5 healthy and seasonal drinks to replace your morning cup of coffee
On most days, the best part of waking up is having your morning cup of coffee.
But if you’re anything like me, there are some days where you wake up and you’re feeling a bit adventurous. A cup of coffee doesn’t quite fit the bill and you wanna step outside of your everyday mocha routine to spice things up a bit.
Here’s a list of five of my favorite healthy and seasonal coffee-free drinks that I’ve been drinking whenever I feel the need to switch up my morning routine.
I hope you find one to enjoy!
Turmeric Latte
This latte is one of my favorites mainly because of how easy it is to customize to your liking. It’s also incredibly simple and quick!
I love consuming turmeric because the spice contains powerful antioxidants that help with inflammation. This is a great morning drink for recovery days or when your body is feeling a little achy from the brutal winter cold.
The ground pepper in the recipe is an important addition to this latte because it helps your body absorb the antioxidant curcumin that turmeric contains. In lieu of or in tandem with ground black pepper, you can also add fresh cayenne pepper if you wanna spice things up a bit even more.
Here’s what you’ll need:
- 1 cup of your milk of choice (I like using plain soy milk)
- 1 tsp ground turmeric
- Honey, agave, maple syrup, or sweetener of choice
- Cinnamon
- Freshly ground pepper or cayenne pepper
Here’s what you do:
Combine all ingredients in a saucepan except for your sweetener. Stir to combine then let the milk come to a simmer. Be sure not to boil or cook it so keep stirring until it gets hot, then remove from heat. Add your sweetener at the end, pour into a morning vessel of choice, and enjoy!
Matcha Latte (iced or hot)
This is also one of my favorite drinks when I’m craving something other than coffee.
I love this latte so much that I actually made a video about this recipe which you can watch here:
This latte can be enjoyed either hot or cold, though I prefer to drink it cold and out of a glass jar.
Yes, so very Millennial, but the presentation is half the fun in my humble opinion.
Here’s what you’ll need to make this quick and simple matcha latte:
- One jar (mason jar or some random clean empty jar)
- 2 tsp matcha powder
- 2 tablespoons of boiling water (boiling water is important here)
- 1.5 or 2 cups of cold milk of choice
- Honey or sweetener of choice
- Ice
Here’s what you do:
Boil your water, add matcha powder to your jar. Add the boiling water to the jar and shake for a minute to combine. Make sure you get all the matcha lumps out. After you’re done shaking, add your sweetener to the hot mix. Be sure to add your sweetener to the hot water since it won’t dissolve if you add it to the cold milk and ice. Then, add the cold milk and ice to the jar, give it another ASMR-style shake, and enjoy!
Fresh sparkling cranberry juice with lime and ice
I love the fall and winter seasons because of how accessible and affordable fresh cranberries are to find and buy!
I love making my own cranberry juice with fresh cranberries because it’s super easy and such an affordable alternative to buying sugar-loaded cranberry juice from the store.
This drink is super nice to have in the mornings when you’re craving something cold. It also is very refreshing so it helps you feel recharged from the night before!
First, you’ll need to make cranberry juice.
It’s SO easy, you’ll probably never buy cranberry juice from the store again.
Here’s what you need:
- One 16 oz pack of fresh cranberries
- 128+ oz of water (or however much juice you want to make or will fit in your pot)
- Honey, agave, or sweetener of your choice (or no sweetener if you don’t want to add more sugar)
- A strainer
- A pitcher
Here’s what you’re going to do:
First, rinse and sort your cranberries. Pick out any rotted cranberries. Then fill a large pot with fresh water. Put it on the stove, add your cranberries, and bring to a rolling boil.
Cover with a lid because your cranberries will start to pop and burst in the pot! Once your water comes to a boil, let it boil for a good 10 to 15 minutes. Then, open the lid, give it a stir and squish down your berries to release more of the juices.
Put the lid back on your pot and drop the heat down to a simmer and let your juice simmer for another 45 minutes. If you have time, let it simmer for longer than 45 minutes so you get as much juice as possible out of your berries.
Then, take your pot off the stove and strain your berries and juice into a large bowl. Add your sweetener while your juice is still hot. Transfer your juice to your pitcher, throw it in the fridge, and let it cool overnight.
An important note here is to not throw away your cranberry mash! You can save this and enjoy it in your oatmeal, in your yogurt, make a nice cranberry sauce, or even just enjoy it plain as a healthy snack!
Now, to make the sparkling cranberry juice w/ lime, you’ll need:
- 8 oz sparkling water
- 8 oz of your fresh cranberry juice
- A few slices of lime, or lime juice
- Ice
I’m sure you could work out what to do here, but just in case:
Add sparkling water to your cup, bottle, or jar, add the cranberry juice. Throw in your lime slices or lime juice and ice, give it a swirl, and enjoy!
This is a nice refreshing, healthy, and seasonal drink! It can be enjoyed any time of day whenever you need a little pick-me-up!
Pumpkin Pie Latte
As I’m sure you can relate, I love anything and everything pumpkin! And there’s something about drinking your pumpkin that is soo satisfying.
This pumpkin pie latte is quick, easy, and healthy because pumpkin is a great source of Vitamins C and E, beta carotene, and fiber.
You can use a blender for this recipe, but you don’t need it. Just be sure to whisk your pumpkin well to make sure there are no leftover clumps in your latte (unless you’re into that sort of thing then in which case, lump it up.)
Here’s what you’ll need:
- 2 tablespoons canned pumpkin or fresh pumpkin puree
- 1 cup of your milk of choice
- Cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves (OR premade pumpkin pie spice)
- ¼ teaspoon vanilla extract
- Honey, agave, maple syrup, or sweetener of choice
Here’s what you do:
Add your milk to a saucepan and put it over medium heat. You don’t want to cook your milk so bring it a low simmer. Then, add your pumpkin, spices, and sweetener to the pan. Mix well with a whisk. Then, transfer to a mug, top with a little whipped cream if you have it on hand, and enjoy!
Again, feel free to throw your latte into a blender to make it even smoother and frothier before consuming.
Classic Chai Latte
Is there anything better than a classic chai latte on a frigid winter’s morning?
Enjoy this baby with some homemade scones, leftover holiday pie, or a piece of toast with butter and homemade jam on it? That’s bliss right there.
I love tea and I drink tea more than I drink coffee so this is a staple in my morning beverage rotation.
The trick to a good chai latte is to use twice as many tea leaves in your latte as you would if you were making a regular cup of tea. This ensures that the taste of the tea isn’t lost in the milk.
Here’s what you’ll need:
- 2 tablespoons (or tea bags) or your tea of choice (earl grey is delicious in the morning, as is a classic spiced chai — remember, use twice as much as your normally would)
- ½ cup boiling water
- ½ cup milk of choice
- Honey, agave, maple syrup, or sweetener of choice
Here’s what you do:
Make a cup of tea as you normally would. Let your tea steep for a bit longer than you usually do to really make sure the tea is flavorful and rich. Add your sweetener to your hot tea, stir to dissolve. While your tea is steeping, add your milk to a saucepan over low heat. Heat it up so it’s hot, but don’t boil and cook it! Froth your milk up a bit with your whisk then add your milk to your tea, stir, and enjoy!
It’s good to spice things up and try something new every once in a while, especially as we inch closer to the new year!
I hope you try out one of these drinks and let me know what you think!
