Homemade nut butter is just the way to go, folks. You only need two ingredients and a food processor to make a smooth and creamy nut butter that is free of preservatives and other unnecessary ingredients. Unlike store bought brands, this macadamia nut butter is free of palm oil, lectins, peanuts, and added sugars. That means that this nut butter is raw vegan, Whole30-approved, Paleo, grain-free, gluten-free, keto, and sugar-free. The subtle hint of sea salt perfectly complements the robust macadamia nuts.

Is homemade macadamia nut butter better than store bought varieties? While both are great options, making your own allows you to control the ingredients and blend until you reach your desired consistency. Perhaps you enjoy a nut butter that is just between chunky and smooth. Maybe you like nut butter to be velvety smooth, and you can have control over that when you make your own. Plus, homemade macadamia nut butter is nearly identical in price as the store bought version. Depending on which stores you have access to, you may or may not always see macadamia nut butter available. If you find raw macadamia nuts, though, you can transform them into a luxurious butter.

You will need a food processor for this recipe because a blender just won’t cut it. To achieve a smooth nut butter, you will probably have to blend for three to five minutes, stopping to scrape down the sides periodically. Just keep blending, scraping down the sides, and blending again until you achieve a smooth consistency. Once you are satisfied, spoon the butter into a container, seal the lid, and refrigerate. Use when ready.

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Have you ever had sudden, painful cramps that just don’t seem to go away? One potential cause is that you are low in potassium. Low potassium levels can also cause muscle weakness, fatigue, muscle spasms, tingling, or numbness. Heart palpitations or skipped heartbeat can be more severe symptoms of low potassium levels. 

It’s possible to fight leg cramps and other issues that stem from low potassium levels by simply increasing your potassium intake. The amount of time it takes to correct low potassium levels depends on how low they are. 

Symptoms Of Low Potassium

The only real way to know if your potassium levels are low is to take a blood test. You will get a more accurate reading of your levels via this route. That said, there are a few telltale symptoms of potassium deficiency that you should be aware of. These symptoms include:

• Muscle cramps, twitching, or severe weakness
• Heart palpitations
• Constipation
• Tingling and numbness

If potassium levels are very low, you may need to take a potassium supplement, or get an IV to elevate them back to a normal range. The quickest way to increase potassium levels in emergency situations is via an IV, which should be administered by a professional in a controlled setting. One report found that an IV can raise potassium levels within 20 to 30 minutes. If you have borderline potassium levels after a sweaty workout, you can use various foods to help bring them back up quickly. Continue reading to learn what foods and drinks may help you do that. 

Sip An Electrolyte Drink

Electrolyte-rich drinks can help replenish minerals, vitamins, and water lost via sweat or periods of diarrhea and vomiting. Not all electrolyte drinks are high in potassium, though. And you should not simply resort to sugary sports drinks to replenish electrolytes, as the preservatives, dyes, and added sugars do more harm than good. Coconut water, for example, is a great electrolyte-rich beverage, but make sure to buy one that is free of added sugars. 

Drink Some Orange Juice

Just as we said previously, the quality of the beverage matters. Many store bought orange juices contain added sugars and preservatives. Go directly to the source by juicing oranges! One cup of orange juice provides nearly 500 milligrams (mg) of potassium, which equates to 11% of the recommended daily intake (RDI). Orange juice may be a convenient way to raise potassium levels, but it tends to be high in sugar. You can also eat oranges to get the same nutrients, plus the fiber that will help the body absorb the natural sugars more slowly. You would need to eat two oranges to get the same amount of potassium as one cup of OJ.

Eat A Banana

This is a classic potassium-rich food, so eat a banana or two next time you are dealing with leg cramps. One medium banana contains 422 mg of potassium, and the potassium in bananas can increase levels within 30 to 60 minutes, per a 2012 health journal. In one study, researchers tested whether eating one or two bananas would increase potassium levels in adult athletes prone to leg cramps. Although there were mild increases in potassium levels in both groups after 30 to 60 minutes, the time it took to increase levels would not benefit an athlete experiencing cramps during competition. To avoid cramps, health experts recommend consuming potassium-rich foods regularly, especially before exercise. 

Eat Some Watermelon

Researchers note that one wedge of watermelon has 320 mg of potassium, making it a great choice for raising potassium levels. Watermelon is also a water-rich fruit (91% water), so it helps to enhance your hydration efforts. It is also rich in vitamins A & C, magnesium, and offers some iron and calcium. According to research, eating watermelon after a workout can help replace water, magnesium, and potassium that you lose via sweat. Drinking watermelon juice after a workout has been associated with reduced muscle soreness after 24 hours. 

Consider Supplementation 

If you consume all of the aforementioned items and your potassium levels remain low, you may want to consider a potassium supplement. Before you start supplementing, consult your healthcare professional to determine whether the supplement is right for you, and to understand proper dosage. The potassium you get via diet and what you supplement should not exceed the RDI, unless directed by your doctor.

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This lemon dressing may be new to our website, but it is already an all-time favorite. It has unique lemon flavor, which makes for a zesty eating experience. Tempered by sweet agave nectar and herbaceous parsley, this dressing goes great with a variety of salad ingredients. Pour it over a combination of romaine lettuce, cherry tomatoes, cucumbers, and bell peppers, or over shredded cabbage, shredded carrots, mandarin segments, and green onion. We love when a dressing is versatile!

Whisk lemon juice, lemon zest, olive oil, mustard powder, sea salt, pepper, and fresh parsley in a small bowl and you have your dressing. Prefer a dressing that is a little smoother? Feel free to add all of the ingredients to a blender and blitz until smooth. The good news is that the preparation method doesn’t change the zesty, delicious flavor. There is just so much to love about his lemon dressing, and here are a few reasons why:

• Very easy to make: This dressing should not take you longer than five minutes to make. Plus, it only requires seven ingredients!
• Endless possibilities: Is your salad in need of a boost? This dressing will elevate any salad to a whole new level! If you don’t want to use it as a salad dressing, consider using it as a marinade for roasted or grilled vegetables or tempeh.
• Clean ingredients: Many store bought dressings contain a lot of problematic ingredients, namely saturated and trans fats, added sugars, excess sodium, and preservatives. These additives keep dressings shelf-stable for longer periods of time. Additionally, they tend to contain lower-quality oils and other ingredients to keep production costs down. This lemon dressing, however, contains simple, healthy ingredients that you can actually pronounce!

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Drinking a smoothie is one of the best ways to get a healthy dose of fruits and veggies in one fell swoop. The best thing about this smoothie is that it tastes like a milkshake. It’s as though you are not even drinking something healthy, but then you see the ingredients and realize that each one exhibits impressive health benefits. This smoothie is as chocolaty as it is healthy, offering lots of protein, healthy fats, antioxidants, vitamins, and minerals.

Unlike most smoothies, this chocolate creation does not have a banana base; rather it uses avocado, which enhances the creaminess. Don’t worry, though, your smoothie will not taste like a large cup of guacamole. You will not even know that the avocado is in the smoothie because the raw cacao powder, fresh raspberries, grade A maple syrup, vanilla extract, and homemade almond milk mask the avocado’s mild flavor. To help enhance the level of creaminess, we suggest that you cube the avocado and freeze it overnight. Now, some stores sell frozen avocado, which you can have while cleansing, so long as there are no preservatives or added sweeteners.

The key with this smoothie is getting the right consistency. You can always add some ice if the smoothie is too thin, or a little extra almond milk if the smoothie is too thick. Feel like you need some extra fiber in your life? Consider adding a tablespoon or less of chia seeds of flax seeds. Need it to be sweeter, add a squeeze of maple syrup at a time and taste until it reaches your desired level of sweetness. You may not even need the sweetener, but that depends on your taste preferences. The main thing is that we hope you enjoy this delicious creation.

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You won’t believe how much better this homemade cranberry juice is than the store bought varieties until you try it for yourself. You can adjust the sweetness to make this the beverage the perfect combination of sweet and tart. Plus, you get to utilize fresh cranberries, which most people avoid when they are in season. That is a sad reality because cranberries have a very limited season, usually from mid-September to late-November or early-December. The point is that you have about two months to use these flavor and nutrient bombs, so get them while the gettin’s good.

There are different types of bottle cranberry juice. The best variety to purchase is the 100% pure cranberry juice, which does not contain added sugars or preservatives. That juice only contains cranberries and the natural sugars in them. Cranberry juice cocktail, for example, can contain nearly 30 grams of sugar in an eight-ounce serving. That doesn’t include the other preservatives and chemicals that that juice cocktail contains.

Fortunately for you, you can avoid all of that if you just make your own cranberry juice. Unlike a traditional juice recipe, this juice comes together with the aid of your blender. First, you will blend the cranberries and water until smooth. Once you do that, pour the blended cranberry mixture through a cheesecloth or fine mesh sieve and strain it into a bowl. Make sure to squeeze all the pulp to get as much liquid out as possible. Once you do that, add that strained liquid back to the blender withe the remaining ingredients, blend, and then serve over ice when ready.

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Do you want to feel unstoppable after your workouts? Do you want to maintain balanced electrolyte levels in the intense summer heat? Well, then you need this homemade watermelon electrolyte drink! Unlike store bought electrolyte drinks, this recipe does not contain an unnecessary amount of added sugars, dyes, artificial flavors, and preservatives. This is a much healthier alternative to a classic sports drink, and it puts a little pep in your step every time you drink it.

Watermelon is one of the favorite fruits of summer. Not only is it fruity, refreshing, hydrating, and delicious, but it is also a great source of electrolytes. Watermelon is mostly water, but it contains magnesium, potassium, and a small amount of sodium as well. These electrolytes can aid with muscle function, hydration, and balancing the body’s fluid levels. Additionally, watermelon contains vitamins A & C and lycopene, which is a antioxidant that benefits heart function.

Although watermelon colors this electrolyte drink a beautiful pinkish-red, it is not the only electrolyte-rich ingredient. Lemons provide lots of potassium, calcium, and magnesium, and help detox the liver, balance pH levels, and boost immune function. Finally, sea salt provide sodium, which is one of the electrolytes that you quickly lose via sweat. Ingesting salt is the easiest way to replenish what you lose. Just make sure that you go for sea salt over table salt because it is less processed.

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Finding ripe mangos in the supermarket is such a lovely treat. You can enjoy them raw as a healthy snack, blend them into smoothies, add them as a topping to chia pudding, or incorporate them into healthy desserts. Mangos are incredibly versatile and go great with a variety of flavors. They provide a tropical sweetness that can refresh you on a hot day, making them a great fruit for summer.

Summertime is the best time to make homemade popsicles. Just make sure that you enjoy them quickly before all of that deliciously frozen mango starts melting onto your hands. Unlike traditional popsicles that you buy in the store, these mango popsicles don’t freeze in the same way. That is because of the sugar! Natural sugars don’t necessarily freeze the same way as high fructose corn syrup and other processed sugars, which are typically in store bought popsicles. This recipe calls for maple syrup, but you can use raw agave nectar as a direct swap if you have it on hand.

For this recipes, you will need six cups of mango chunks. If fresh mangos are not readily available for you, you can use frozen mangos, provided they do not have added sugars or preservatives. That is a great cleansing hack for smoothies or other recipes that require frozen fruit! Lastly, if you have silicone popsicle molds, use them because the popsicles come out much more easily than they do from plastic molds.

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We aren’t sure how much you use spice blends, but if you are like most people, chances are you go through them quickly. Maybe you get the crazy idea to try your hand at making your own spice blends for a change! Once you do that and realize the difference in flavor, you may never go back to store bought blends. Such is the case for this homemade chili seasoning, which is free of preservatives and additives.

Chili seasoning is not solely reserved for your favorite batch of chili; rather you can add it to salad dressings or other dishes. You most likely have the spices you need to make this chili seasoning in your spice cabinet or drawer. If ever you need to make more, you can buy more individual spices and create the spice blend. The great thing about that is that you will avoid the harmful ingredients, especially excess amounts of sodium, found in pre-mixed seasonings and packets.

A chili seasoning packet seems convenient, but not in regards to your health. In stores, a pre-mixed packet of chili seasoning can contain anti-caking agents and artificial flavors. In reality, chili seasoning typically consists of five to eight spices. Those spices usually include chili powder, cumin, paprika, oregano, and a few others. You can always customize the ingredients to tailor the flavor to your liking. And as a final note, chili powder is not the same as chili seasoning. That’s that!

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Are you aware of the ingredients that are banned in Europe? A lot of the foods in the U.S. are filled with preservatives and additives. It’s important and about that that we start to understand what we’re putting in our bodies.

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It might not be the Summer of Love, but you’ll love these summery, homemade popsicles. With just three simple, real-food ingredients, these strawberry orange popsicles are to die for. It’s like a sweet and tangy union of strawberries and oranges, with a sweet note from the maple syrup. It’s like a match made in flavor heaven, or in this case, your freezer. You can enjoy them as an adult or make them for your kids. You’re never too old to enjoy a popsicle, especially if the weather is hot!

What’s great about these popsicles is that they are so easy to make. You need three ingredients, a blender, and popsicle molds. We recommend using silicone popsicle molds because you can get the pops out of them much more easily than a classic plastic mold. You know those old school popsicle molds that broke the pops as you tried to take them out.

Homemade strawberry orange popsicles have a just the right amount of sweetness with a tiny hint of tartness. They are loaded with vitamin C and have very few calories. Because strawberries are usually on the Dirty Dozen list (click here for more info on that), we recommend that you get organic strawberries. Also, if you are not cleansing, you do not have to make freshly squeezed orange juice. We do encourage you to purchase the option that is cold-pressed, though, as most store bought orange juice varieties contain preservatives and excess sugar.

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