My guess, if I were to guess, which I am pretty good at guessing so here I go…

My guess is that it has been way too damn long. But I totally understand why, you grow up learning that marshmallows are a treat and only to be eaten on occasion.

Mostly because they were loaded with sugar and chemicals that parents knew shouldn’t be eaten even on occasion. But, there were no other options, what’s a mom to do?

While I am not suggesting that you replace a balanced diet of fresh veggies and hearty and nutrient-dense sources of fat and protein with marshmallows, I am suggesting that you replace your diet with marshmallows and join me for a mallow fast.

You in?

Just kidding, sort of…

Marshmallows ARE Good For You

Okay, enough jokes.

Here’s the truth, marshmallows, when made with real food ingredients are incredibly good for you! There is not one ingredient in here that could not be tolerated by a healthy human.

Not only that, the ingredients all have medicinal and healing qualities — as all real, whole foods would. The ingredient list is gorgeously appetizing and curing:

Anti-inflammatory, soothing marshmallow root, grass-fed collagen and gelatin from healthy and happy cows, organic and local, immune-boosting raw honey, and aromatic, amative fresh ground vanilla bean. 

All of these ingredients together form a delectable, childhood treat that medicinal works to heal the gut, boost the immune system, repair and rejuvenate skin, joint and muscle tissues, balance blood-sugar, nourish the thyroid and adrenals, and even work as an amazing sleep tonic!

A beauty supplement, health tonic and snack all in one? It sounds too good to be true, but it’s really not. We’re not dealing with chemical kiddy gummy vitamin’s here, These are fresh, real foods from nature with all the intentions of nourishing your body.

Making “Upgraded” Marshmallows

I cannot take full credit for this recipe as both Dave Asprey from the Bulletproof Diet and my amazingly inspiring friends at Three Lily Farm are the ones who inspired me. I can take credit for producing an amazing final product though!

I also like to think I prepared each ingredient with so much love that I can offer you a few new ideas to take with you. Such as letting your self enjoy foods you love! One thing I have been loving doing over the past year is recreating childhood foods and transforming junk-food into health-food.

If you’re up to the miracle, then let me show you how I made mine!

Here’s what you’ll need:

• A electric mixer (doing this by hand won’t work, unless you’re reading to whip for an hour and are down with possible tendentious)
• A 9×12 in. glass pyrex baking dish
• Parchment paper
• 3 cups of water
• 2 cups of raw honey or maple syrup.
• 2 tablespoons organic marshmallow root
• 6 tablespoons grass-fed gelatin
• 1 tsp of fresh, ground Vanillamax
• *Side note- you can add just about anything to these. I made a Bulletproof Coffee flavored batch by swapping the marshmallow tea for fresh brewed Bulletproof Coffee. You could add almond extract, cacao, peppermint, cinnamon or essentially anything you want for a fancy and inventive marshmallow. For now, let’s get you rolling with the traditional!

Here’s how you make them:

1. First things first, take your 3 cups of water and make a tea with the marshmallow root. Simply, bring the water to a boil, add in the marshmallow root then steep on a low simmer for 20 minutes to make a decoction.
2. Next, in a large glass mixing bowl (get a big one because the mixture will grow 3 times it’s size) add 1 cup of the tea mixture to 6 tablespoons of gelatin and your vanilla and mix slowly. Do this until it’s thickened up a bit into a gel.
3. Now with what is left of the tea (should have reduced down to about 1 cup) pour in your sweetener and mix together. If using raw honey, leave it in the mixture just long enough to mix the tea with the honey. If using maple syrup, you will want to reduce it down some. So you will leave it in a bit longer until it’s a thicker consistency. Be sure to stir slowly and continuously through this process.
4. Once the sweetener and tea mixture is ready, while mixing the gelatin and tea, slowly pour the sweetener in.
5. From this point, you will just be mixing for about 5-10 minutes looking to achieve a fluff — what would resemble a sort of marshmallow jet-puff whip.
6. When your mixture is light and fluffy you’re good to go!
7. Finally, line your baking dish with parchment paper, using a rubber spatula, pour the fluff into your glass dish. Store it in the fridge for about 3 hours and boom! Fluffy bunnies.
8. I’ll add one last step, get some roasting sticks, a bon fire and roast those puppies over some acoustic sing a longs! If you’re confused as what to get your father for fathers day, I say make him the friends/fam a big ole batch of these and if you don’t have a fire pit, get one! The best kind’s of gifts are always experiences, the best kind of experiences are usually ones you can eat too

Coming to you tomorrow, homemade BodyEcology style graham crackers! That’s right folks, s’mores! All you’ll need is these marshmallows, some of your finest raw chocolate and the grahams I’ll be whipping up today and posting tomorrow!

Enjoy and stay tuned!

Why am I doing this? Well, fasting is incredible healing and has the ability to completely reset and regenerate the body. However, it being summer time, I am eager to be outdoors and moving around.

Because I want to stay active — what would probably be too active for regular fasting — I want to get in some incredibly easy-to-digest nutrition. Because I am going to be moving about and active my body is going to need protein and inflammatory fats to aid recovery.

This inspired the thought of what an athletes fast would look like, then I created this! Thought it seems my diet couldn’t be any more dialed in, the one thing I haven’t done in a while is an extended fast or detoxification. I haven’t felt compelled too, which is likely do to my already clean diet.

Anyway, this post is more about this recipe I just created! I’ll spare you some of the details so I can talk to you more about the benefits of fasting, how to know if you should do one and why I’m drinking not eating solid food and nothing but water and buttery lattés all day,

The Miracle of Fasting

Fasting is one of the most ancient forms of healing. It’s practiced all around the world and even in nature. When an animal gets sick it simply finds a quite dark place to just be; no food, no exercise, no work, just pure relaxation.

Some say that fasting can cure anything. Even science can attest to the miracle of fasting. When fasting, the body goes into homeostasis or self-repair. The body releases incredible amounts of HGH and self-healing enzymes. In simple terms, fasting gets us out of the way of ourselves.

It is more often than not, that our illnesses come from our own bad habits. When we the time to fast, one of the most beneficial aspects of it, is that we finally stop doing what’s making us unwell. Which is usually, overworking, overeating, eating the wrong things, thinking too much and not just being present enough.

This is the idea of detoxification. Though the body already does an incredible job of detoxifying, our bad habits tend to give us more than it can handle. When we fast the body finally gets a chance to catch up. All those toxins from poor food choices, negative thinking and other forms of stress finally have the opportunity to leave the body.

Without fasting in some form, the body doesn’t get a chance to deep cleanse. In this modern world of excess and the “more is better” mentality, it could not be needed more.

During a fast, disease, tumors, cancers, parasites, and all that nasty stuff is competing for nutrition with our organs and the body makes sure the organs win. Though it is always trying to do this, we often vote in favor of disease with our harmful choices.

Fasting is one of the only proven methods for reversing the aging process. Above all else, it is proper calorie restriction that preserves the body. That’s because the body is a manifestation of energy. Because we are always expending energy (often more than we have) we need to be careful as to how we choose to use our finite energy.

Health is a balance of making the most optimal choice of bringing in energy without expending too much. This is the balance of life; making a choice that is more helpful than harmful.

Here’s the challenge, every single choice in life has a harmful or negative aspect. Even when we eat, we kill. That’s because we are all dying. Some try to stay ignorant to this truth, but death cannot be escaped.

When we eat, digestion is using incredible amounts of our energy. At the same time, we need calories and nutrition for energy and nutrition. Therefore, the long term goal is to making choices nutritionally that give us more true energy than it takes away. Food should energize you authentically and lift your spirits. You should never feel tired after eating.

During a fast, you step into this realization. You start to notice how much lighter you are. In the first 24 hours of fasting, there is no loss of protein or muscle. However, there comes a point where you start to feel natural hunger (not appetite). Then when you eat again, your new found heightened sense tell you what clearly gives you energy and at what point you hit diminishing returns.

Overall, fasting improves the mind/body connection to make long term beenfical choices. In the short term, fasting can:

• Cleanse fat deposits around the organs and glands, where toxins are stored.
• Aid the body in ridding toxins and the production of new clean cells.
• Resets the hormonal system.
• Improve mental clarity.
• Balance the body.

Essentially, fasting is great for just about anything.

Who shouldn’t fast?

For the most part, fasting is going to be healing for anyone. However, that being said, individuals with adrenal fatigue, server disease or hormonal imbalances may feel incredibly worse when fasting.

This is because their body isn’t functioning well on it’s own and is greatly dependant on the energy from outside sources. The body is too deplleted of it’s own energy to survive off of it.

These individuals would want to first build up energy before fasting. Once the adrenals and thyroid are functioning well, the person would feel much more stable when experimenting with fasting and actually be able to reap the many benefits of a fast.

How to fast?

Fasting is about as simple as it gets, just stop eating and drinking — aside from pure, living water. Depending on how toxic you are, your experience may be different.

Try it for at least one day, where you drink nothing but water or green vegetable juices, herbal teas or homemade broths. Water fasting is going to be the most intense form of cleansing and should be done only by people who know what they are doing.

Depending on your condition you could try these various forms of fasting:

• Intermittent fasting. slowly test the waters of fasting by spacing out your last meal of the day and your first meal of the next day. An example would be to stop eating at 6 pm, then do not eat again until around noon-2pm the next day. During that period only drink liquid (no protein in the liquid). Ideally, you would drink only water. You could do warm lemon water, herbal teas or if you need something more substantial try this Chamomile latté at the bottom of the post.
• Bulletproof fasting. This is were you would fast on a liquid with more nutrition than plain water, yet is still giving the digestive system a break. Instead of meals, have a fat-added tonic/tea. This could again, be a bulletproof coffee (though for the benefits of a fast I would do decaf or an herbal substitute like this one.) Adding nutrient-dense fats to your liquids will help your hormonal system reset while giving the digestive system a break. Also, it is said that it takes 10 lbs. of healthy fat to regenerate a new liver in two months. This would be a great idea for anyone who doesn’t feel energetically up to a water fast and looking to regenerate or simply experience the lightness associated with fasting. This is what I do most of the time, I start my morning with my adrenal tonic, then a Bulletproof coffee or Tea Latté then have my first and only solid meal around 3-4. Then end the day with only water or tea. My energy is ridiculous.
• Broth fasts. These are great for anyone with Candida or other expansive imbalances like bacterial imbalances or viral infections. Also, anyone with love adrenal or thyroid. Green juice can be way too cooling for the body and further exaggerate Candida or adrenal/thyroid imbalances. Broths on the other hand made from grass-fed bones, organic vegetables and seaweed will provide the body with tons of essential minerals for the body to heal. They are also more warming and balancing for anyone who is overly expansive.
• Juice fast. If you want to juice fast only do it for 3 days max. Othrwise, you will imbalance the body. Also, only use green juice as root vegetales and fruit in juices are way too sweet to keep the body in balance. Better than juice fasting alone would be to have one or two green juices then add a green smoothie. In general, smoothies are superior to juices anyway. Here’s a blog post I wrote on the difference between juicing and blending. PErsonally, I would recommend sticking to having a juice for breakfast to get the benefits.
• Water fasting. Not for the faint at heart, water fasting is intense and one ironically has to be in good shape to handle this. In general, build up energy as much as you can first before trying this. And make sure you are able to spend most of your time totally resting. A good way to water fast would be to do it once a week on a day when you have no obligations whatsoever. Be well rested and slept as well. Spend the day lounging, taking baths, out in the sun napping or in a sauna. Though water fasting can be incredibly healing and perhaps the most healing, it should be done with enthusiasm.

As a general rule of thumb to fasting, do not fast unless you are completely comfortable with the idea. Listen to your intuition.

So, this recipe…

I designed this and a few others out of the curiosity to fast but without losing too much size. The idea that was born was to spend a good two weeks only doing liquid. Instead of just water alone, I wanted to add the medicinal benefits of tea, healthy fats and easy to digest protein — all in liquid form.

This I created a sort of Bulletproof fast. This chamomile latté came to me in the evening when I was hungry but did not want anything stimulating, but rather relaxing. So I thought, chamomile!

Why Chamomile?

• Relieves allergies, as much as any antihistamine.
• Aids in digestion, especially when taken as a tea after meals.
• Speeds healing of skin ulcers, wounds, or burns.
• Treats gastritis and ulcerative colitis.
• Reduces inflammation and facilitate bowel movement naturally. Non-laxative.
• Treats skin issues, including inflammations of mucous tissue.
• Promotes relaxation and relieves stress.
• Heals insomnia. Chamomile’s mildly sedating and muscle-relaxing effects may help those who suffer from insomnia to fall asleep more easily.
• Treats diverticular disease, irritable bowel problems and various gastrointestinal complaints. Chamomile is known as an anti-inflammatory and it’s antispasmodic properties relax the muscles lining the stomach and intestine. Therefore, it may be able to help to relieve stress-related digestive issues.
• Soothes skin rashes (including eczema), minor burns and sunburn. It may also speed healing and prevent bacterial infection.
• Treats eye inflammation and infection.
• Heal mouth sores and prevent gum disease. A chamomile mouthwash may help soothe mouth inflammations and keep gums healthy.
• Reduces menstrual cramping. Chamomile’s ability to relax the muscles can also relax the muscles of the uterus to ease cramping.

To say the least, this flower is rather powerful as a food and medicine. Not to mention it has a naturally sweet taste. If anything, I thought it would make a delicious tonic. If even just one of these bullet’s were completely true that would just be icing on the cake!

When your fasting, the most difficult aspect is to be without the pleasuring experience that eating can offer. So often we eat out of boredom and it’s because food can be a very pleasant and healing experience.

Though for me, the point of fasting was not only to get clearer physically, but to direct that new energy toward other areas of life; music, writing, relationships and my overall creative endeavors.

So far it’s been working great! Ever since I first started to really simplify my diet years ago, I have had much more creative power. It even reflects in my recipes! When I do eat, I create food with just as much creativity as I would anything else. This for me, is a good sign that the energy I have cultivated with a liquid diet is used wisely in every area of my life!

Anyway, I am ranting a bit on this blog. Let’s just get to the recipe!

Here’s what you’ll need:

• 1 cup of spring water
• 2 tablespoons dried Chamomile flowers
• 1 scoop grass-fed undenatured whey
• 1 tablespoon ghee or coconut oil
• 1 tablespoon BrainOctane oil
• 1 tablespoon grassfed collagen
• 1 tsp of Vanillamax
• 1 tsp Bupleurum & Dragon Bone
• A dash of cinnamon
• Stevia to sweeten

Here’s how you make it:

1. Bring water to a boil
2. Add flowers to a steeping device then place in water. I use one of these sweet things!
3. Let steep for about 10 minutes. Floral teas usually take a bit longer to steep I’ve noticed.
4. Remove tea from water, then strain again through nylon strainer (Chamomile can leave behind little tiny flower pieces if no run through a fine strainer).
5. Add tea to Blendtec with the rest of the ingredients then blend at warped speed until frothy and smooth.

What you’ll have is a creamy, frothy vanilla latté like none other. The ingredients will promote relaxation, stimulation of the parasympathetic nervous system, a sense of calm and best of all it’s so delicious!

I am a simple man and live a minimalistic life; however, I do small things with big love. Warm lemon water is fantastic because it’s simple and comes fully loaded with an array of health benefits:

• Cleanses the liver
• Detoxifies
• Purifies and beautifies the skin
• Stimulates healthy digestion
• Hydrates the cells
• Provides nourishment for the adrenals
• Energizes without stimulating
• Tastes wonderful

These are all great reasons to start your day off with warm lemon water. Because of my creative, alchemy nature I have taken this simple breakfast tonic and turned it into something majestical.

The good news is the recipe is still very simple. With just a few added ingredients you can have a drink that is truly medicinal and healing. I add only 4 ingredients that take this drink from healthy nourishment to holistic medicine.

If you’re like me and strive for optimal living then this recipe twist might be exactly what you’re looking for to start off your day with inspiration.

Ginger-Lemon-Turmeric Tonic

Here are the ingredients I add to my warm lemon water to take it from great to optimal and why:

1. Ginger- Nature’s all-for-one miracle food; a natural aphrodisiac, immune builder, pain killer and hands down the best digestive aid in town. If you have an ailment, ginger will work to resolve it. Because all disease and all health is manufactured in the gut and mind, ginger is one of the most medicinal foods nature has to offer. There is a phenomenon known as the gut-brain axis, which simply is the correlation between your digestive system and the effects it has on your mentality. To understand this, think of a time of anxiety—most likely you have butterflies in the stomach. Another example of this phenomenon is during stress, when your stomach is tied in knots. This shows you how our minds and the mental states we create affect our digestive health. In contrast, eating poor foods can cause poor mental and emotional states. How this happens is through the neurotransmitters that control our brain. These chemicals, such as dopamine and serotonin, are manufactured a great deal in our stomach. Up to 95% of our serotonin is created in the gut. Because of the calming affects ginger has on the stomach, it can work holistically to calm the mind and rest of the body. If you take care of your gut, you will experience overall health. And ginger is one of the kings of good gut health. Ginger has been used as a digestive tonic for centuries. It has been taken internally for appetite issues, stomach upsets, constipation, diarrhea, colic, gas, bloating, and more. The powerful antioxidants gingerols, shogaols, and zingerones found in ginger have powerful antibacterial and antimicrobial properties making it so effective in healing the digestive system.
2. Turmeric- Turmeric is a member of the ginger family; therefore, by genetics we can trust it is a true super food. Turmeric is actually an incredible source of vitamins and minerals like iron, manganese, potassium, vitamin B6, and even vitamin C. Curcumin is the phytochemical found in turmeric that has been associated with its very strong antioxidant properties. Countless studies and evidence shows that high doses of curcumin are effective in fighting cancer and reducing inflammation — many studies show that curcumin is more effective than any medical drug for combating inflammation. Traditionally and today turmeric can be used for intestinal issues, parasites, bacterial and yeast overgrowths, liver detoxification, ulcers and purifying the blood. A shot of fresh turmeric juice improves digestion immediately by increasing the release of bile and production of stomach acid. Turmeric has been proven to reduce many types of cancer and even work as a natural skin care agent. A paste of turmeric applied to the skin is used by women in India to whiten and purify their skin just before marriage. Like ginger, there really isn’t anything turmeric isn’t good for. It is a holistic, natural medicine that should be in everyone’s kitchen.
3. Apple Cider Vinegar- This medicinal vinegar has been used in a number of surprising ways, including:
   • Relief from heartburn and arthritis
   • To lower blood pressure and cholesterol
   • To aid digestion
   • To treat ear infections
   • To treat yeast infections (candida).
   • Relief for rashes, sunburn and jellyfish stings
   • To clean the house, polish glass and make laundry look brighter
   • To promote weight loss
   • Skin detoxification

   The use of vinegar is not just a folk remedy…vinegar has medicinal properties as well. Research has shown that vinegar can help people with type 2 diabetes or insulin resistance (not diabetic, but high risk) by improving insulin sensitivity. In the study, vinegar was just as effective as drugs (metformin and acarbose) used to treat diabetes. Vinegar may be one of your most useful natural health remedies…if you’re using the right vinegar.

4. Raw Sea Salt- Not all “sea salt” is created equally. Most of the sea salt found in stores is high-heated and essentially dead — lacking any vital trace minerals aside from sodium. Granted it is a step above refined table salt, it’s incomparable to real sea salt. Real salt is full of minerals, such as magnesium, phosphorus, iron, manganese, copper, zinc and over 60 other trace minerals.  It is essential for proper body function.  Salt prevents dehydration, supports brain and nervous system function, and helps with the absorption of potassium.  In the body, salt is as important to humans as water or air. In fact, each of us contain from four to eight ounces of salt. Salt helps maintain the normal volume of blood in the body and also helps keep the correct balance of water in and around the cells and tissues (proper electrolyte balance). Salt is essential in the production of HCL (stomach acid). It is also necessary for the formation and proper function of nerve fibers, which carry impulses to and from the brain, and plays an important part in the digestion of food and is essential in making the heart beat correctly. The sodium found in salt is an essential nutrient. Sodium, together with calcium, magnesium and potassium, helps regulate the body’s metabolism. In combination with potassium, it regulates the acid-alkaline balance in our blood and is also necessary for proper muscle functioning. When we don’t get enough sodium chloride, we experience muscle cramps, dizziness, exhaustion and, in extreme cases, convulsions and death. In conclusion, salt is essential to our well being.

Hopefully you need no further explanation as to why these real food ingredients are so essential to consume. On to the recipe…

Here’s what you’ll need:

• 1 cup of warm spring water (I use one of these fancy, convenient water kettles that boil water in seconds!)
• 1 tbsp Bragg’s Raw Apple Cider Vinegar
• 1 lemon
• 1 inch grated ginger
• 1 tbsp organic Turmeric Powder
• 1 pinch of REAL Sea Salt
• Stevia to sweeten *optional

Here’s how you make it:

1. Warm 1 cup of spring water in kettle (I don’t like to boil it as it gets too hot, so I stop it just before a boil. This way it doesn’t heat the ingredients too hot either and destroy enzymes).
2. Grate fresh ginger (1 inch) onto plate.
3. Cut and juice 1 lemon.
4. When water is done boiling – take the grated ginger in hand and squeeze it over a mesh strainer into the warm water. This is much more effective than any juicer, as it squeezes the ginger dry getting the most juice and is even quicker than running an masticating juicer and having to clean it.
5. Squeeze lemon into water through strainer to avoid getting seeds into the water.
6. Add ACV, a pinch of sea salt then a few drops of stevia to taste if you’d like.
7. Stir everything together with a spoon or whisk and enjoy on an empty stomach first thing in the morning for a hydrating, energizing medicinal drink!

What are some of your favorite breakfast drinks? I’d love to hear and give them a try!