Healthy Drink/Lunch

Place 1 banana (ends trimmed but WITH peel) into a blender or juicer.
Add 1 large carrot (ends trimmed but with peel)
And 1 apple, peel on, seeds and stem removed
About 1 cup water (maybe more to desired consistency)

Be sure to wash the banana, carrot and apple well!

Puree until smooth. Makes about 1 16-oz cup.

Thanks to my friend, Kimberly Littreal, I found out that juicing the banana with the peel adds a lot of nutrients and helps with depression and vision. 

Lemon Ginger Honey Tea (Immune support and cold assist)

We've already experienced our first colds of the season at the Harlow Homestead. I've made several rounds of this tea. I enjoy it, but it takes lots of encouragement to get the rest of the family to drink it. Adjust ingredients to desired strength/taste. You only need three ingredients. Fresh Ginger Root, Honey and Fresh Lemon.

Grate about 1 inch of the ginger root. (I keep one in the freezer.) A micro-planer works well for grating this.
Juice one lemon (I also use the micro-planer and add a little lemon zest.)
Honey to taste.

Boil water. Meanwhile, put the grated ginger, juice of lemon and honey into a thermos. Add boiling water and steep for about 20 minutes. Pour through strainer into cup. Enjoy (or according to my husband, tolerate.) The original recipe came from this link.

Lemon Lavendar Tea

Another summertime favorite

For a half-gallon of tea, brew 2 family-sized (or 6 regular) black tea bags in 16 oz of boiling water. I use Luzianne decaffeinated black tea.) Add a few sprigs if fresh lavender and a few sprigs of fresh lemon balm. Brew together for a total of 30 minutes or more. Pour over ice into pitcher. Add a fresh sliced lemon. Delish!

Iced Green Tea

I'm a big fan of green tea. Hot or cold, I have developed a taste for this stuff. I drink several cups a day. Instead of buying bottled green tea, I make my own. One box of 24 family-sized tea bags (I prefer Luzianne decaffeinated) makes 6 gallons equal to 48 16oz bottles of bought tea. Much cheaper and tastier in my opinion. I don't care for sweet drinks so it is always unsweetened for me, but if you must have it sweet, choose an all-natural sweetener and add just enough to make it tolerable for you. I use 2 tea bags for a half-gallon as the box suggests and brew for a good 30 minutes. If you use a lot of ice, use 3 tea bags. Add water and ice to fill up the pitcher and add a sliced fresh lemon or lime. Makes a refreshing summertime drink.

Iced Coffee (Another great potluck contribution!)

Iced Coffee

4 cups strongly brewed hot coffee (regular or decaf)
1 cup granulated sugar
1-2 teaspoons vanilla
Ice
Milk

Pour strongly brewed hot coffee into 1-gallon pitcher. Add sugar and stir until dissolved. Add vanilla. Add enough ice to fill pitcher to 1/3 or 1/2 full. Pour milk into pitcher until full. Stir well and serve immediately. (If taking to a potluck, use a thermal drink container so it stays cold.) People will love you at the family reunion or summer holiday gathering for providing this special treat.)