Chocolate Milk
I don’t know about you, but chocolate milk was not offered regularly in my house as a child. But when it was, it was Hershey’s syrup and 2% milk. (Obviously, this was before my mom learned about the glories of raw milk!) and it was a serious treat!
I never thought I would be a mom who offered chocolate milk to her kids regularly. Even a year ago, I would have said you were crazy to even suggest it! But, I’ve seen the error of my ways. And I have realized that chocolate milk can hide a multitude of nourishing ingredients that I am constantly trying to get into my kiddos’ bellies.
Hilda Labrada Gore, AKA Holistic Hilda, did an amazing interview with Tara Couture, from Slowdown Farmstead on the Wise Traditions podcast. It’s episode 175, Slow Diet in a Fast World. She talked about healing her daughter’s eating disorder with nutrient-dense foods. Specificity brain-healing, animal fats. And one of the things Tara used to make for her daughter was chocolate milk. But this was no ordinary chocolate milk. This was LOADED chocolate milk!
Well, friends, here is my version of a loaded, nourishing, chocolate milk!
This is quite a large recipe. It makes a good 4-8 servings, depending on how much your kiddos drink. I wanted to make enough to put in the fridge for a few days so I wasn’t making a new batch every day. Scale the recipe up or down to fit your needs.
Ingredients
Raw milk and cream - Raw milk is a powerhouse of amazing food. We have been drinking raw milk for almost 4 years now. We get our milk from a nearby farm. They have very high milking and farming standards and I am confident in the safety of the milk. I am also confident that it is serving our bodies.
Milk is an important source for nutrients like fat-soluble vitamin A, D, E and K2; vitamin C; all the B vitamins, especially vitamins B2, B6 and B12; and minerals like calcium, phosphorus and zinc as well as essential trace minerals. Levels of these vitamins will be higher if the cow is on pasture eating green grass.
Moreover, raw milk supplies enzymes and carrier proteins to ensure that 100 percent of every nutrient is absorbed. Pasteurization destroys all these important co-factors. Milk that is processed, pasteurized, evaporated, centrifuged or otherwise tampered in some way, does not offer this miraculous all-in-one source for nutrients.
The short and sweet of it is pasteurization kills the good stuff in the milk, leaving a totally dead food that is nutritionally poor and also leaves lots of folks with intolerances.
Raw egg yolks - Egg yolks are full of incredible nutrients. Vitamins A, D, E, and K along with omega-3 fats, folate, and vitamin B12, tryptophan and tyrosine, and amino acids. If your eyes glazed over that list, just know that egg yolks are chockfull of good stuff for all bodies, and especially for growing bodies and brains. When eating raw eggs, it’s important to source the eggs from a trusted farm.
Maple syrup - Pure maple syrup contains antioxidants as well as nutrients like riboflavin, zinc, magnesium, calcium, and potassium. Make sure to get the good stuff.
Cocoa powder - Who doesn’t like chocolate? Using cocoa powder instead of a chocolate syrup allows you to control the ingredients. You can get a fair-trade and organic cocoa powder. (For the record, WAPF doesn’t recommend eating cocoa. They recommend substituting carob.)
Sea salt - A bit of sea salt in this recipe balances out the sweetness while also adding minerals. Just a little bit is needed. Make sure to use a good quality salt. I like Celtic sea salt and Redmond’s Real Salt.
Extras - And if you want more of a nutritious punch, try adding a greens, beet, or mushrooms powder. Dr. Cowan’s Garden and Four Sigmatic are good sources for those things. I bet you could even hide some desiccated liver, probiotic powder (or sub kefir), or grass-fed collagen!
Chocolate Milk
Ingredients
- 4 cups raw milk
- 1 cup raw cream
- 3 raw, pasture-raised egg yolks (from a trusted source)
- 3/4-1 cup maple syrup
- 3/4 cup cocoa powder (sub carob if you like, I haven’t tried this)
- 2 small pinches of good mineral sea salt.
Instructions
- Blend everything up in a blender until combined. Serve chilled. Will keep in the fridge for a few days. Shake well before serving.
