Green Tea Sports Drink

Ingredients: Organic green tea, honey, sugar, salt, lemon and (not shown) coconut water

 Hello!  It's been a loooong while since I've posted anything. A lot of life has happened since, and I'm also posting frequently on Instagram @stephwtea. But here I am with a bit more time on my hands, planning to share occasional musings on tea and life here once again. (Are blogs dead? Possibly - still, I write.)

I've transitioned out of my 25-year corporate career. So what have I been doing? Walking - a lot! (Plus cocooning and putting the foundation in place for my work going forward.)  Back to the walking - I turned 50 earlier this year and I want to mark the milestone year with something physically challenging. I decided to hike, in one day, a well-known trail in my region that happens to be about 50 kilometers (31 miles). I've been training since Dec 30th, my last day of work. 

The color is all natural, from the tea and lemon juice

It's been fantastic! And a LOT of miles, which brings me to the subject of this post. I don't usually do sports drinks for two reasons: 1 - I think they're over-utilized in general and 2 - I don't like the flavor of the commercial ones. And yet, once I got up to 4+ hours of hiking, I needed something in addition to water. My heartfelt thanks to Jenna Braddock for the original version of this recipe! Jenna is a dietitian and personal trainer, and determined what was necessary to make a balanced drink in terms of sugars and electrolytes. Deep gratitude! I took the original recipe and customized just a bit, reducing how much is made and upgrading the quality of tea to loose, organic green. (I'm using the Young Mountain Tea Darjeeling Green.)

Field testing: a winner!

Here's my version of the recipe, if you'd like to give it a try. It makes just a bit over 2 cups.

• In a heat-safe vessel, pour 1 cup of boiling water over 1 generous tablespoon of loose green tea. Steep for 4 minutes. (Important note: This is a very rare moment when I will suggest you use boiling water on green tea, and for this long! Usually, it's a shorter steep and much cooler water. Here we're making a concentrate.)
• Remove the leaves after 4 minutes.
• To the hot tea, add and stir until dissolved:
• 1 TBSP of honey (fructose and glucose)
• 1/2 TBSP (aka teaspoon and a half) of table sugar (sucrose)
• 1/8 tsp salt
• Let the tea mixture cool a bit, then add 1 cup coconut water and 1/4 cup lemon juice
• Chill and then enjoy out on the trail!  (I usually make this the night before.)

Tea and Breast Cancer Awareness

It's October, and that means it's Breast Cancer Awareness Month. As you've likely heard, the antioxidants in tea (especially green tea) called catechins may inhibit the growth of cancer cells. Why do I use the word "may"? Because human tests have shown mixed results. In lab tests, results are often promising, but with humans, lifestyle variables such as diet and exercise cloud the view. The results are promising enough for me to believe that when I'm drinking green tea, I'm investing in my health.

Read more here and here. (A note about these articles: I felt they were balanced reviews of the research. I tried to cite only reputable research organizations. There's a lot out there on this topic, so be cautious and look into the rigor of the research.)

If you're looking for a way to support the cause, I recommend getting physical and joining a local walk/run. Find one near you. In addition, here are some retail items you might enjoy:

• Republic of Tea has its Sip for the Cure tea collection. A portion of the proceeds from sales go to the Susan G. Komen for the Cure organization.
• The National Breast Cancer Foundation offers a pink polka dot, pink-ribboned teacup and saucer.
• The Breast Cancer Site has lovely pink glass, pink-ribboned teapot ornaments.
• And I'm sure there's more!

And one other note - the temperature of your tea matters! Some studies indicate that people who regularly scald the throat and esophagus with hot beverages (including tea) have an increased chance of cancers in those areas. So let that tea cool a bit and don't burn yourself with it.

Here's a special {hug} to all the women and men who have battled cancer of any type, and to their families and friends.

What Does Your Food Taste Like?

I read an article recently about New York's law that requires restaurants to list the caloric count of the food. I thought this was a FANTASTIC idea! But what held my attention in the article is a focus in California on chain restaurants because they apparently are known for loading up their food with fat, salt and sugar so that it becomes more tasty to us. Wow. Makes me never want to eat at a chain again. Fortunately, there are many choices out there.

I began to think about my own food habits. I try to follow Michael Pollan's advice of, "Eat food, not too much, mostly plants." And yet, I seldom eat a raw tomato without sprinkling salt on it. Is this really necessary, I wondered. What does a tomato taste like without salt? Or toast without butter? Or a peach with the fuzz on? So I've made a pledge, and I encourage you to do so, as well. Before doctoring up my food, I will taste it in its natural state. I will enjoy the sweetness of the tomato that gets masked by the salt. I will feel the textures of the toast and the peach. I will not ask, "Do I like this?" but rather "How would I describe this?" One warning: when one experiences "real food" - it's hard to go back to a chain.

BISCOTTEA GF Shortbread - yumm!

I recently tried a sample of BISCOTTEA gluten-free shortbread cookies. Oh, my my! These are so good I'll be looking for them for myself, even though I don't require the gluten-free option. I'm very excited about these cookies for my gluten-free friends! The cookies are fantastic. They come in three shortbread flavors: chai tea, early grey and blueberry. All three are really good. The texture is great (I find texture as the biggest turnoff for some GF items). I would recommend these cookies for everyone!

The cookies were recently launched at the Winter Fancy Food Show in San Francisco. The BISCOTTEA company, based in Seattle, has been featured on several TV shows and in numerous other publications. (See the website for a list of stores that carry the products.) I am really digging the graphic design of the company's home page and its tea tag line, "Real shortbread created with real tea for real tea lovers." They have a coffee shortbread product set, too.

According to the press info, the gluten-free line was launched from one of the co-owner's work with children with autism. Some autistic kids show improvement when using a gluten-free diet.

I'm quite impressed, both with the product itself, and with the company's good intentions.

Old Fashioned Sauerkraut

The DH and I took a class on lactofermentation and we recently made our own sauerkraut, the old-fashioned way. Lactofermentation uses no heat. It relies on naturally-present bacteria to break down the food and provide probiotics. Lactofermented foods are good for you like yogurt and other "live" foods. The kraut tastes tangy, slightly salty, and is such a pretty color! I've seen red cabbage used, as well, for a lovely pink hue. Next up, I hope to make some kimchi and try kombucha.

Below I share our general process of making sauerkraut. These steps are meant to be informative, but not instructional. If you want to try this, find yourself a good book. I suggest Wild Fermentation by Katz.

Step 1: Grate the cabbage. We have a handy-dandy hand-crank tool that makes fast work of this. We used nearly an entire head of cabbage.

Step 2: Crush the salt, if it's not in small particles. It's important to use natural salts that don't have additives. (Hand modeling by the DH.) We used 2 tablespoons of salt. The recipe called for between 1 and two tablespoons. Next time, I'll use a bit less.

Step 3: Toss in the salt, and "tamp" the cabbage. Yes, tamp is a technical term. It means beat the heck out of the stuff. You can see here we are using a pasta measuring device for its flat bottom. Tamping starts the cabbage along its journey, and in combination with the salt, releases the juices. Tamp until the cabbage looks shiny, or lightly cooked.

Step 4: Place into jars (or, traditionally, a crock) and tamp some more. You need to ensure all the cabbage is below a layer of juice.

Step 5: Cover and let it sit. Test regularly, until it gets to your level of tartness and then refrigerate. Ours sat about about a month.

Natural Cleaning

Today's living simply theme is natural house cleaning. The DH and I made the switch to natural cleaners over the past several years. As one thing ran out, we just didn't replace it. Now, we clean with baking soda, water, and vinegar. I have a bottle of store-bought natural wood and all-purpose cleaner that is about out, and I plan to make my own with a bit of olive oil and lemon going forward. It's a comfort to me to know that I can ingest the things I clean with.

I also stopped using synthetic air fresheners. Now, I can hardly stand their unnatural smell. Instead, I use essential oils in a diffuser. I became so aware of the badness of these synthetic fragrances from a colleague whose daughter is highly sensitive to chemicals. Think of an airport bathroom - it can certainly give me a headache with that syrupy-sweet masking scent. Unfortunately, for those with chemical sensitivities, it's much more serious. The chemicals can cause this girl's fragile body to have a seizure.

It's easy to give up the expensive and harsh chemicals and clean naturally. Here are some great resources and recipes. Do you have a favorite home-cleaning recipe? Please share!

Clean and Green: Natural Homemade House Cleaners

Eartheasy

*Image from free online image sources.

Walking Dates

My Wednesday them is Living Simply, and I want to write today about walking dates. The DH (dear hubby) and I take walking dates often. We simply go out for a long walk around town. We might wander through campus, through some pretty neighborhoods, or past my favorite ice cream stand. We typically have no route in mind - we just walk. It's a chance for us to talk or to be quiet with each other. It's typically free (except for the occasional ice cream indulgences) and good for our health. It's romantic. It's fun. It's one of my favorite ways to spend time with my life partner.

Walking helps me find my center. In fact, when I'm feeling angry or sad, or recovering from illness or a fuzzy head, a walk restores me.

Walking dates can also be time for yourself, alone. Some of my favorite walks have been solo adventures.

When was the last time you took a walking date, with yourself or another? What other simple dates do you enjoy?

My First Mixed Media

Here is my first mixed media collage (aside from scrapbooking, which is also mixed media art!).

This was done as an experiment. I just wanted to get started. To be brave and use some of my new paint and art tools (like my brayer). It was a lot of fun, and the result turned out better than I expected. I quite like it! (This is a little reminder to me as I sit as my desk all day!)

I started by layering three pieces of scrapbook paper onto a piece of heavy cardstock. Then I used the brayer to layer in three colors of paint. (The blue is called "Victorian Blue" - isn't that great?) I found the vintage image at a royalty-free site (she's using tape to keep her shoulders back!) and typed up the words in a font that I liked. I used a pink pastel to blush up her cheeks and add the pink edging to the words.

Hot Chocolate with Agave Nectar

When I go for a run in the mornings these days, I'm wearing a stocking cap and gloves. The mornings and evenings are chilly! Midday still brings temps near the 60s. I love this weather, especially since I have a nifty new space heater in my office! The kind that looks like an old radiator. I'm cold natured and the DH is warm natured. So we heat up my little work nest and I'm as happy as a fluffed up bird and he's as cool as a cucumber!

In cool weather, I find myself longing for hot chocolate in the evenings about once per week. I'm also trying to reduce my sugar intake. To marry these two desires, I tried a hot chocolate recipe that used agave nectar instead of sugar. I was very pleased with the result! Here is the recipe that I modified a bit. Instead of using fresh milk, I used powdered and it worked fine.

1 cup (8 oz) milk - if using the powdered version, combine 1 cup water with 1/3 cup milk powder
1 Tbsp cocoa
1 Tbsp agave nectar - I used a wee bit less
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 tsp cinnamon

More info on agave nectar benefits. And, to be fair, concerns about agave. The bottom line - all things (especially sweeteners) in moderation.

Has anyone tried agave nectar as a sweetener in tea?

Tea and Yoga

It's back to the mat for me. I truly believe in the physical wellness pyramid of cardio-flexibility-strength and have been somewhat neglectful of the flexibility part of my health. I've found a yoga class that fits with my schedule and with my needs right now. I sit at the desk all day and I run, and those things tend to yield tight hamstrings. Yoga is very good for me, and I do best when I have a class that keeps me honest with committing to practice!

To celebrate finding this class, I made this nifty yoga mat carrier. Isn't it just so cool!?! I used batik fabric that a friend brought me from Africa. Very special fabric - I think it's very well suited for this purpose of helping me be more flexible (literally and figuratively).

And while I'm being introspective, have you ever thought about the connection between tea and yoga? Both encourage centerdness, both encourage reaching high and getting rooted (green tea - pu erh tea), both have great variety and diversity. I've blogged about yoga and tea once before. Others have noticed this connection, too - like this Tea and Yoga Society of San Francisco.

Detox Teas

I had an interesting question yesterday about Detox teas, and here's my response. But I'm certainly not the expert on this topic. I'd love to hear your thoughts on this, too!

Most detox teas don't have camellia sinensis (the tea plant) in them. Detox teas are typically made from a blend of herbs/roots/fruits, etc. The goal is to help the body remove toxins and other stored-up stuff we no longer need.

I recently tried a detox tea sample from Mighty Leaf. I can recommend it, for its flavor and substance. I don't know if it actually helped me detox, as I wasn't on an intentional detox program. However, I know that Mighty Leaf works hard to make sure its products are environmentally responsible and the tea sachet is biodegradable, so there's good stuff going on there. More details here.

Locally, Bloomingfoods has the Mighty Leaf brand. Given that this is a new product for Mighty Leaf, I don't know if it's in stock at Bfoods.

Other tea companies (Celestial Seasonings, Yogi, etc.) also carry detox products. I'm just not experienced with them. I would encourage choosing an organic product, especially for the purposes of detoxing.

*Photo from corbis.com