The season of sweaters is finally here! Orange, red, yellow, plaid, lace, hay, pumpkins, pears, apples, cranberries, spices…the season of fall unfolds unlimited goodness – be it fiery hues, cozy fashion, scary folklore or FOOD! Nothing quite like the spicy aroma of a pumpkin pie filling your kitchen and dominating your house…Nothing quite like a refreshing glass of apple cider after a hearty meal of deep-dish casserole…nothing quite like FALL! 🙂

What a poser! Tygart Lake State Park, West Virginia

Tygart Lake State Park, West Virginia

Well, fall’s mostly over because temperatures have been hitting negatives for a while now. Apparently, this is the coldest November since 1976!! Now that’s got to be something. Keeping yourself warm in such freezing temperatures is a task but luckily, nature provides us with abundant ‘tasty’ solutions. It’s not all sweaters and scarves! 😉

During winter, our body produces a lot of energy to keep itself warm and this leads to bigger appetites. Therefore, eating the right kind of food that aids digestion, keeps your body warm, boosts your immune health and is mouth-watering (HIGHEST PRIORITY!!!) is required, no? Fortunately, many natural ingredients possess all these qualities. It’s only a matter of experimenting!

I have always loved to cook. It runs in the family. My mother is a brilliant cook and she thoroughly enjoys the art of cookery. She loves to experiment with ingredients and funnily enough, this quality is in my genes too.

Smoothies are everyone’s favorites. But our already frostbitten brain might not welcome the idea of gulping down a whole glass of ice-cold fruit smoothie. It is not recommended to drink ice-cold smoothies during winter since they temporarily freeze digestive fluid secreting cells in our body. This slows down body’s digestive actions. Now, we don’t want that. Then let’s get blending! 😀

Here’s to the beginning of Warm Winter Smoothies! These smoothies contain natural ingredients that possess body warming qualities, are easy to make, are loaded with unlimited goodness and are super-yummy! Happy winter y’all! 🙂

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Almond Delight

Now who doesn’t like almonds? The nutritious benefits of almonds have been noted for centuries and it only gets better. This smoothie contains ingredients that keep our body warm from within plus it’s tasty as hell! Much needed this winter!

Almond Delight with low fat granola topping

Ingredients:

Banana – 1

Pear – 1

Almond milk – 1 cup

Almonds  – ½ cup (soaked overnight)

Grated Ginger – ½ tsp

Ground cinnamon – ¼ tsp

Ground cardamom – ¼ tsp

Coconut oil – 1 tsp

Turmeric powder – 1 pinch

Honey – 1 tbsp

Topping:

Low-fat Granola

Directions:

• Combine all ingredients except granola in the blender and puree on high until smooth. Serve with granola topping.
• Serves two.

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Sweet Potato Joy

Potato in a smoothie?!! Why not! This recipe is a modification of my grandmother’s sweet potato recipe. It’s filled with fall goodness, is a warm drink, aids digestion and is super-tasty!

Sweet Potato Joy garnished with coconut flakes and apricots

 Ingredients:

Cooked Sweet Potato – 1

Apple – 1

Banana -1

Fresh grated coconut – 1 Cup

Warm water – 2 cups (or more depending on desired consistency)

Dried cranberries/ Raisins

Walnuts

Grated Ginger – ½ tsp

Jaggery powder – 1 tbsp (This can be substituted with honey)

Garnish:

Coconut flakes and apricots

Directions:

• Combine all ingredients in the blender and puree on high until smooth. USe coconut flakes and apricots for granishing.
• Serves two.

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More warm winter smoothie recipes coming soon. Until then keep blending! 😀 Thank you for reading! ❤