Refreshing Watermelon Pomegranate Sweet Tea with #AmericasTea

cbiasdisclosure watermelon sweet tea Bigelow Tea has a special place in my heart. Isn’t is funny how certain brands can bring back memories for us? The reason Bigelow tea is so memorable for me is my mom used to drink their “Constant Comment” tea when I was a child. The sweet and spicy citrus blend would swirl in the air. I remember vividly asking my mom what that smell was and she told me it was her Constant Comment tea. I think my very first taste of tea was this brand, even. watermelon iced tea I love products that are made right here in America. Bigelow tea is one of these brands and that is why when thinking about recipes to use in my celebration of America on the 4th of July, I had to pick up some Bigelow tea at Walmart to make this wonderful and refreshing watermelon sweet tea recipe. I chose watermelons because to me, they are a very typical summer food and I thought that was fitting for the biggest celebration of the season. tea on shelf I wasn’t aware there are so many kinds of Bigelow tea, though so I had a hard time choosing which one to go in my recipe. In the end, I chose Bigelow’s Pomegranate Black Tea as I thought it’s fruity notes would be excellent for this sweet summer recipe. watermelong tea recipe For this recipe, you will need to freeze some watermelon to use as your “ice cubes” in your sweet tea. The funny thing about watermelon is, it freezes very fast. I put my cubes in and about an hour later, they were frozen solid. So, there is really no need to freeze them overnight and you can quickly make some more if yours start to run low during your 4th of July bash. Just place them on a cookie sheet, in a single layer in your freezer for quickest results. watermelon ice cubes I hope you have a happy and safe Independence Day Celebration this year!

Refreshing Watermelon Pomegranate Sweet Tea with #AmericasTea


4.8 from 5 reviews
Refreshing Watermelon Sweet Tea with #AmericasTea
 
Author:
Recipe type: Beverage
Ingredients
  • 5 Tbsp Stevia Blend
  • 6 Bigelow Tea's Pomegranate Black Tea Bags
  • 2 Quarts of Water, boiling
  • ¼ Of a medium watermelon or (about 2½ cups)
  • 2 Cups watermelon Cubed and frozen
Instructions
  1. Start by steeping your tea in the quart of water. Add Stevia blend and give it a stir. Pour into a pitcher to cool and place in the fridge.
  2. Puree your ¼ of a watermelon (about 2½ cups) in a small food processor. You don't want it completely liquified; leave it somewhat chunky. This should only take 2-3 seconds on pulse.
  3. When your tea is cooled, pour into a glass, add some watermelon puree throw in some frozen watermelon cubes. Enjoy!
Notes
This recipe is for the diabetic friendlier version of sweet tea. If you prefer, you can add regular sugar instead of Stevia blend.

Thank you to #CollectiveBias for the opportunity to get inspired by Bigelow Tea! Looking for more tea inspiration and recipes? Make sure you follow the Bigelow Tea Pinterest board! Also catch Bigelow Tea on Facebook and Twitter!



Honey Green Tea Facial

honey green tea facial

I made some green tea body butter and I had a lot of leftover matcha powder so I decided I wanted to try to make something else with it. I had heard of the skin benefits of green tea (which is what matcha powder is, in powder form) and thought a facial might be something I could take on.

What are the benefiits of green tea for your skin? According to what I found online, it can help with sun damage in the form of fine lines as well as directly provide your skin with antioxidents. It is very soothing on your face and when combined with the ingredients in this mask, it is a real treat.

honey matcha mask ingredients

Honey has been known to be good for your skin due to it’s antimicrobial properties. If you are suffering from mild to moderate acne, it can help clear your skin by killing the baceria that is causing breakouts as well as helping to open your pores to clarify them. The addition of apple cider vinegar will help tone your skin after your pores are cleansed well and coconut oil adds extra moisture. If you prefer, you can use this as a facial cleaner rather than a mask.

You can purchase matcha powder at health food stores or online.

Honey Matcha Facial


Honey Matcha Facial
 
Ingredients
  • 1 Tbsp Matcha Green Tea Powder
  • 1 Tsp Honey
  • 5 Drops Vitamin E Oil
  • ½ Tsp apple Cider Vinegar
  • ½ Tsp Coconut Oil
  • Water
Instructions
  1. Melt coconut oil for 10 seconds in the microwave.
  2. Mix coconut oil, vinegar and matcha powder together.
  3. add vitamin e oil and honey and make a paste. Add water, a few drops at a time until it is the consistency you want.
  4. Apply to your face, avoiding your eyes, and leave on for 10-15 minutes. Wash off with warm water.

Dairy-Free Chocolate Peanut Butter Banana Ice Cream plus the benefits of Almond Milk #SilkAlmondBlends

cbiasdisclosure

dairy free ice cream

When it comes to summer eats, there is nothing quite like ice cream to cool you off. For many people, especially those who can’t have dairy, this is not an option. With myself, I am trying to maintain a better diet and the sugar free options for ice cream are just really not to my liking because they contain chemical sweeteners and they just really don’t taste that great with all their preservatives. I decided to try making a dairy free, sugar free protein packed version of ice cream that would not only be refreshing like ice cream but be healthy, too. I discovered the benefits of almond milk when I saw that Silk brand had come out with Silk Almondmilk Protein + Fiber and I was very happy to learn that I could use it to make my ice cream treat. #SilkAlmondBlends are perfect for making any summer time treat better!

non dairy ice cream

(I should also mention that while I was shopping at Safeway, I noticed they also have another new member of their family, Silk Almond Coconut Blend as well, and I plan on using that in a smoothie at some point! I was super happy to see both were on sale as you can tell!)

silk almond

This recipe is made for an ice cream maker, but you could do it without if you wanted to just freeze and stir it yourself on a regular basis. Also, note that because it contains no dairy, it will get very hard when placed in the freezer. If you want it softer, just run it through a blender for a minute with a little bit of Silk Almond Milk. This ice cream is not only delicious (my 11 year old said it was “sooooooo good and it tastes like chocolate covered bananas!”) but packed with fiber and protein!

almond milk

For an extra boost in taste and texture, top with some chocolate chips! You can afford to with all the nutrients I read on the carton of Silk Almondmilk Protein + Fiber. I saw that it has 50% more calcium than dairy milk and has 5 g of protein and 5g of fiber.

almond milk ice cream

Dairy-Free Chocolate Peanut Butter Banana Ice Cream plus the benefits of Almond Milk


4.9 from 8 reviews
Dairy-Free Chocolate Peanut Butter Banana Ice Cream plus the benefits of Almond Milk
 
This recipe is vegan, dairy-free, diabetic friendly and full of fiber and protein!
Serves: Makes 2 qts
Ingredients
  • 6 Bananas, ripe
  • 4 Cups Almond Milk
  • ⅓ Cup Truvia
  • ¼ Cup Cocoa Powder
  • ⅓ Cup Peanut Butter
  • 1 tsp Vanilla extract
Instructions
  1. Put bananas in a high powdered blender (like a Vitamix or Ninja) and pulse until they are almost liquid.
  2. Add in the rest of the ingredients and pulse to mix well.
  3. Pour into your ice cream maker and follow the instructions that came with your maker.
  4. Eat as a soft serve style ice cream or store in the freezer for thicker style. Can be stored for up to a week.

Make sure to follow Silk on Facebook for more great news from them! Thank you to #CollectiveBias and #SilkAlmondBlends for helping me create such a delicious treat!

Natural Skin Care in Your 30’s

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I am a big believer of not putting chemicals on my face. This is not to say I have never used chemical cleaners, toners and other things on the market on my skin, but I gave them up and I am very happy with my results!

My skin has gone through a lot of changes over the years. Of course you have the skin “freak-out” of your teens and then for me, it started to even out nicely in my 20’s. I used to get compliments on how clear it was and how nice the tone of it was. Now, in my 30’s my skin is almost going through a second skin puberty. My once vibrant, even toned and pimple free (for the most part) skin is rough, dry in some areas, incredibly oily in others and is starting to show some fine lines.

I had to change my whole routine as far as taking care of my skin. Here are some tips for naturally taking care of your skin in your 30’s and beyond.

Natural skin care in your 30's

 

Natural Skin Care in Your 30’s

 

One problem with my thirties’ skin is I have found that it gets far more oily in some areas that were not that bad before. I have always had some oil in my “T-Zone”, but now my upper cheeks are oily as well. I try to take care of this by using some apple cider vinegar in the area. It does seem to help take care of it. The trick is to use a 1-1 ratio with water as it can be harsh to use by itself.

Of course, the fine lines are starting to appear in my 30’s and while I can’t stop my skin from aging, I try to use sunscreen as often as I can to help it age slower as well as drink plenty of water. One natural way to protect from the sun is to make your own sunscreen with coconut oil, zinc oxide and beeswax. I hope to have a recipe up soon for that, but until then, just Google one or search for one on Pinterest!

If you are not in the habit of washing your face, at least make sure you wash your makeup off at night and use one of my Natural Coconut Almond wipes on your face to moisturize and clean off dirt, oil and grime and of course, make-up. It’s a quick thing to do that will make a difference.

Cucumbers are also a great natural way to tone your skin. It will help cleanse as well. That old idea of a couple cucumber slices on your eyes with a green mask on your face is true. Cucumbers will tighten skin and help lessen dark under eye circles.

Look for brands that have natural ingredients. One of my favorites is Arbonne!

One of the biggest issues I have had to deal with in my 30’s has been dry skin where there was none before. My cheeks and jawline have started to really get very dry and felt almost like sandpaper. I hated it. I used coconut oil to try to moisturize (it works really well for most spots!), but it was still dry and terrible. I was very grateful to try out a microdermabrasion system at home since I had heard that this could help this issue (as well as fine lines). I tried the Riiviva and it was absolutely amazing! After just 3 treatments, my skin was noticeably softer and after just a week of treatments, it was just as soft as it was in my 20’s! I was pretty impressed!

If you are thinking about microdermabrasion, make sure you get yourself a good at home machine as the cost of treatments at a spa can be astoundingly high. I highly recommend the Riiviva Microdermabrasion system! It comes with 3 different diamond tips with different levels of intensity. It is also cordless. This makes it perfect to take on trips. If cellulite is a concern of yours as well, you should check out the new Riiviva Cellulite Tip and Riiviva Cellulite Cream. I used both and although I did not see a massive improvement, I did notice some on my thighs where I used it. I imagine I just need to use it for longer to see more results. I have every reason to believe it will work as well as it did on my face!

 

riivivia microdermabrasion

 

What are some of your best skincare tips that are natural in your 30’s? I would love to hear about them in the comments!

 

 

Disclaimer: These statements in this blog post are not approved by the FDA and are just my personal experience.

Low Carb Oreo Cakesters

When I really had to start getting serious about my diet because of my diagnosis of diabetes, I decided that this would mean I would need to get creative with food. See, I am a certified lover of junk food. While I don’t make it my main staple in my diet, I did really love it when I got to eat it. One of my favorite foods was those puffy and delicious Oreo cakesters that came out a few years ago. While they do make many lower carb/sugar free versions of Oreos and sandwich cookies like them, I have yet to find a single cakester. I decided to come up with a recipe that would be lower carb and still allow me to enjoy the cookies I love. These are so good, they were gone in no time and my family didn’t even know they were low carb and sugar free until I told them!

homemade oreo cakesters

Low Carb Oreo Cakesters

homemade oreos

For the icing/filling, I used sugar free frosting and whipped it a bit in my mixer to give it a better texture. I hope you enjoy these delicious goodies!

5.0 from 2 reviews
Low Carb Oreo Cakesters
 
Author:
Ingredients
  • ⅓ Cup Unsalted Butter
  • ⅓ Cup unsweetened Chocolate chips
  • 1¾ Wheat Flour
  • ½ Cup Cocoa Powder, Unsweetened
  • ¾ Tsp Baking Powder
  • 1 Cup Splenda
  • 1 Egg plus 1 Egg White
  • ½ Tsp Vanilla Extract
  • ⅓ Cup Milk
  • Pinch of Salt
Instructions
  1. Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees F.
  2. In a saucepan, melt the butter over medium heat. Add in the chocolate chips and melt over medium low heat until smooth.
  3. Mix flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, Splenda and salt until well mixed.
  4. Add in your vanilla extract and milk.
  5. Slowly add in eggs and mix on medium high in your mixer for a minute or two.
  6. Pour in your chocolate chip/butter mixture and blend well.
  7. Roll out onto a lightly floured surface. It will be kind of like really moist playdough and will not feel stiff like most cookie doughs.
  8. Using a small round cookie cutter, cut out shapes and place on a lightly floured or greased cookie sheet.
  9. Bake for 10-12 minutes.
  10. When completely cooled, place some frosting on one cookie and make a sandwich with another. Enjoy!

“Old Glory” Low-Sugar Cupcakes

old glory cupcakes

I am so excited to share this recipe with you! Anyone who knows me well, knows that although I make attempts at baking, it is almost a mistake when my baking actually comes out well! Thanks to my friend, Katie, at You Brew My Tea, I was able to make these Old Glory cupcakes for the 4th of July! She started me out with a basic white cake recipe that I altered a little bit after I tried the first time and failed. I wanted to keep them low sugar since I am diabetic, so I tried this recipe with full strength stevia sugar such as Truvia. I found that they just didn’t quite taste right, (not her fault-totally all me!) so I decided the second time to do half stevia and half sugar and I think they came out amazing! The second time around I used Truvia and fine baking sugar.

patriotic cupcakes

Let me tell you-these are the most delicious cupcakes ever! They are so moist and the texture is so great on them-almost like a muffin! And if a baking school drop-out like myself can do this recipe, anyone can!

old glory cupcakes set

For the frosting, she gave me a great recipe, but I managed to mess it up somehow, so I went with just using some sugar free frosting and whipping it up to make it light and airy. You really could do this recipe for any season and with any colors, but since the 4th of July is on it’s way in a couple weeks, I was feeling patriotic so I went with Red, White and Blue!

cupcake layers

“Old Glory” Low-Sugar Cupcakes


5.0 from 5 reviews
"Old Glory" Low-Sugar Cupcakes
 
Author:
Serves: 15 Cupcakes
Ingredients
  • 2 Cups flour
  • ½ Cup Truvia
  • ¼ Cup super fine baker's sugar
  • ½ Cup Milk
  • ½ Cup Heavy cream
  • 6 Egg Whites
  • 1 tsp Vanilla Extract
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 1½ tsp Baking Powder
  • 1½ Sticks of butter (3/4 C), softened to room temp
  • Blue food coloring
  • Red food coloring
Instructions
  1. Pre-heat your oven to 350 degrees F and line your cupcake pan with liners.
  2. Mix together your milk, cream, egg whites and vanilla extract and set aside.
  3. Sift together your stevia, sugar, salt, baking powder and flour and set aside.
  4. Whip the butter until smooth and slowly add dry ingredients.
  5. Add your wet ingredients in a slow, stead stream and beat for 1-2 mins on medium high.
  6. Separate your batter into 3 bowls in equal amounts. in one bowl, add 20 drops blue food coloring. In another bowl, add 25 drops red food coloring and in the last bowl, leave white. Mix well to incorporate the coloring.
  7. In each cupcake, place a heaping teaspoon of the red batter. Top each with a heaping teaspoon of the white batter and finally, top with a heaping teaspoon of the blue batter.
  8. Bake for 15-18 minutes. Cupcakes are done when center comes out clean on a fork.
  9. Allow to cool and frost!

Make Your Own Vanilla Extract

homemade vanilla extract recipe

If you have ever tasted the difference between real vanilla extract and imitation vanilla extract in recipes, you know there is a difference. It is a much richer vanilla taste and really brings depth to your recipes. Did you know it is super easy to make your own vanilla extract and costs less than buying it in the store? It is mostly a matter of waiting! Here is how I make my own vanilla extract.

Make Your Own Vanilla Extract

homemade vanilla extract month 1

homemade vanilla extract 2

You will need to some vodka and some vanilla beans. It does not matter if you use expensive vodka or not as it won’t effect the favor much. I used a cheap bottle that cost me around $5. The vanilla beans were a little harder to get for a lower price as they vary widely depending on where you go. I found in my area, they cost around $2 each. I was able to find a two pack at my local Cost Plus World Market for around $3. Other than that, you bulk order (for 5 beans, just the right amount you need for this recipe!) on Amazon for cheaper. Altogether, it should cost around 10-11 dollars to make this recipe and it makes around a pint and a half. You will usually pay 2-3 times this much for this amount!

5.0 from 3 reviews
Homemade Vanilla Extract
 
Author:
Ingredients
  • 5-6 Whole Vanilla Beans
  • 1 5th of Vodka
  • Mason jar with a tight fitting lid
  • Dark place to store it
Instructions
  1. Pour your bottle of vodka into your mason jar.
  2. Add your vanilla beans. You can split them with a knife down the middle, but I don't think it makes much of a difference.
  3. Replace your lid, put a label on it and place it in a dark are where it will not be disturbed. Every week, shake the contents gently. After about 2-3 months it will be ready!
  4. If you use some and want to keep it going, just add a little bit more liqueur and another bean. It won't really spoil because it is mostly alcohol. It will only get richer in taste with time.

How to Turn Bar Castile Soap into a Concentrated Liquid

diy liquid castile soap

When it comes to making your own cleaning products, beauty products and household helpers, one thing that is often called for is liquid castile soap like Dr. Bronner’s. Usually people are shocked by the price of it and get turned away from buying it and thus, give up on doing things themselves, While it is true that Dr. Bronner’s is often expensive, it is kind of relative. Since Dr. Bronner’s goes a long way and is concentrated, it really is, use-for-use, very low cost compared to what you would spend on store bought cleaners and beauty products.

However, if you are like me, you just know there is a cheaper way to do just about anything and castile soap is no different. Turning a bar version of castile sopa into a concentrated liquid is very easy and take little time or extra ingredients.

kirks castile soap

I found the cheapest way to do this is using Kirk’s Castile Soap. It is around $1.25 a bar and is often bought in packs of three. I found mine at Fred Meyer for just over $3 for all three bars so this had me all kinds of giddy.

You can also order Kirk’s Castile Soap online if you cannot find it in a store near you for a bit of an increase in price, but still much cheaper than Dr. Bronner’s. This soap concentrate can be used in any recipe that calls for liquid castile soap, but since it is so concentrated, use a little less. For instance, if you are making my soft scrub recipe, use only 2 tbsp as opposed to 3 1/2.

diy castile soap

Kirk’s Castile only contains a couple ingredients so I love how natural it is and it smells great, too!

How to Turn Bar Castile Soap into a Concentrated Liquid


5.0 from 3 reviews
How to Turn Bar Castile Soap into a Concentrated Liquid
 
Author:
Recipe type: Cleaning
Ingredients
  • 1 Bar Kirk's Castile Soap
  • 3 Cups water
  • 2 Tbsp Glycerin
Instructions
  1. Start by boiling the water in a tea kettle.
  2. On a cutting board, cut up the bar into small chunks. You want them as small as possible. You could also grate it, but I find cutting to be much faster. It cuts really easy and is not hard.
  3. Place the soap in a glass bowl or container. When the water boils, measure out just under 3 cups and pour over the soap.
  4. Give it a good stir and let it sit, covered for about 20 minutes. Every once in a while, go give it another gentle stir to make sure the chucks all melt.
  5. At this point, add the glycerin. The glycerin will help it stay more liquified as opposed to a gel.
  6. When all chunks are melted, pour into a glass mason jar, label it and you have your liquid castile soap!
Notes
Add 10-12 drops Tea tree oil for disinfecting properties if you will be using it for cleaning.

Deep Dish Low Sugar Apple Pie

There’s nothing quite like apple pie when it comes to a classic pie everyone can enjoy. This recipe takes a classic and makes it into a deep dish version that is sure to please. When I made this, it was gone the first day and I could barely get it out of the oven before each piece was claimed! The secret to creating it as a deep dish pie is simply the dish you use. I used a round cake pan for it and it turned out beautifully! I hope you enjoy this recipe and if you plan on taking it to any BBQs or get-togethers, make sure you bring extra!

deep dish apple pie

Deep Dish Low Sugar Apple Pie


Deep Dish Low Sugar Apple Pie
 
Author:
Ingredients
  • 5 Large Granny Smith Apples
  • ⅓ Cup Truvia
  • ⅓ Cup Splenda Brown Sugar Blend
  • 3 Tbsp Cornstarch
  • ¼ Cup Water
  • ¼ Cup Unsweetened Apple Juice
  • 1 Tsp Cinnamon
  • ¼ Tsp Grated Ginger
  • 4 Tbsp Butter, Unsalted
  • ½ Tsp Vanilla Extract
  • 1 egg +2 tsp water
  • Pre-made crusts or your favorite crust recipe
Instructions
  1. Pre-heat Oven to 425 degrees F.
  2. Start by slicing your apples into ½ inch sized slices and peeling them.
  3. In a skillet, add the butter and sweeteners together. Allow to melt.
  4. Add in the apples and saute for a few moments over medium heat.
  5. Add in the apple juice, vanilla, cinnamon and ginger.
  6. Allow to cook for a few minutes until bubbly. Mix the cornstarch and water together. Slowly add it to the pan and mix in well to thicken sauce. Turn down heat to medium-low and simmer until apples are mostly soft.
  7. Prepare your pans by spraying them and adding in the bottom crust. Make sure it fits well.
  8. Add your filling into the crust and top with a second crust with venting holes cut in. Alternatively, you can add a lattice crust if you feel like being creative.Using the egg and 2 tsp of water mix together an egg wash and gently brush it on the top.
  9. Cook until crust is a golden brown for about 40 minutes. Allow to cool before cutting.

7 Essential FREE Apps for Diabetics

Unless you have been living under a rock, you are probably aware that the world has gone app crazy. There are apps for just about anything you could imagine. I just recently, within the past year, started using some diabetic apps. Here is a list of top 10 apps that you should download to help manage your world with diabetes. Rather than link to the apps, just search what is bolded so you can find it on whatever platform you need it for.

7 essential free apps for diabetics

7 Essential FREE Apps for Diabetics

 

Glucose Buddy is a free app for apple and android users that I use every day. It helps me track my weight, blood pressure, glucose readings, medications and even food. I find the charts and tracking of medication and blood sugar readings most useful and it features a wonderful reminder system that allows you to set your own alerts for remembering to take meds or readings.

Social Diabetes is an app that allows you to track your progress, but also save all of your info to the cloud so you can connect with others and share recipes, tips and advice.

Diabetes Plus lets you track your readings and even send them to your Doctor! You can set your own target ranges and even PDF export your data so you can print it off.

Out of Milk is not specifically a diabetic app but it is very useful in managing it. You can create shopping lists that help you track sales as well as set up personal reminders. It stores what items you have added to the list to create future lists as well.

Medisafe is a great app if you want reminders set for medications. It not only helps you remember with alerts, but will also alert those you set it up for if you forget to take your meds.

Moves is a really neat smart phone app. If you are trying to make a goal of walking more, this app will essentially turn your phone into a pedometer! You can track your steps, miles and days exercised as well as reach goals.

Calorie Counter from MyFitnessPal is great for knowing the carb count, fat content and protein for any foods you are eating. It also helps you track them.

Carb Counting with Lenny is designed for children learning to manage their diabetes, but it is also a very fun tool for adults as well who may just be starting out on learning about carb counting.