I usually find the homely festive season leaves me with a desire to refresh, cleanse and re-energise come January…. And to plan the year ahead. I also secretly welcome the opportunity to stay in more (JOMO?), hunker down and to focus on my health a little.
It probably goes without saying, but creating cosiness in January (beyond Christmas) should be prioritised. It feels nice to continue with the candle rituals, reading on the sofa, wool blankets, hot chocolate and all the comforting things the Scandinavians describe as ‘hygge’.
With this in mind, I have the following tips to make the most of your January:
Dry Jan Detoxing Drinks
1 Jamu.
A truly tasty traditional Indonesian tonic combining turmeric, ginger and lime juice. It is consumed as a medicine to increase energy, reduce inflammation, boost the immune system and to enhance circulation. You can drink this as a shot, or as a delicious addition to your kombucha. Or even warm it up adding a little water for a soothing evening drink.
Ingredients
1 cup fresh turmeric
1/2 cup fresh ginger
1L water
1/2 cup honey
Juice of 2 limes
Method
Peel and slice your ginger & turmeric before blending together with a little water to loosen the mixture.
Heat the mixture in a saucepan and simmer for 15 minutes.
Strain over a muslin.
Add your lime juice and honey.
Stir to dissolve and leave to cool.
Keep refrigerated and use within a week.
2 Liquid Chlorophyll.
Immune boosting and detoxing, I like to drink this when I am taking a break from alcohol to give my liver and total system a little boost. It tastes like grass but once you feel the benefits, becomes quite addictive.
3 Pu-erh & Ginger tea.
A friend recommended this to me recently as a cold cure and now I drink it daily. It gives me quite an energy boost without keeping me awake at night. A light steep of the pu-erh tea, fresh ginger and a spoonful of honey is delicious. I found it especially helpful when trying to cut down on coffee consumption.
Get outside & exercise
4 Daytime walk.
With the dwindling light winter light – day time walks are essential if possible. 20 minutes at lunchtime makes a huge difference – especially if you are working from home!
5 Pilates & Barre.
If you feel like taking up a healthy exercise routine for Jan (and beyond) post Christmas – I can recommend reformer pilates at Tempo and Barre for full body conditioning. These are genuinely the only exercise classes that have given me visible abdominal muscles.
Eat Seasonal
There are many nourishing winter vegetables for cosy evening meals throughout Jan
6 Delicata Squash.
I was first introduced to this in the States and luckily now it is commonplace in farmers markets. It is delicate and sweet in flavour with thin edible skin and roasts beautifully tasting somewhere between a nutty squash and roast potato.
Delicata Squash, Pomegranate and Goats Cheese
Main Ingredients
2 delicata squash
1 cup of pomegranate seeds
100g Crumbled goats cheese
100g Walnuts
1 bag of Rocket
Dressing
3 tbsps
Extra virgin olive oil
1 tbsp Balsamic vinegar
2 tsp Maple syrup (optional)
1 tsp Dijon mustard
Salt
Pepper
- Wash and slice the squash into slices approx. 1cm thick. I like to include the seeds too but discard if preferred). Drizzle with olive oil and season with salt & pepper. Roast for 30 mins (flipping halfway through) or until tender with crispy edges
- Dry fry the walnuts in a pan or roast them in a tray with some maple syrup and salt.
- Whisk together the dressing ingredients. - Lay out your layers of rocket, slightly cooled squash, pomegranate, goats cheese and toasted walnuts before drizzling over your dressing.
7 Cauliflower dip & chilli sauce.
There are multiple versions of this on the internet, but in it’s most basic form – it is a really healthy and yummy alternative to mashed potato or even hummus.
1 large head of cauliflower cut into florets
1 tbsp butter
Crispy chilli in oil/chilli sauce
Salt & Pepper
- Boil the cauliflower until it softens.
Drain and put in the blender with the butter, salt and pepper.
- Once pureed, serve the buttered cauliflower on a plate with a swirl of chilli sauce on top and serve with bread, or as a side dish to your main course.
8. Non-alcoholic drinks
And last but not least….
We’ve put together a bundle of L.A favourites with layers of flavour to survive and thrive this Dry January. We're keeping it simple. Clear mind, glass full.
And 3 mocktails that we love and recommend for the celebratory nights of Dry January…
8 Aperol Sparkling Blush.
Ingredients
50ml Aperol or Wilfred’s Non-Alc Spirit 170ml Sparkling English Blush
Method
Pour into a large ice filled wine glass and garnish with a slice of orange.
9 Apple & Ginger Mojito.
:1 part clear apple juice
L.A Ginger
1 lime
Handful of mint
*Optional: tsp of sugar.
METHOD
Muddle the mint, apple juice,lime & optional sugar.
Add ice & shake.
Fill a glass with crushed ice and strain your mixture into the glass.
Top with L.A Ginger & garnish with mint.
*Option to add a teaspoon of sugar if you like your mojito a little sweeter. We prefer the tart zestyness of lime.
Ingredients
Squeeze & twist of orange
Method
Pour 50ml Livener into a glass over ice. Top with Citrus Hops. Add a squeeze of orange & garnish with a twist of orange peel.
