Immune System Boosters
Hey everyone!
I am writing a few days after our president, Cyril Ramaphosa, addressed the nation to say that our lockdown has been extended because of COVID-19 for two more weeks! I have to admit, I was not too worried about the virus hitting South Africa as we are a rather small country quite far away from the origin of the virus and the countries that were badly affected. But once the number of cases started rising and now with the news of extended lockdown, I am frightened. I have family members that are compromised and I never realised how much I touch objects outside and then how often I touch my face. I am pleased, however, that South Africa is being well-prepared by trying to prevent the spread of the virus and that (I think) these measures are flattening the curve.
During this time, it is good to stay healthy by eating well and exercising. It will be harder to source exotic fruits and vegetables to spice up my monotonous days of staying inside but I still want to keep my immune system strong so I am turning to a few classic recipes for an immune system boost! One way I like to do this, as I don't particularly love fruit, is to make a juice or smoothie.
This juice is a family-favourite, we always seem to drink this extremely quickly and I am continually making more! It only has three ingredients and what is great about this juice is that they don't need to be ripe! The juice is actually tastier when the apples and carrots are overripe (or as we like to say in South Africa, vrot) as they are sweeter. It also means that you don't need to waste money to buy the best stock, just use what you have in the fridge.
You will need a juicer, apples, carrots and ginger. Remember, you don't need to peel these ingredients but please wash them! Washing them gets rid of any chemicals and all the germs from people's hands in the grocery store. At a time where you don't want to be sharing other people's germs, it is always best to be safe.
Chop up the six apples and six carrots so they fit through the juicer, you don't want to clog it up on your first go! Juice these and then add the thumb of ginger, this will make the a deliciously strong smell! This batch makes about 700ml and I always put it in the fridge or add some ice cubes before I drink it to make it extra refreshing!
Finally, I perfected my recipe of a filling, nutritious and aesthetically pleasing smoothie! And it only has five ingredients! It doesn't take long and the ingredients can be kept together in the freezer to assist with meal prep.
I like to have one large banana (peeled), 1/4 cup of blueberries and 1/3 cup of red berries (I like strawberries and raspberries) in a Ziploc bag in the freezer ready for the next morning. The next day, I take it out to defrost slightly and get out 1/2 cup of milk (you can also substitute it for 3/4 cup of yoghurt) and 1/4 cup of oats.
Then I add all the ingredients to a NutriBullet or food processor and whizz it up! Because most of the ingredients are found in the fridge or freezer, it is delicious and refreshing. I definitely recommend drinking it outside while sitting in the sun.
All you need is water, ginger, lemon and honey. Simple. The honey is definitely necessary for this tea to be palatable!
I used 40 grams of grated or finely chopped ginger and I boiled it in a pot of 750ml of water. This allows the mixture to maintain its intensity. I then wait for it to cool down. Once it was cool, I strained the mixture, make sure you squeeze all the juice out of the grated ginger. Meanwhile, I mix the juice of one lemon and 5 tablespoons of honey.
When everything is cool, I add the lemon juice and honey to the ginger tea. This recipe makes about 500ml of the ginger tea cordial. Now you can drink this on its own, but I really discourage it. Alternatively, enjoy it by mixing one part ginger cordial and one part water. You can use hot or cold water depending on your mood.
I hope these recipes spice up your days in lockdown and that you get that much-needed immune system boost!
I am writing a few days after our president, Cyril Ramaphosa, addressed the nation to say that our lockdown has been extended because of COVID-19 for two more weeks! I have to admit, I was not too worried about the virus hitting South Africa as we are a rather small country quite far away from the origin of the virus and the countries that were badly affected. But once the number of cases started rising and now with the news of extended lockdown, I am frightened. I have family members that are compromised and I never realised how much I touch objects outside and then how often I touch my face. I am pleased, however, that South Africa is being well-prepared by trying to prevent the spread of the virus and that (I think) these measures are flattening the curve.
During this time, it is good to stay healthy by eating well and exercising. It will be harder to source exotic fruits and vegetables to spice up my monotonous days of staying inside but I still want to keep my immune system strong so I am turning to a few classic recipes for an immune system boost! One way I like to do this, as I don't particularly love fruit, is to make a juice or smoothie.
Immunity Juice
You will need a juicer, apples, carrots and ginger. Remember, you don't need to peel these ingredients but please wash them! Washing them gets rid of any chemicals and all the germs from people's hands in the grocery store. At a time where you don't want to be sharing other people's germs, it is always best to be safe.
Chop up the six apples and six carrots so they fit through the juicer, you don't want to clog it up on your first go! Juice these and then add the thumb of ginger, this will make the a deliciously strong smell! This batch makes about 700ml and I always put it in the fridge or add some ice cubes before I drink it to make it extra refreshing!
It is filled with Vitamin A, K1, B6 from carrots, Vitamin C from apples and Vitamin B3 and potassium from ginger. You can also add a boost of Vitamin C by squeezing some lemon juice into the mixture. I enjoy a cold glass of this immunity juice with my breakfast in the morning as the ginger usually wakes me right up!
Purple Smoothie
I never used to like smoothies, milkshakes were more my thing but unfortunately they do not have the same nutritious value as a berry smoothie. To make myself enjoy smoothies more, I decided to make them in one of my favourite colours, purple. I also needed to add something to fill me up because if I have a smoothie for breakfast, I will be hungry one hour later. And at school, where we have to wait for our breaktime, I would have to endure strange looks while my stomach grumbled.Finally, I perfected my recipe of a filling, nutritious and aesthetically pleasing smoothie! And it only has five ingredients! It doesn't take long and the ingredients can be kept together in the freezer to assist with meal prep.
I like to have one large banana (peeled), 1/4 cup of blueberries and 1/3 cup of red berries (I like strawberries and raspberries) in a Ziploc bag in the freezer ready for the next morning. The next day, I take it out to defrost slightly and get out 1/2 cup of milk (you can also substitute it for 3/4 cup of yoghurt) and 1/4 cup of oats.
Then I add all the ingredients to a NutriBullet or food processor and whizz it up! Because most of the ingredients are found in the fridge or freezer, it is delicious and refreshing. I definitely recommend drinking it outside while sitting in the sun.
Ginger and Lemon Cordial
Now this recipe took a while to perfect, because as I tasted it throughout the process, it knocked my socks off with the strength of the ginger just about every time! This ginger and lemon tea is extremely strong but it is an incredible way to boost your immune system and wake you up.All you need is water, ginger, lemon and honey. Simple. The honey is definitely necessary for this tea to be palatable!
I used 40 grams of grated or finely chopped ginger and I boiled it in a pot of 750ml of water. This allows the mixture to maintain its intensity. I then wait for it to cool down. Once it was cool, I strained the mixture, make sure you squeeze all the juice out of the grated ginger. Meanwhile, I mix the juice of one lemon and 5 tablespoons of honey.
When everything is cool, I add the lemon juice and honey to the ginger tea. This recipe makes about 500ml of the ginger tea cordial. Now you can drink this on its own, but I really discourage it. Alternatively, enjoy it by mixing one part ginger cordial and one part water. You can use hot or cold water depending on your mood.
I hope these recipes spice up your days in lockdown and that you get that much-needed immune system boost!
Love the third photo! Super cute ⭐
ReplyDeleteThank you very much! I hope you like the recipes.
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