For those who enjoy a smoothie in the morning, Ayurveda has an alternative to the cold, heavy, and haphazard staple of American diet. OK, before you come fore me let’s talk about why smoothies are not great first thing in the morning:

Cold and iced foods dampen the digestive fire.
Fruits should be eaten alone
Milk (if added to your smoothie) is not suggested first thing in the morning unless warmed and spiced. The morning is kapha time and milk is kapha predominant.
Folks like to put everything and the kitchen sink in a smoothie. One of the central concepts in Ayurveda is the wrong combination of food leads to disease. Adding grains, fruits, milk, and nut butters to a smoothie is too much for the digestive to reconcile in an effective way.

Enter the almond date shake! This recipe can scratch the itch for folks who love that morning smoothie. So what makes this different? This shake is very noursihing for rasa dhatu (the plasma/lymphatic/interstial fluids and “waters” of the body). In Ayurveda this is the foundational tissue of which all other tissues in the body are nourished. It’s easy to digest and so satisfying.

Ingredients (1 serving)

3 Dates

20 raw almonds

Pinch of cardamom

Pinch of cinnamon

1/8 tsp ground vanilla bean or 1/4 tsp vanilla extract

Pinch of Himalayan salt

2 cups water for soaking, 1 cup for drink

Instructions

Soak dates and almonds overnight in water (in a pinch you can boil water and cover for 10-15 minutes)

Remove the skins from almonds. The skins will easily slip off when you squeeze them. Watch out, they’re slippery little suckers:-)

Combine all ingredients in a blender (including water from dates)

Blend and enjoy!