Healthy Strawberry Shake

This is one of our favorite shake recipes! It's super easy to make and tastes AMAZING! Creamy, sweet but not overly sweet, and it isn't bad for you which makes it even better. You're going to love it! 

Directions:

1/4 frozen banana
3/4 cup frozen strawberries
1 cup organic milk, coconut or almond milk
A few drops of vanilla stevia (if desired) or just add 1/2 tsp vanilla
A handful of ice cubes
Splash of cream (If desired)

Directions:

Put ingredients in your blender. Whirl until smooth. Midway I like to splash a bit of cream just to make it really creamy. Pour into a cup with a large straw. This is thick and delicious! If you want to you can add a bit of whipped cream on top to make it pretty and top with a berry. Enjoy!

Let us know if you like it!

Want to read some more articles? Check these out!

Berry Matcha Tea Frap

Warm temps have begun putting in an appearance here in the south, which means the cold drinks are coming out too! One of our absolute favorites is this berry matcha tea frapp! It's the perfect mix of lightly sweet, green tea, and refreshing berry topped with fluffy whipped cream. 

Drink:

1 Cup organic milk

2 Cups ice

1/2 Teaspoons matcha green tea powder in 1/4 c hot water (use to taste) 

1-3 Tablespoon pure maple syrup (or another sweetener)

¼ Teaspoon pure vanilla extract (or to taste)

Related Article: Smore' Mocha Frapp

Topping:

Berry syrup

Whipped cream

Directions:

Add all ingredients in the blender, blend until the ice breaks down. Pour into a cup and top with whipped cream, drizzle syrup over the top. Drink imedietly. 

Berry Syrup: 

1 Cup berries

3 Tablespoons honey

1/2 Cup water

Simmer water, berries, and honey until it cooks down to a syrup. Cool and store in an airtight container. 

S'more Mocha Frapp

I got hooked on Starbucks S'more Frappuccino over the summer and was very bummed when they stopped serving them as the seasons changed. Since summer only happens once a year and it's a very long wait (and I really hate waiting) I decided to try to make my own! 

I have to say, I love mine WAY more. No more waiting for summer to roll in, I can make it anytime anywhere and mine is just a bit more healthy. This drink is a delicious mix of your favorite campfire flavors, creamy goodness covered in thick rivulets of chocolate and crunchy crumbles of Gram crackers. 

Chocolate Syrup: 

1/2 Cup Organic Cocoa
1 Cup Raw Sugar
1/4 Teaspoon Vanilla (try our recipe)
1/8 Teaspoon Himalayan Salt
1 Cup Water

Heat the water and chocolate together in a medium-size saucepan over medium heat until dissolved.  Add sugar and continue heating. Stir often. Turn to high and boil for 8-10 minutes to thicken. Keep an eye on it so it doesn't overflow. Reduce heat to medium again and stir in vanilla and salt. Allow it to cool before pouring it into a container. Refrigerate.

Marshmallow Fluff:

4-6 Free Range Egg Whites
1 1/2 Cup Raw Sugar
1 Cup Organic Honey
1/2 Cup Water
1/4 Teaspoon Salt
1/2 Teaspoon Cream of Tartar
1 Tablespoon Vanilla

Stir honey, sugar, water, and salt in a pan over high heat. Bring to a boil, stirring occasionally until it reaches 240F. Place cream of tartar and egg whites in an electric mixer and beat into soft peaks on medium speed. Reduce speed to low and drizzle 2 tablespoons of the syrup into the egg mixture. Slowly drizzle in the rest of the syrup. Increase speed to medium-high and whip for about 7 minutes. Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator.

Chocolate Cookie Crumble Mocha Frapp

Drink:

2 Cups of Ice
1/2 Cup Cold Coffee
1/4 Cup Whole Organic Milk
1/8 Cup Organic Heavy Whipping Cream
2 Tablespoons Maple Syrup
Organic Dark Chocolate
Organic Graham cracker
Marshmallow Fluff (see above)
Chocolate Syrup (see above)

Pour ice, coffee, milk, cream and maple syrup into the blender, blend until the ice breaks down. Squirt chocolate syrup down the side of a large cup (not a ton just enough to drizzle down into the bottom), Spoon just a bit of marshmallow fluff into the bottom of the cup. Pour half of the drink into the cup, spoon marshmallow fluff over the top and pour the rest of the drink on top. Top it with more marshmallow fluff, if you wish you can torch the marshmallow a bit to give it that s'more taste. Drizzle chocolate syrup over the top, crush a gram cracker and sprinkle over the top. Shave chocolate over the top.

How To Grow A Kombucha "Scoby"

Kombucha is one of our favorite drinks, but it can be pretty pricey. We had a scoby we had bought several years ago, but it went bad during one of our remodels (we hadn't been using it regularly because of all of the dust) so we set out to grow our own. It was surprisingly super easy! 

It is important to start this in a clean environment so I sterilize my jars and such to make sure that everything is clean. To do this just boil water and pour it into the jar, on my spoons etc.

 1 Gallon-sized Glass Jar
 3 Quarts of Spring Water
 1 Cup of Organic Raw Sugar
 4 Bags of Organic Green Tea
 1 Bag of Organic Black Tea
 1 Cup of Unflavored Kombucha
 Clean White Flour Sack Cloth
 Rubber Band or Twine
A label of some kind.

Put 1 1/2  quarts of water in your gallon size glass jar and the other 1 1/2 gallons in your pan.

Heat and add your sugar and stir until dissolved.  Add your tea bags and let steep for 10 minutes.

Remove bags and add tea to your water in the glass jar. The tea in the jar should be about 96 degrees so if it is too cool warm it up in the pan again or if it is too hot, let it cool a bit.  

To this add your starter and stir gently. Cover with your flour sack and secure with rubber band or twine to keep bugs and things out of it.  Place your jar out of direct sunlight where it will be untouched from 5-8 days.  

When the time has passed remove the SCOBY and 1 cup of the tea for your starter and put in your new batch of kombucha or a zip lock bag.

Already have a Scoby? Try our Kombucha Recipe!

Homemade Hot Chocolate

There is nothing like a cup of hot chocolate on a cold night, whether you're sitting around the bonfire with friends or watching a movie with the family it's the perfect treat!

Related Post: Chocolate Bark Recipe

4 Tablespoons Agave, Maple Syrup, or Sugar (you substitute these for a few drops of stevia)

1 Cups Milk (Can use a nondairy milk if you don't drink milk)

1/8 Cup Heavy Whipping Cream

1/2 Teaspoon Vanilla 

1 Tablespoon Carob Powder or Organic Chocolate Powder

Whipped Cream or whipped coconut cream

Peppermints (optional)

Heat milk in a saucepan, add sweetener, vanilla, and carob. Wisk until combined, and allow to heat. Ladle into your favorite mug and top with coconut whipped cream and peppermints. 

Easy Homemade Egg Nog

4 raw Organic Eggs

2-3 Tablespoons Organic Maple Syrup

1 Cup Organic Cream

3 Cups Organic Milk

1 Teaspoon Vanilla Extract

1/2 Teaspoon Cinnamon

1/4 Teaspoon Nutmeg

Blend in the blender until frothy and serve.

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3 Cozy Fall Drinks To Enjoy This Season

 1 Mug of Apple Cider

1/8 teaspoon cinnamon

1/8 teaspoon nutmeg

1/8 teaspoon cloves

Heat in a small pan until hot, run through a coffee filter and serve.

1- gallon apple cider

1- quart pineapple juice

6 ounce can of frozen orange juice concentrate

27 whole cloves

8 cinnamon sticks

Mix cider, pineapple juice, and orange juice concentrate in a large crockpot. In cheese cloth place cloves and cinnamon sticks, tie a knot around them with the cheese cloth and add to liquid. Heat. Serve hot. Make sure you take the seasonings out before storing. We like to make this at least the morning before we serve it so it will have plenty of time to mingle.

Make a pot of Chai tea, pour a mug, add a touch of cream and sweeten to taste. Top with whipped cream and cinnamon.



Summer Drinks

Summer is finally here! And we at the Cottage are very excited, so we thought we would share a few of our favorite summer drinks with you. We love sitting on the porch on summer afternoons with a cup of something cold and sweet. 

Green Lizards 

This drink is so refreshing and yummy! Mrs. Cottage's sisters use to make this when she was growing up in California. It's a great twist to make simple lemonade a little more fancy. 

3 Tablespoons Lemon Juice

1 Teaspoon Lime Juice 

16 OZ. Water

1/3 Teaspoon Stevia or to taste

3 Cups Ice

1 Mint Leaf
Pour into the blender and blend. Serve in whatever cup you like we chose an empty canning jar. 

Lemonade

Is there anything more summery than lemonade?  This is so fun to serve in mason jars with a slice of lemon. 

3 Tablespoons Lemon Juice

16 OZ. Water 

1/3 Teaspoon liquid Sweet Leaf Stevia (or to your taste)

Serve with several ice cubes. 

Iced Coffee 

32 OZ. Cup filled with ice

2/3 Cup Coconut Milk

1/4 Cup Cream

1 1/3 Cup Coffee 

 2 Tablespoons B Grade Maple Syrup (to taste)

Whipped Cream

Stir well and top with whipped cream.

Sun Tea

Sun tea is something that is a staple in California. There is nothing like a nice glass of cold tea.  This is a light tea that tastes great with a wedge of lemon or even an orange served on ice to make it extra cold. 

1 Gallon Spring Water

Favorite fruit blend tea (you can also use black tea or green tea)

Stevia to taste 

Serve with several cubes of ice. 

What's your favorite part about summer?