If you haven't tried Yerba Mate, an antioxidant-rich green tea from South America, you have to make it a priority! This delicious drink is grassy and slightly bitter in flavor, but can be blended with other ingredients to make flavorful beverages. I prefer it straight up. It has some caffeine, but less than coffee and black teas, and has been shown to be a muscle relaxant, a stimulant to aid in weight loss, has anti-carcinogenic preoperties and can help lower your bad cholesterol (LDL).
You buy it loose and steep it in hot (not boiling) water for about seven minutes, then enjoy. I use a french press. Some ideas that I have used to make drinks are: Sweet Mate--I use stevia and agave, as they are a great combination, where stevia by itself is a little off-putting. Agave has a low-glycemic index, which means in some cases, safe for diabetics, but overall, a great alternative to using natural cane sugar. Stevia has no calories. I take 4 cups of brewed mate and mix while hot four teaspoons of steiva, and two tablespoons of agave nectar (I prefer the raw or amber variety, but any will do). You can buy stevia in bulk at your regular supermarket now (Stevia in the Raw).
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So this is like a Sweet Tea you would find in any southern restaurant but pumped up with health-giving benefits, and low in sugars. Another drink I have made for my clients is called Iced Mate Latte and has unsweetened coconut milk (a brand called So Delicious, again found at most supermarkets now, and is coconut beverage, not canned coconut milk, you would use for soups), cardamom and cinnamon, and the stevia/agave combination. The recipe is: 2 cups brewed Mate, cooled, 1 cup So Delicious Coconut Beverage, unsweetened, 2 1/2 teaspoons Stevia, 4 teaspoons Agave Nectar, 1 cup ice, 3/4 teaspoon. Cardamom, 1 teaspoon Cinnamon, and two pinches of Sea Salt. Put all ingredients in a blender and blend, serve immediately.
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I made a new drink this week that was inspired by these expensive drinks you get at Whole Foods called Amazake, which are fermented rice or almond beverages, and are really delicious. I take almonds and simmer them, blend and let sit in the refrigerator for a day to get that slightly fermented component, which I believe helps to promote good intestinal flora, and blend it with the Sweet Mate and some frozen mango. I call this drink Ama-Mate Mango Shake, because it is a tea, but is thick like a smoothie.
The recipe for Ama-Mate Mango Shake is: take 1/2 cup whole Raw Almonds and 1/2 cup filtered water and bring to a boil in a saucepan, then turn heat to low and simmer for ten minutes. Let it cool and add to a blender with another 1/2 cup of filtered water. Blend then pour into a container and refrigerate overnight. The next day pour this Almond mixture back into the blender and add one cup of frozen Mango chunks, one tablespoon of Agave, 1 teaspoon of Stevia, a pinch of Sea Salt, and 2 cups of brewed Mate, cooled. Blend and serve. Delicious. Try making your own Mate drinks, or try drinking it straight, it is really enjoyable!
In a blender add the following:
2 cups cooled or room temp Mate
1 cups So Delicious Coconut Beverage (unsweetened)
2 1/2 tsp. Stevia Powder
4 tsp. Agave Nectar
1 cup ice
3/4 tsp. Cardamom
1 tsp. Cinnamon
2 pinches Sea Salt
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Chef Barry Kraemer
Organic Athletic Performance Cuisine
404.372.3699
chefbarry@comcast.net
www.chefkraemer.com