I’m excited to be sharing the recipe for my citrus turmeric tonic with you today, straight from my online program, the Love Your Lifestyle plan.
I like to make a batch of this zippy drink and store it in the refrigerator for my husband and I to enjoy over a couple days, especially when we’re feeling run down or about to enter a busier, more taxing season in our lives.
This citrus turmeric tonic is warming, spicy and can be served hot or cold. Lately, I’ve been enjoying it hot mid-afternoon, whereas my husband prefers a cold glass in the morning. This drink stars simple ingredients that you are bound to have in your pantry like lemon, orange, ginger and honey, along with the golden-girl of the wellness world, turmeric.
What is turmeric?
Turmeric is a member of the ginger family and if you’ve never purchased it before, it’s easy to confuse the two. An easy way to spot the difference is its unmistakable gold flesh. As a matter of fact, turmeric is the spice responsible for curry’s bright yellow hue. Commonly used in South Asian cooking, turmeric has also been used as a healing herb for thousands of years, with Western medicine beginning to mount evidence for its potential as a neutraceutical.
What are the health benefits of turmeric?
Turmeric has become one of the most extensively researched herbs over the last 50 years due to curcumin, one of the root’s components. Curcumin has demonstrated impressive antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, anticancer activity and has been studied for its protective role in a number of diseases. While the research has been promising, much of it has come from isolated curcumin, a compound that has very low bioavailability in humans, calling into question its use as a therapeutic agent.
Despite this caveat, we need to remember to keep our focus on whole foods over isolated nutrients. When you do this, you reap the benefit of the synergistic effect of all compounds within a food, just as nature intended. Her healthy matrix or “recipe” just can’t be replicated elsewhere!
In a nutshell, building whole turmeric, either ground or freshly grated, into your diet is something you can start today and feel good about, conclusively.
How do I buy and store turmeric?
Spices have a shelf-life. If you’re buying dried ground turmeric, get it from a place with a fast turnover, like a spice market or speciality store. This way, you know it’s as fresh as possible. Once home, store your spices in a dark, cool area and in an airtight container. Fresh turmeric root is definitely worth it if you can find it! Look for it in the produce section of your grocery or health food store and keep it in the refrigerator. Treat it like ginger. I like using a spoon to peel it before use. Oh and be careful, it stains!
Citrus turmeric tonic
- 2 cups filtered water
- 1 large orange, peeled
- Juice of 1/2 lemon
- 1" piece of fresh ginger, peeled
- 1" piece of fresh turmeric (or 1 teaspoon ground)
- Pinch of cayenne
- 1-2 tablespoons raw honey, to taste
- Place all the ingredients in a power blender and blend on high for 1 minute.
- Strain through a fine-mesh sieve to remove any strands. Serve cold or gently warm over medium heat until just below a simmer.
- Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator and enjoy within 2 days of making.
References
- Linus pauling institute. Curcumin.
- Gupta SC,. Kismali G,. Aggarwal BB. (2013) Curcumin, a component of turmeric: from farm to pharmacy.
- Jager R,. Lowery RP,. Calvanese AV,. Joy JM,. Purpura M,. Wilson JM. (2014) Comparative absorption of curcumin formulations
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