Natural Cold/Flu Relievers

I have this thing about medicine/pills... I don't like them. I'm not against them, I'm not an anti-vaccine movement nutso, no no no. I just try not to take medicine unless I have to. I was sick with a cold all week, and I want to share my top non-nyquil remedies:

(If you're looking for herbal remedies, stop reading this now.)

Still there? Great!

1. Sleep. Even if there's something good on TV. Even if there are a thousand funny pictures online. Sleep.

2. Shower, even if you don't want to. Sure, your body is achy and you already feel gross and you know that you'll become snotty and gross 2 seconds after you step out of the shower, but the warm steam will clear out sinuses and make you feel better. Promise.

3. Speaking of runny noses... I stuff tissues up my nose (who has time to reach for a tissue every 2 seconds?) It helps, I swear!

4. Stay hydrated! Chugging water is obviously the best, but if you need a little more flavor:

Mint Tea w/lemon & honey // Coconut Water // Blueprint Juice // Lemon-water & Cucumber-water

I previously wrote about why I stopped drinking coffee, but recently came across a new study that states that coffee doesn't seem to dehydrate you after all. That said, you should probably still keep away from it while you're sick, because it'll make you jittery when you should be relaxing!

Hope you're staying healthy and enjoying the sunshine!

Orange-Ginger Juice

I never want to juice an apple again, and I don't have to. I wanted to make orange-ginger juice, but got a little carried away. What I ended up with blew my mind: 

I'm really sensitive to the taste of ginger (most ginger-y drinks are really strong for me) so just added a pinch, and it was the perfect aftertaste. For me. Everybody else who had a sip said, word for word, "oh you can't taste the ginger at all!" 

So, you know, use your own proportions. Here are the specifics of what's in my blender:

• 2 oranges
• 15ish cherries, de-pitted
• 1/3 of a pineapple
• handful of cilantro
• pinch of ginger

Blend, strain, and you're good to go! As always, you don't need any sugar or water--the cherries are sweet enough to balance the tartness of the pineapple.

Pineapple-Apple-Mint Juice

I've been in love with Blueprint juice for a while now. But it's hard to justify spending $11-$15 for a bottle of juice... no matter how life-changing, delicious, healthy, and magical it is. Blueprint is a treat. (The last time I drank some, I poured it into a shot glass to "savor" it. Crazy, I know.)

I bought the Pineapple-Apple-Mint juice the other day, gulped it down, and was distraught that I couldn't have this every day.

Wait, no. I can.

I decided to give juicing a try on my own, but I don't own a juicer. I have a blender and a strainer (and lots of patience.) I spent $35 on produce and herbs, and was able to make 6 batches of juice of about the same size as Blueprint. And, when you make your own, you have lots of room to experiment!

Before I went grocery shopping, I looked up which fruits are currently in season. Check your state's Farm Bureau to see what's fresh! Here's what I got:

My first concoction was an attempt to recreate the juice I had earlier this week.

Blueprint uses green apples (I think) but I wanted something a little sweeter, so I used red apples.

Juicing apples is a horrendously difficult experience without an actual juicer, so I don't think I'll be making this batch very often...

It's like trying to separate all the liquids from applesauce...

But after you strain it twice, it's delicious.

Best served chilled, poolside.