Fresh Mint Mocha Cold Brew Coffee

When there were only two coffee shops in town, you had your pick between Cup of Coffee, a large coffee shop with lots of seating and lots of windows (so many it feels fish-bowl-esque) and Vic's, which was downtown so you'd have to find parking or walk (or find parking and then walk). This was not, for any kid in their late teens, "the promise land." When you asked around, no one was looking towards graduation and saying, "I think I'll stay here." 

At first, things changed slowly. Too slow too notice even. A restaurant went in one year and just sat for a while, becoming an icon of main street in it's own time. A few years later a new coffee shop opened, and it was far cuter than the original two. They sold coffee from an old-timey house that was full of character, called their shop "Bitter Sweet" and encouraged you to sip your drink from their patio. Bitter Sweet turned on twinkle lights after sun down and served wine. 

Then it was like dominos. Almost the entire west side of Main Street was revamped. It feels like it happened over night but these things take time. I was in college, and every time I came back it looked different: A new barbeque joint replaced something that none of us remember. A taco shop went in next door (a second went in around the corner, because every small town needs a selection when it comes to tacos), and a new ice cream parlor opened up down the block. The old ice cream shop has since closed. The new shop serves flavors someone could've made up on a whim, like Honey Maple Grapefruit and Apple Pie. In terms of ice cream shops, it's pretty darn good. 

Next came, an artisan bakery that serves espresso and sandwiches. Pizza. A new yoga studio. A kitchen store 😍. You get the picture.

Living in the town you grew up in never had much appeal. Part of me never even considered it as an option. The way my mom spoke of her hometown probably reinforced this. The way my dad spoke of the suburbs certainly did. I was young, I had plans! I was going places. I wasn't sure where, but I was getting my degree in Spanish and that was certainly going to take me somewhere. 

It's a mixed bag when you tell people, "I'm from here," because part of you is so proud that you--yes, you!- are the one native left on the block. You are the O.G. Other than that small nugget of pride, part of you also shrinks inside: "Hi, I'm me, and I'm still right here where I've always been." 

Not a century ago, generations on generations stayed in the same home town. Today, it comes with such a stigma. And what for? This town has grown with me. I have grown with it. I have seen plenty of other towns. They were great. This one is too. So I'm taking all of the feelings that come with that stigma, and I'm balling them up, and I'm throwing them out the window. Will you join me? Toss out the heaviness you feel when you explain why you are where you are, and instead wear it with pride (this goes for anyone, where ever they are--home town or not). You worked hard for it, after all. (This is a technique a sports psychologist taught me: Bad day? Ball it up, and flush it down the toilet. Let go.) 

Mint Mocha Cold Brew Coffee

Paleo, Primal, Grain-Free    |   Caitlin Sherwood    

Cold brew coffee is refreshing and less acidic than regular coffee. The addition of cocoa and mint add a smoothness to this cold brew and a note of freshness that will wake you right up.

Yields: 4 cups   |    Total Time: 10 active minutes

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Ingredients:

• 1/4 cup ground coffee of choice
• 2 tablespoons cocoa powder
• 2 tablespoons maple syrup or sweetener of choice
• 1/4 cup fresh mint leaves, loosely packed
• 1 liter water

Directions:

1. Place all ingredients in a pitcher and put in fridge. Allow to seep for 24 hours.
2. Remove from fridge and strain coffee through a coffee filter or even a very fine mesh tea stainer into serving glasses/mugs. Serve with ice and milk or cream as desired.

Double Chocolate Hot Cocoa Mix Recipe

Utah captured my heart this Spring. Spring in Utah is a funny thing-- not really spring, March in the desert is more like half winter and half summer.  

When the morning wakes you, you’ll find your sleeping bag pulled as high around your head as it can go, covering your cheeks and leaving just enough space so to breath. Eventually, motivated by the thought of coffee, or tea, or anything warm, you'll peek out, and see the snow, still coming down in oversized flakes that fall impossibly slow. Lighting that two-burner camping stove will never sound so good.  

Outside, there is a different view in every direction, but all of them will make you feel small — just a tiny human, standing on a slice of something far too large to imagine. Cliffs, a deep crimson color, tower above. They sit gallantly on piles of sand, like the earth's version of sandcastles, displaying layer on layer of dirt. Each layer seems to expose something about the world, every band of sand marking an era of the past. At their feet grow short and twisted juniper trees, struggling to grow.  

When the water boils, and you pull it from the stove, the pot will spout a tower of steam into the air above, melting the snow as it falls. When you turn around, you’ll see a mountain range all Coloradans know well, crisp and white, capped with ice. They look bigger from Utah, surrounded by flat plains, deep rifts, and the occasional rock spire. You’ll know what I mean when you see it for yourself: it’s as if those mountains scrape the clouds off of the sky, catching them on their peaks and hanging on.  

The snow will eventually stop (it’s spring, after all), and the unshielded sun will melt every white patch away. The desert sand will suck up any moisture that remains, and by 10 the ground will be dry again, as if nothing happened. That's when you’ll sit back in a folding chair, a rich mug of homemade hot chocolate in hand.  

There is nothing to feel other than awe. Belittled by the jagged, barren canyons and cliffs on one side, humbled by the majestic peaks to the other. Small-- small and awestruck. 

Here is a beverage to drink on those chilly mornings at camp, or around the campfire in the evening — Double chocolate Hot Cocoa. It’s made with bittersweet chocolate and cocoa powder (that’s the “double” part). Dehydrated milk adds creaminess, so even when you’re out exploring you don’t have to remember the milk! Though, if you are are really prepared, top your mug with a dollop of whipped  cream or marshmallows, and consider a splash of whiskey. Sitting around the campfire has never been so sweet!

(By the way — adding a scoop to your coffee is a very good idea. Mocha, here I come!)

Double Chocolate Hot Cocoa Mix Recipe

Published March 27, 2016 by Caitlin Sherwood

Serves: 8   |    Active Time: 20 minutes

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Ingredients:

1-3 tablespoons coconut sugar (depending on how sweet you would like your cocoa — 1 for not very sweet, 3 for more sweet)

Pinch salt

1/4 cup bittersweet chocolate chips or chunks

1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

1/3 cup dehydrated non-fat milk powder

To make cocoa: 8 ounces of water; and whipped cream or marshmallows for serving

Directions:

1. Place coconut sugar, salt, and chocolate in blender or food processor and pulse until a fine powder is formed.
2. Add cocoa powder and milk powder, and pulse blender again, just until everything is incorporated.
3. Store cocoa mix in a air-tight jar.
4. To make cocoa: Bring 8 ounces of water to a boil. Whisk 2 heaping tablespoons of cocoa mix with the water until dissolved. (To get the froth shown in the images, use a hand-held milk aerator). Pour cocoa into mug, and top with whipped cream or marshmallows as desired.

Secret Garden Relaxation Tea

“If you look the right way, you can see that the whole world is a garden.” ― Frances Hodgson Burnett, The Secret Garden

It started with a french press. Then, my roommate and I purchased a tiny little espresso machine at Target. It was just barely small enough for our micro-kitchen, but we made it work. We'd whisk up some milk for a bit of froth, and add some flavored syrup to our joe. 

When summer came, and we no longer wanted steamy drinks, we made our own cold brew. I'd stir cocoa powder and cinnamon into my grounds, and we'd sit by the pool sipping away. That cold brew was so smooth, we could easily drink a whole liter in one sitting. It took about 3 months to take me from coffee hater to coffee lover, and then I was hooked.

At some point I realized just how much caffeine I was drinking, and I decided I probably needed to stop--I was running more, and needed more sleep as well as more water. I gave up coffee entirely, went "cold turkey". 

Talk about a struggle! I'll never live down the one day that my dad scored tickets to see Ira Glass. In the car, I told him how I was giving up coffee and felt great about it. An hour later, listening to Ira Glass (whom I adore, and am constantly inspired by,) I fell asleep. Right there, in my chair. I missed most of the show, but man did I sleep well that night. 

Since I've recovered from my caffeine withdrawal -- I drink mostly tea (spicy chai lattes!), but I do enjoy a good cup of coffee once or twice a week. Instead of drink bottomless mugs of cold brew, I drink teas like this one: Secret Garden Relaxation Tea. With chamomile, lavender, lemon balm, and spearmint it's beckons visions of a garden. A secret garden, where you can let it all go and just breath. 

Secret Garden Relaxation Tea

Paleo, Gluten-Free, Grain-Free    |   Caitlin Sherwood    

Yield: 1 cup dried tea    |    Total Time: 15 minutes

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Ingredients:

• 6 tablespoons chamomile
• 4 tablespoons lavender
• 2 tablespoons licorice
• 4 tablespoons lemon balm
• 2 tablespoons spearmint

Directions:

1. Place all ingredients in a jar and toss to combine.
2. To make tea/tisane, put 1 teaspoon of herb blend into a tea strainer for every 1 cup of water. Fit tea strainer into tea pot and pour boiling water over herbs. Allow to seep for 5 minutes. Serve with honey if desired.