
• Cantaloupe and other melons
• Cherries
• Banana
• Sweet Potato or Winter squash (cooked and cubed)
• Kale or Spinach leaves
• Sprouts-pea, broccoli, radish

Step Four-Optional Add Ins:

• Flax meal
• Hemp Seeds
• Greens Powder
• Chia Seeds
• Acidophilus (probiotic powder)
• Cacao or carob powder
• Flavored extracts: vanilla, almond
• Cinnamon
• Ginger-fresh or ground

 

Cabbage Slaw with Lime Dressing Recipe

We aired this flavorful side dish in our Chicken Mole episode. I love the way the lime delivers this extra bit of freshness.






Cabbage Slaw

Serves: 4
Prep time: 5 minutes

 1 -16 oz. bag of prepared slaw mix or about 1 lb. of cabbage sliced very thinly
½ cup diced red bell pepper
3 scallions, finely sliced
¼ cup chopped cilantro

Lime Dressing:

 2 Tbls. Best Foods mayonnaise

½ cup Nancy’s plain yogurt or sour cream or buttermilk
3 Tbls. lime juice
1 Tbls. extra virgin olive oil
½ tsp. kosher salt plus more to taste
pepper

Instructions:

In a small bowl or jar, whisk or shake together the dressing ingredients. Taste and adjust flavors with salt, pepper and lime juice. Dressing should taste a little extra salty and tangier than you prefer, as the cabbage will dilute the intensity of the flavors. About 15 minutes prior to serving, in a medium large serving bowl, toss slaw mix with the dressing. Taste and adjust seasoning.

 

Quick Chicken in Mole

This is my all time favorite mole recipe - easy to prepare in small spaces and a big hit on camping trips. It's full of authentic flavors without all those hours at the stove.

Serves: 4
Prep time: 5 minutes
Cooking time: 30 minutes

Ingredients:

1 1/4 pounds boneless, skinless chicken thighs (about 5)

1/2 tsp. kosher salt, divided

1/4 tsp. freshly ground pepper

1 Tbls. coconut oil, Refined Spectrum Organics divided

2 cloves garlic, minced

2 Tbls. Ancho chili powder

1/2 teaspoon ground cumin

1 tsp. ground cinnamon

¼ tsp. ground cloves

¼ tsp. ground allspice

1 ½ tsp. dried oregano

1 8-ounce can tomato sauce

1/2 cup chicken broth(for the best flavor we like homemade or Pacific Natural Free Range Chicken Broth)

1/4 cup semisweet chocolate chips
1 ½ Tbls. almond butter or natural peanut butter
1 tablespoon toasted sesame seeds (see Note)

Preparation:

1. Season chicken with ¼ teaspoon salt and pepper. Heat ½ tablespoon oil in a large cast iron skillet over medium-high heat. Add the chicken and cook, turning once, until browned on both sides, about 5 minutes total. You may need to cook the chicken in two batches, so that it is not crowded in the pan. Transfer to a plate.

2. Reduce heat to medium. Add the remaining ½ tablespoon oil, garlic, chili powder, cumin, cinnamon, cloves, oregano and the remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt to the pan. Cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add tomato sauce, broth, chocolate chips and almond (or peanut) butter; stir to combine. Bring to a simmer. Reduce heat to medium-low, return the chicken (and any accumulated juice) to the pan and turn to coat with the sauce. Simmer until the chicken is cooked through, about 6 minutes more. Serve sprinkled with sesame seeds.

We served the chicken mole with plain steamed rice. You can also serve it with warmed corn or flour tortillas.

Note: Toast regular sesame seeds in a small dry skillet over low heat, stirring constantly, until golden and fragrant, about 2 minutes

Encore

For an encore you can shred the chicken and use it for taco or enchilada filling with the mole sauce. It is also delicious warmed and served over grilled polenta or even a bowl of soft polenta. Top it with finely diced sweet onions, cilantro and sesame seeds for a simple meal. It's also delicious in scrambled eggs for a quick breakfast.

French Press – The Small Kitchen Leatherman

Every trailer chick knows that it’s not how many kitchen tools you have that matters, but the versatility in each of them. Each kitchen gadget has to function like a Leatherman. When space is at a premium, it’s important to make sure every kitchen tool does more than one job. My rule is that every tool has to do double duty before it’s brought on board my land yacht. My French press does just that.

Rarely is such a work horse able to do so much and still sit beautifully on a counter top. Since most French presses are made with a glass cylinder (highly recommended) they are ideal for hot and cold applications and won’t trap strong and lingering flavors like garlic or ginger. Cleaning is a cinch; the plunger unscrews to quickly rinse out the screen. You can go from coffee to colander in under 10 seconds.

For the most versatility, get an eight cup press. Then, consider it for some new tasks:

§  Straining pasta

§  Soaking beans

§  Washing rice

§  Infused teas

§  Cocktails

§  Sangria

If you have never used a French press, Bodum has some easy directions for use and maintenance.