I love food and think about it probably more than the average person. My mind doesn’t just go to flavor but rather how one ingredient might enhance another, or maybe act as the leader while others are there to support it. I think like an herbalist when I cook and create recipes, I have failed miserably many times, but this simple drink was one of my non-recipe wins. I like my fruit on an empty stomach and I like to use the core of the pineapple which is where all the good enzymes tend to live. Mint and lime lift this drink to the next level and CBD infused tea offers me a way to include this plant into my anti-inflammatory dietary plan. When I entered my senior year of undergraduate work at U.C. Davis, I was a Nutrition major. I knew I did not want to be a Dietician or a Food Scientist. I was more interested in the community aspect of food. There was no class for that so I created an independent study of food rituals with my nutrition professor who happened to have the same love of food and community that I did, not to mention that these lectures happened at cafes and restaurants where we shared meals and desserts and looked at food culture from around the world. It was my favorite class/mentorship of my entire college career and maybe that is why I am still grounded in community based nutrition to this day.
As a food and plant based Acupuncturist/Healer, I have always looked for ways to enhance my nutrition through diet. My latest obsession, Culinary CBD. In Chinese medicine, cannabis was used over 1500 years ago as noted in the Shen Nang Ben Cao Ling, The Divine Farmer’s Materia Medica Classic. It’s known as an adaptogen meaning it has the potency to create homeostasis in the body, but Industrial hemp beat it out and it’s medicinal properties were long forgotten. Today it is hard to know what CBD product to choose from, more on that in a minute. I am still experimenting myself, but as with anything I choose to eat, or put on my body, I use the highest quality and most trustworthy sources I can find. When we approach eating as a way to feed the brain, regulate the hormones, nourish the organs and balance the belly mind, it can be so empowering. I don’t eat just for the love of food, I eat in a way to enhance my ability to perform well, feel well, think clearly and pull people together. And it doesn’t have to be elaborate. This no-recipe smoothie was made on the fly after a friend who knew I was feeling down, invited me on a walk in the park, I turned around and invited her for a post-walk smoothie. This is the recipe that came out of that interaction!
INGREDIENTS
1/2 papaya, seeds removed
2 cups watermelon
1 cup frozen pineapple
1/2 banana
10 mint laves
Juice from 1/2 lime
1/2 cup Vybes CBD infused peach ginger tea
Add all ingredients to blender, mix on high for 1 minute and serve. Add ice to the blender if needed. Use coconut milk or water as another liquid option.
*A side note: To get more bang for your buck, you can add in a high grade CBD oil, hemp seeds, chia seeds, flax and other food and plant medicine ingredients. Reach out to me if you are interested in learning how to be your food medicine healer. I can help you!
Want to learn how and why to use CBD and Hemp in your diet? The science is now out there and I am co-leading a mind/body/breath workshop on Thursday June 27th at Hidden Hemp in Brooklyn. Read more and sign up HERE.
Want to diversify your diet and your gut bacteria with more plants? Join the LK5 Summer Cleanse HERE! Meanwhile, eat real food, not too much and add more plants!
LK