A healthy green appetizer for St. Patricks Day!

Yield: approximately 1 cup

Ingredients

• 1 ripe avocado
• ¼ cup chopped cilantro
• 1 plump scallion rough-cut
• ½ serrano or jalapeno chile, seeded if desired
• Zest of lime
• Juice of ½ lime
• 1/4 cup prepared green salsa
• 2 scoops Boku
• Sea salt to taste

Directions

Place the cilantro, scallion and chile in a bowl of food processor fitted with metal blade and mince. Add the avocado and pulse to break up. Add the lime zest, juice, green salsa and Boku and process until a smooth consistency. Add sea salt to taste.

Recipe and photo by Heidi Robb

This recipe will add some zing to your Valentine’s Day.

Ingredients:

1 cup organic cranberry juice
6 strawberries
1/2 banana (chopped)
1 scoop BõKU™ Super Food

Directions:

Blend & Enjoy

This recipe is great for dinner too!

1-2 Scoop Boku
2 Tbsp Nutiva Coconut Oil
1 Tbsp Nutiva Hemp Oil
1 Scoop (Boku) Protein Powder
1 Organic Banana
8oz Organic Orange Mango

Thanks for the fabulous smoothie recipe Gail M.!

Yield: approximately 30-35 pieces

Ingredients:

15 plump, moist, pitted medjool dates

2 cups raw, unsalted macadamia nuts

¼ teaspoon fine sea salt

1/3 cup cocoa powder

¼ cup Boku

¼ teaspoon ground cardamom

½ teaspoon cinnamon

1 tablespoon raw honey or agave nectar

1 teaspoon natural vanilla extract

¼ cup finely chopped candied ginger (dried apricots or golden raisins are good, too)

Shredded unsweetened coconut, cocoa powder or sesame seeds for coating – approx 12 cup of any.

Directions:

Process the macadamia nuts with the sea salt until fine in a processor fitted with the steel blade – take care not  to process to a paste. Add dates and process to combine well. Add cocoa powder, Boku, cardamom, cinnamon, honey or agave and vanilla. Process until a uniform mixture. Add in the ginger and pulse until just combined – nice to leave pieces for texture.

Turn mixture into a bowl. Form small bonbons (1/2 oz. size is perfect) by squeezing and rolling the mixture between your palms. Roll bonbons in the coconut, cocoa or sesame seeds to coat. Bonbons keep well one week refrigerated (great cold!), freeze up to three months.

Recipe & photo by Heidi Robb

Yummy!

Thanks Heidi!

There are plenty of good reasons to make your own shampoo that will benefit you and the environment. On the personal side, the chemicals in most manufactured shampoos can irritate and dry out your hair and scalp, or it can cause an overproduction of oil to compensate for the dryness which leads to greasy looking hair.  Also, shampoo is expensive and making it yourself will save you money.

On the environmental side, making your own shampoo will help eliminate all of the unnecessary packaging filling the landfills, it will save massive amounts of energy in the manufacturing and shipping processes, and it will reduce the amount of chemicals and toxins in the environment.

If you would like to make your own shampoo here are several different recipes to choose from:

Just Baking Soda and Water

• 1 tablespoon of baking soda mixed well with one cup of warm water

Pour over roots of hair, work through and rinse

Follow with

• 1 oz of lemon juice OR
• apple cider vinegar diluted in about 16 oz warm water

Pour onto hair especially ends, let sit for a minute and rinse.

Basic Shampoo For normal hair – use alone or as a base to add your own scents

• 1/4 cup distilled water
• 1/4 cup liquid Castile Soap
• 1/2 teaspoon jojoba, grapeseed, lavender or other light vegetable oil

Mix together all the ingredients. Store in a bottle. Shake before use, it will be thinner than commercial shampoos.

Chamomile Shampoo

• 4 bags of Chamomile tea
• 4 tablespoons pure soap flakes
• 1 1/2 tablespoons glycerine

Let the tea bags steep in 1 1/2 cups of boiled water for 10 minutes. Remove the tea bags and add the soap flakes to the remaining liquid . Let stand until the soap softens. Stir in glycerin until mixture is well blended. Pour into a bottle. Keep in a dark, cool place.

Scalp Stimulating

• 1/4 cup distilled water
• 1/4 cup liquid Castile Soap
• 2 tsp jojoba oil
• 1/8 tsp peppermint essential oil
• 1/8 tsp tea tree essential oil

Mix all ingredients, then add 1/4 cup distilled water
Store in a bottle. Apply to hair, work through, rinse well.

Shiny Hair

• 1/4 cup distilled water
• 1/4 cup liquid Castile Soap
• 2 Tbsp dried rosemary
• 2 Tbps sweet almond oil
• 1/4 t lemon essential oil

Boil distilled water, add rosemary and steep until fragrant.
Strain leaves and let cool. Mix all ingredients and add to water and stir well.
Store in a bottle. Apply to hair, work through, rinse well.

Softest hair

• Avocado
• Baking soda

Mash them together with a little bit of water to make a paste. Rinse your hair with warm water first, then apply the paste and rinse it out with cold water.

Hair Too Dry?

• 1/4 cup distilled water
• 1/4 cup liquid Castile Soap
• 1/4 cup aloe vera gel
• 1 teaspoon glycerin
• 1/4 teaspoon avocado oil or jojoba oil

Mix together all the ingredients. Store in a bottle and always shake well before using.
Apply to hair and allow to sit for a few mintues. Rinse well with cool water.