Around October of last year, just as the leaves were squeezing into their orange party dresses, I was diagnosed with bacterial pneumonia. The only thing that really helped, apart from lining up an army of water bottles on the ledge of my bed and buying stock in lozenges, was consuming copious amounts of golden milk. Most of you probably know Heidi Swanson, voice behind 101cookbooks.com; if you’re around my age, you grew up with her, coming of age as soba noodles and tofu-based dips and spelt pancakes entered mainstream language. Still, I’m not sure I ever imagined sipping on a latte bowl dancing with warming spices and sweetened with local honey.
This version — one I’ve come to appreciate quite a lot — is mine. You can serve it at lukewarm temperature if you like. It’s how I drink it, when I’m busy doing important things like dancing in my kitchen all by myself and pretending like I don’t have piles of work on my plate, or when it’s warm and I’m craving something comforting. You can also serve it piping hot, though I recommend adding the lime juice at the end. That’s how I like to serve it when it’s damp in Toronto, when the city’s spirit seems to slip behind the shadows. It’s dark and depressing.
Golden Milk Recipe
A delicious, comforting recipe you’re sure to want to make again and agazin!
Prep time: 5 minutes
Cook time: 1 minute
- Turmeric Paste
- ¼ cup ground turmeric
- ½ cup or so of filtered water
- Pinch of salt
- Generous pinch black pepper
- Golden Milk
- 2 tbsp hemp seeds
- 1 cup of filtered water
- 1 – 2 tsp turmeric paste
- 1 tsp – 1 tbsp local or Manuka honey
- ½ tsp ground ginger (optional)
- Juice of ½ lime
- 1 tsp – 1 tbsp coconut oil or MCT oil
- In a small bowl, add the turmeric powder, black pepper, and salt. Stir in water slowly until the mixture forms a paste (about ½ cup of water or slightly less.)
- In a high-speed blender, combine the hemp seeds and water and blitz until frothy and fully combined, about 50 seconds.
- Add the remaining ingredients (turmeric paste, honey or other sweetener, ginger, lime, coconut oil) and blend until fully combined, about 45 seconds. Serve or continue to blend until heated. If you like, you can also reserve the lime juice until after the milk has been warmed.
Love turmeric? Try this next: Turmeric Coconut Ice cream Recipe