Monday, September 2, 2013

Coconut Lime Detox Drink and a Caterpillar Invasion

Coconut Lime Detox Drink
From my morning Coconut Lime Detox drink to the brilliant green and orange caterpillars who have single handedly demolished my year old parsley plant, life here in San Diego has been all shades of green the last few days.

Parsley is an herb I use infrequently, hence I have (had) a gorgeous plant that has been left to grow somewhat untamed over the last year or so.  Needing a sprig or two the other day I sent Liv out to pick and moments later heard a not so happy yelp followed by, "Mom!!  Your parsley plant!!  It's been invaded!!!".

I have to preface this with the fact that Liv also has claimed tarantulas were crawling in her room one night, however what I found was a pencil eraser-sized, teeny tiny, spider on her screen... outside.  As such, I didn't really rush to her rescue regarding the invasion of my parsley plant.

In this case though, she was right.  An army of various sized green caterpillars, brilliantly marked with brilliant orange dots, has indeed invaded my parsley plant.   An internet search informed us that these beauties will become even more beautiful as they transform into Black Swallowtail Butterflies sometime in the near future.

Black Swallowtail Caterpillar on parsley

I have no idea how long the caterpillars have been there, but we've been watching them closely over the last few days, and I'm positively amazed at the amount of parsley they are able eat.  Apparently they enjoy host plants in the carrot family, including carrots, dill, parsley, fennel and a few others.

Eggs laid by an adult female hatch into the caterpillars who take a few forms before entering the chrysalis stage, and my first hand experience tells me that they can eat an incredible amount of parsley as they grow.

Black Swallowtail Caterpillar on parsley

Today one of our caterpillars seems to be entering that chrysalis stage, and we are eager to watch what happens!  I only hope we get so see one of the butterflies before they all fly away.  We'll keep the photos coming over the next few days/weeks.  


Black Swallowtail Caterpillar on parsley

In the meantime, how about a lovely green detox drink?  Featuring some of my favorite flavors, lime and coconut, I'm joining Eat. Drink. Be Skinny's 30-Day Juice Challenge.  Teresa, a local San Diego Girl like me,  suggests substituting a nutritious juice or smoothie for one meal a day, which I can see valuably increasing the veggies and fruits that I'm sorely in need of.  Want to join me in the challenge?  Check out her Facebook page for more info.


Limes

Perusing the counter my fruit stock proved fairly low this morning, but a bowl of limes called to me.  Working with our Lemon and Kale Ice as a guide, coconut water became our base enhanced with freshly squeezed lime juice and a squeeze of lemon.  Spinach added the rich green color and a dash of pure maple syrup brought a delightful sweetness to balance the sour.

So, joining our hungry caterpillars, here's to a green start to the day... Enjoy!


Coconut Lime Detox Drink


Coconut Lime Detox Drink
With lime bringing a nice dose of detoxifying properties and coconut water adding incredible amounts of potassium, spinach rounds out the nutrients with doses of Vitamin K and A in addition to lutein and an abundance of antioxidants.
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Coconut Lime Detox Drink
2 handfuls baby spinach
1/3 cup freshly squeezed lime juice
3-4 Tbs freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 cup coconut water
2 handfuls ice (more if desired)
maple syrup to taste (I used about 3 Tbs - the kids like it with more)

Place all ingredients into your blender and blend until smooth.  Add more water or ice to obtain desired consistency.  Enjoy!!

Edited 9/5/13 - today I made this using Zico Coconut Water Tropical - Pineapple, Guava & Passionfruit flavor.  LOVED it!!!  Brought a little bit of a sweeter flavor to the drink.  

16 comments:

  1. So sorry to hear about your parsley plant!
    The drink sounds so bright and refreshing though! I just made coconut banana muffins (from Cookie and Kate) and it called for lemon/lime zest. The zest added such a great kick, so I'm ALL for anything with coconut and lime! :)

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    1. MMm!!! Loving the idea of Coco Banana Muffins, I know I'd love the lime.
      No worries about the plant, so worth it to see these guys!

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  2. Such a healthy and restorative drink! :-) And I think your caterpillars are GORGEOUS!!! Love the shots you captured of them. :-)

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    1. My husband is laughing at how many pics I've been taking... kind of an easy shot though, they don't move much.

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  3. We just always plant extra parsley for these beauties! (And, I desperately need to join this challenge!)

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    1. Debra, I've never seen them before! But I'll be sure to have even more parsley next year.

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  4. I need this in my life - I'll give coconut water another chance.... We planted a gorgeous Passion Flower vine once because they are loved by butterflies - unfortunately butterflies produce caterpillars which have a voracious appetite and ended up devouring the whole plant and then some! Keep the photos coming - I want to know what kind of butterfly these beauties will become :)

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  5. Although the photos of that creature are beautiful, I have to admit that I tend to react more like Liv at the sight of these kinds of things in person. :)

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  6. Delicious and beautiful!

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  7. Thanks for sharing.
    It must be refresh.

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  8. Absolutely healthy and refreshing looking.

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  9. Did you post any more photos of the butterflies? Or did you miss them?

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    1. Cat... no we didn't! It was so sad... I had wasps come along and eat all the caterpillars. :(

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