GOLDEN MILK

One of my favorite drinks I love to keep in the fridge is Turmeric Milk, also known as Golden Milk. It's easy to forget in our American food culture, where health and diet trends swap out as fast as the seasons, that this stuff is nothing new and has been around since ancient times for good reason. Haldi Doodh (which literally means Turmeric Milk in Hindi) has been used as medicine in Ayurvedic practices in North India for some 4,000 years. For this recipe, I like to make the golden milk ahead of time and keep it cold. I'll keep a batch for the week and drink it on its own, add to a smoothie, or warm it up before bedtime. I like to make it with a mixture of almond milk and coconut milk, but really you can use a combination of any of your favorite milks. If it's available, fresh turmeric and ginger are the way to go. Honestly though, even if I do use fresh turmeric (which is often hard to find), I usually add in some dried turmeric also for a deeper, rich color. If you can’t find the fresh version or don’t want to bother with it, the powdered dry spice is fine too. Depending on what spices or sweeteners you have in your pantry, things like cardamom, orange zest, maple syrup, or even some coconut oil to make it extra creamy, are all nice subs so don't worry about sticking exactly to the recipe. One thing to note is to not skip the black pepper in the recipe. One of the active components in black pepper, piperine, is known to help us absorb the curcumin (the substance in turmeric that helps to reduce inflammation in the body). Do a little google search yourself but besides being delicious and warming, golden milk can help reduce inflammation, prevent cell damage, improve your mood, lower blood sugar levels, improve digestion, and boost your immune system, along with many other benefits.

PSA: Turmeric stains like no joke and if you're like me and you disrespect the sacred spice, you're in for a whole jaundice wrath of pure yellow stain comin’ your way. You're lucky if it comes out. Sanitary gloves and emergency baking soda can be your best friend.

Ingredients

1 + 1/2 cups (1 can) coconut milk

1 + 1/2 cups almond milk

1 thumb size knob of fresh turmeric, finely grated (or 2 teaspoons powder)

1 thumb size knob of fresh ginger, finely grated (or 2 teaspoons powder)

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1 tablespoon raw organic honey

1/8 teaspoon sea salt

Pinch of fresh ground black pepper

Method

Warm up the milk and all the ingredients in a medium saucepan over medium heat and give it a good whisk.

Let it gently simmer for 5-8 minutes and it will start to thicken up.

Once it starts to take on that deep orangish/yellow color, turn off the heat and let cool.

Give it a taste. It may need a little more sweetener so adjust if necessary.

It is now ready to enjoy. If you used powdered spices, you’re good to go but if you used fresh grated spices, once it's cool enough, strain the liquid through either a cheesecloth, a nut milk bag or fine mesh metal strainer, making sure to squeeze any extra milk from the spice fibers. Enjoy immediately or seal in an air tight jar and pop in the fridge. It will keep for up to 5 days.