Lovely Chili Hot Chocolate with Rose Petals

Love-Me-Dew at Shine Restaurant & Gathering Place, Boulder, CO

 

On a recent visit to Boulder, I had the pleasure of visiting one of my favorite restaurants, Shine Restaurant and Gathering Place. And one of my favorite things about Shine is their offering of “potions,” which are a “thoughtfully and lovingly concocted array of fantastic, non-alcoholic brews, using a rich assortment of herbs, vibrational-essences, juices, spices, coconut milk and natural sodas.”

This time around, I tried the Love-Me-Dew, which is coconut milk infused with cocoa, chili powder, rose petals, raspberry agave and vibrational essence of rose quartz. It is designed to enhance feelings of self-acceptance and self-love. It certainly evoked feelings of love for this drink – since I tasted it, I have been craving it! So, I thought I would try making my own version given ingredients I had around the house.

Here is my version:

• 2 cups almond milk (best when you have time to make your own)
• 1 tablespoon cocoa powder
• 1 tablespoon maple syrup (more or less, depending on your taste)
• 1/4 teaspoon ancho chili powder (Shine uses chimayo; you can use more or less, depending on how spicy you like it)
• A few sprinkles of finely chopped dried organic rose petals for garnish (make sure you use culinary roses)

Heat the almond milk in a saucepan over medium heat until it just starts to steam. Lower the heat and add the cocoa powder, maple syrup and chili powder. Stir until well-blended and remove from heat. Divide into two ceramic mugs and sprinkle a half-teaspoon of rose petals on top of each. Share the love!

 

Advertisement

Herban Lifestyle Store Grand Opening, Feb 8th!

At the end of November, we moved into a large studio space in the Merrifield neighborhood of Fairfax. The space has a showroom in the front, which we have turned into the Herban Lifestyle Store! To celebrate our new space, we are hosting a Grand Opening on February 8, 2014 from 3:00pm to 6:00pm. We will have food & beverages (including delicious treats from Thunder Pig Confectionary and Momme Meals), samples, product-making demo, discounts and a drawing to win a free DIY kit! For more information, check out our Eventbrite invitation or Facebook Event Page.

At the store, customers can see and sniff our entire line and learn about the various organic and Fair Trade ingredients that go into them. The store also serves as a gathering spot for people to share practical ideas about sustainability, self-sufficiency, creative reuse, and safer products. You are welcome to join events or use hands-on resources at the store, including:

• Workshops where you can learn how to make your own truly natural personal care and household products, as well as other green crafting techniques, including a Couple’s Valentine Craft Night on February 12 and Make Your Own Organic Spa Products on February 19.

• A learning library for those of you who want to make your own bath and body products, plus a variety of USDA Certified Organic and Fair Trade Certified ingredients and sustainable packaging.

We hope you can join us!

Introducing Herban Crafts: Crafting a Better World!

Karen Lee of EcoKaren and I have partnered on a new social enterprise, Herban Crafts, that will offer a job and social skills training program to unemployed women in transitional housing in the DC and NY areas. To support our programming, Herban Crafts will sell DIY kits for various types of earth-friendly products. The kits will be manufactured, in part, by the trainees as part of their job skills training.

The first set of kits will teach people how to make their own organic bath and body products, and we will be adding additional types of kits in the future. We believe teaching people how to make their own products is empowering, and we also see it as an opportunity to teach people about the importance and joys of working with organic, fair trade, recycled and repurposed materials.

Our mission is multi-fold: to promote self-sufficiency while also supporting the health and wellbeing of people and the planet; and to help address the problem of unemployment, a contributing factor to homelessness, by offering a hands-on job and social skills training program for unemployed women living in transitional housing.

You can find more information about the company and our mission on our IndieGoGo campaign page where you can also pledge to help fund our initial production of kits. Suggested donations start at just $5.00, and there are lots of great rewards for our sponsors! And if this is something that you believe in as much as we do, please help spread the word to your friends on social media and via e-mail. And we hope you will follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Pinterest for updates!

For an idea of our overall mission and plan, you can view our presentation from the 2012 Global Health and Innovation Conference held at Yale University on April 22, 2012.

Herban Crafts Global Health & Innovation Conference 2012

Love Your Mamma and Mamma Earth!

The following post is by Katie Peige, Herban Lifestyle’s Sustainability Associate.

Mother’s Day – a time to show your appreciation and gratitude for the love, support, and caring of the wonderful mothers out there. This Mother’s Day, why not show your love for the special mother in your life and the greatest mother of them all: Mother Earth! In case you are still wracking your brain for the perfect gift or activity, here are a few ideas to make both Mammas happy.

As we have mentioned before in our Valentine’s blog there are many sustainable, local options for the traditional gifts (flowers, chocolates, cards) and plenty of fun things to do in Washington DC in the spring such as picnics, trips to the Smithsonian, and checking out some local festivals and events. Recently, Mary and I checked out the new sustainable boutique CARBON at the March SBNOW event. At this great little boutique, one can find the perfect Mother’s Day gift amongst the gorgeous clothes, shoes and beautiful jewelry made by local artisans (including one of our favorites, Melissa Lew, who makes gorgeous pieces from recycled silver). You can also check out these unique, creative, and totally awesome gift guides on two of my favorite websites Earth911.com and Treehugger.com. You can also snag a beautiful, unique piece on Ebay’s World of Good which will make your mother happy, mother Earth happy and bring economic opportunity to women abroad.

Organic Bouquet is waiving their shipping surcharge for orders placed by 3:00pm today (5/6/11). Not only are the flowers organic and sustainably grown, but if you go through this link, 10% of your order will go to Green America.

Personally, my sister and I are going to give the gift of food to our mother this year by whipping up some favorites in the kitchen. Check out our previous blog posts for some tasty recipes to delight your Mother’s taste buds. As always, the best place to find your ingredients would be at one of your local DC farmer’s markets, which are now in season! Don’t forget to look for ingredients that are local, fair trade, organic and free range. If you are looking to dine out or have been banned from the kitchen by your mother, my go to resource is the Eat Well Guide, which lists 54 sustainable restaurants in the DC area. Delicious! So many restaurants, so little time!

Remember to also check out our website for local, organic, and fair trade bath and beauty products such as our popular fuzzy soaps, lip balms, body butters, bath salts, and facial masques.

Have a blast celebrating your Mother and Mother Earth on Sunday!

[tweetmeme source=”herbanlifestyle” service=”tinyurl.com”]

Vegan Chocolate Tapioca Pudding

If you are looking for a rich, deeply chocolate dessert, this recipe is delicious, satisfies chocolate cravings and it’s vegan and gluten-free! I adapted this recipe from one that came on a box of the organic granulated tapioca.

Ingredients:
2 cups organic coconut milk
1/4 cup organic fair trade cocoa powder
2 tablespoons granulated organic tapioca
2 tablespoons maple syrup (more if you like your desserts sweeter)

Heat the coconut milk and tapioca in a saucepan over medium low heat, stirring frequently. Cook for 10 to 12 minutes, or until the tapioca has become clear, and the whole mixture thickens. Add cocoa and stir until well-blended. Remove from heat, and blend in the maple syrup. Pour into a heat proof bowl and refrigerate. Serve chilled.

[tweetmeme source=”herbanlifestyle” service=”tinyurl.com”]

Have an Eco-friendly Valentine’s Day!

Herban Lifestyle Bath Bonbons made with Fair Trade Cocoa Butter

This post was written by Katie Peige, Herban Lifestyle’s Sustainability Associate

This Valentine’s Day, you can show your love for the people in your life and your planet with eco-friendly gifts and experiences. Herban Lifestyle offers a range of bath and body products that are made with natural, organic, and fair trade ingredients, which you already know from reading this blog. But what about some other Valentine’s Day treats and traditions? Here are some ideas for gifts that are kind to you, your loved ones, and the planet:

• For cards, go paperless with e-cards or get crafty and re-make some cards out of old cards or magazines. Another fun option is to send a grow-a-note card that has seeds embedded in the paper so you can send a card and flowers all in one! Greenfield Paper Company offers a huge selection, as do several Etsy sellers, including girl*in*gear studio, who has some gorgeous plantable Valentine cards. Petco also carries them as does Capitol Hemp, and My Organic Market.

image copyright girl*in*gear studio

• Flowers travel long distances to get to us, often from South America requiring a lot of fuel. Together with the pesticides needed to grow them, cut flowers can have a very large carbon footprint. This Valentine’s Day opt for a potted plant or an organic, local bouquet of flowers. Check out the very sustainable Green Space for bouquets and plants.

image copyright Divine Chocolate

• Show your love for the world and your gift recipients by going with organic and fair trade chocolate this Valentine’s Day. There are many brands with exquisite products, like Divine Chocolate. Mmmm, it’s orgasmic! Remember to look for organic and local wines while you are at it!

Herban Lifestyle Fuzzy Valentine Soap

• Save water, bathe together! And bring some of our earth-friendly bath products to add some sassy fun to the experience.

• For date ideas, check out the Eat Well Guide to find local and sustainable restaurants in your area or head to the local museums and parks via the Metro system.

• Plan a staycation in the DC area, its all the fun of a vacation only locally and definitely screams green both for the environment and your wallet! Plus, there are many wonderful Smithsonian museums with free admission, all of which are Metro accessible.

image copyright Smithsonian Museum of American Art

• If you do decide to travel, check into a green hotel that seeks to reduce their water use and have a low impact on the environment. You can search for green hotels using the “Green” Hotels Association webpage.

• Give cco lingerie: feel sassy and sexy in organic cotton, organic hemp, organic silk, recycled fibers, or Lenpur, a material made from white pine tree clippings. It’s the gift that satisfies you and your partner and is available for men and women. Check out Treehugger’s guide to sustainable lingerie here.

image copyright EarthSake

• Sleep on organic cotton or bamboo sheets. You’ll sleep soundly knowing that your soft as silk sheets have a lower impact on the Planet.

• If this turns out to be one of the most important Valentine’s Day ever, spare yourself from conflict by purchasing responsibly sourced diamonds and fair trade metals. Or go vintage: A family heirloom or beautiful antique ring makes a very romantic statement.

And, of course, check out the Herban Lifestyle website for our fun Valentine gift sets that will really get you in the mood!

Introducing the new Herban Lifestyle Naked Line

the new Herban Lifestyle Naked Line

Herban Lifestyle recently launched a new beauty and skin care line that is stripped down to the bare essentials. Herban Lifestyle’s Naked™ line uses only the highest quality natural, organic, and fair trade ingredients that have been minimally processed and void of any harsh chemicals.

Naked Body Butters

The line includes body butter, belly balm, mineral soak, bath tea, healing salve, lip balm, body soap, facial soap, facial masque, and facial toner. Prices range from $5 for the lip balm to $35 for the bath tea.

Naked Cold-Processed Unscented Soap

“My new line celebrates the gifts of the earth and the naked beauty in each one of us. We encourage everyone to get Naked and relish nature at its best,” says Kearns. “Each product is designed to provide luxurious body care while using rich natural ingredients and making a minimum impact on the earth.”

Naked Chocolate Vanilla Lip Balm

In keeping with Herban Lifestyle’s commitment to the earth, all Naked products come in glass or aluminum containers with 100% recycled labels. As with all Herban Lifestyle products, 10% of gross sales from the Naked line are donated to nonprofits promoting the health and wellbeing of people and planet.

Happy Lucky’s Tea House and Treasures: Serving Up World Change

On our recent trip to the West, we stopped in the city of Fort Collins, CO on our way to Montana via South Dakota. We didn’t spend much time, just enough to have lunch at Coopersmith’s Pub & Brewing, which has a wonderful menu with fresh, local items and several vegetarian options. We wanted to grab some coffee for the road, and my eye was caught by an interesting looking store/tea house with an inviting looking name – Happy Lucky’s Tea House and Treasures.

This light-filled shop, housed in a former firehouse, had high ceilings, and beautiful exposed brick walls. Along one area, shelves were lined with tins labeled with all sorts of appealing-sounding tea names. Happy Lucky carries over 100 whole leaf teas. They also carry a nice selection of fresh baked goods from local bakers including galettes, scones, cookies and lemon bars.

I chose a very sensual smelling chocolate and cinnamon tea, and a gluten-free oatmeal bar to go with it. While I was waiting for my tea to brew, I looked around the light-filled, colorful space. Across from the cash register was a hand-written sign explaining why there were paper cranes in a basket and adorning the brick wall. The story of Sadako and the 1000 origami cranes has always touched me, and I thought of it the other day on the 65th anniversary of the bombing of Hiroshima.

In the back of the store, there was a nice selection of fair trade handbags, clothing and accessories handmade in Cambodia. Several handbags and accessory pouches caught my eye, but I resisted since I already have an ample collection at home. All of the bags were very attractive and made with repurposed materials.

In reading some literature on a table in the store, I found out that the Cambodian goods are tied into the Happy Lucky mission to support fair trade and education – 10% of profits from the teahouse go to support education in Cambodia via a donation to Sustainable Schools International.

Sustainable Schools International works with poor, rural and marginalized communities in Cambodia to sustain their schools in ways that serve their children and support community needs. Kari Grady Grossman, who was working the counter at Happy Lucky the day I visited, is the Executive Director of Sustainable Schools International (formerly know as Friends of the Grady Grossman School).

According to the Sustainable Schools International website, “In March 2001 George and Kari Grady Grossman traveled to Cambodia to adopt their son. Their desire to leave a legacy of hope for the children left behind led them to American Assistance for Cambodia, a Phnom Penh based humanitarian organization that builds rural schools. They spent three months selling photographs on the internet to raise the $15,700 for a school to be build in their son’s honor. Their donation was matched by the World Bank and construction of the Grady Grossman School began.”

I love discovering businesses that do well, do good and have amazing products. Happy Lucky Tea House and Treasures certainly fits the bill. If I lived closer, I would be a regular!

Happy Lucky is located at 236 Walnut Street in the Old Town section of Fort Collins. If you are interested in finding out more, or hearing about their daily specials, you can visit their website, Fan them on Facebook, or follow them on Twitter @happyluckys.

[tweetmeme style=”compact” source=”herbanlifestyle” service=”tinyurl.com”]