This week we saw some record breaking high temps in the Bay Area, it was nearly 90F or 31c by mid week which is totally not common for April here! We usually only get such heat all the way in September after everyone else has already had their summer fun. So needless to say we stayed indoors and hydrated as much as possible!

This first recipe is inspired by the Indian lemonade I had growing up or Nimbu Paani as we call it back home! But since I’m a bit of health nut I’ve made it sugar free and added another immunity boosting ingredient that you’ll see in the list below. It turned out to be super refreshing and a great way to use up all the lemons we seemed to have accumulated! Since it’s a concentrate it was super easy to just pull it out of the fridge, mix with some water and ice have lemonade ready in minutes! See the recipe below and give it a go!

1. Indian Lemonade (Nimbu Paani) Concentrate

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Ingredients

·         Juice of 3 large lemons

·         2 cups water

·         3 tbs Gentle Sweet (I’ve cut out sugar from my diet so I use this but feel free to use honey/sugar to taste)

·         1t roasted cumin powder (jeera) 

·         1t chaat masala (an Indian spice mix)

·         2t Baobab powder (Optional, but we love this as as an immunity booster and use it in our daily smoothies too)

·         1t salt

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Blend all the above in a blender and pour into a glass jar with a lid to store in the fridge for up to a week. When you need a drink add 1 /4 cup of concentrate to 1 cup of water, add ice and enjoy!

2. Homemade Berry Popsicles

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The second recipe I tested this week are these delicious popsicles using some leftover coconut milk for Ria. It’s dairy free and full of the added nutrition from fruit as well as raw honey which are both great for kids! The recipe is quite versatile so feel free to use any fruit you or your kid prefers. You can also add a dash of heavy cream into the mix before blending for an even creamier consistency.

Ingredients

·         1/2 can of unsweetened coconut milk

·         1/2 cup of frozen mixed berries

·         1/2 tbs of raw honey

Blend in a blender till fully combined. Then pour into these popsicle molds (from Amazon) for a delicious summer treat!

3. Overnight Refrigerator Oats

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Another cooling and delicious treat that I made for myself are these overnight oats. See recipe below, it’s full of protein, fiber and lots of healthy minerals and vitamins provided by the combo of oats and fruits! The best part is you can top it with any fruit you have at hand – peaches, apples, blueberries or even just raisins…yum! I had it for breakfast one morning and as an afternoon snack on a warm day and loved it both ways :). Give it a try!

Ingredients

·         1/4 cup of old fashioned rolled oats

·         1/3 cup of unsweetened almond milk

·         1/4 cup of 0% fat Greek yogurt

·         1/2 tsp of vanilla extract

·         1 tbs Gentle Sweet (I’ve cut out sugar from my diet so I use this but feel free to use honey/sugar/jaggery to taste)

·         1 tsp of chia seeds

·         1 tbs of plain Protein Powder

·         berries for topping

Combine the ingredients above with a fork in a container with a lid, top with your fruit of choice and place in the fridge after closing the lid. It’s ready the next morning and stays fresh for 2-3 days in the fridge!

Hope you’ll give these recipes a try and let me know how you like it if you do :). What are your favorite summer recipes to beat the heat?

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