Decaffeinate: Dandelion Root Tea

As you can tell from my previous posts, I love starting the day with some sort of warm beverage, especially a warm, caffeinated beverage. (Check out my green tea latte and beaten coffee recipes!) 

However, I recently realized just how much caffeine I was consuming with almost a daily cup of coffee and multiple rounds of green teas, black teas, etc. Thus, I've been trying really really hard these last couple weeks to decrease my caffeine consumption. Instead, I've taken to drinking more caffeine-free teas like mint tea or what I'm focusing on today: Dandelion Root Tea with Hibiscus & Cinnamon.

A couple weeks back, I received a sample of this tea from Kiss me Organics, the same company who sponsored me to review their Culinary Grade Organic Matcha (which is amazing by the way).

I've never had dandelion root tea before. However, the packaging suggests that this tea helps support healthy digestion and aids in liver and kidney detox, and of course to go along with what I was talking about earlier, caffeine free. Some basic research revealed many benefits:

• Hibiscus - supports normal blood pressure
• Cinnamon - helps regulate blood sugar levels
• Dandelion root - helps improve digestion, upset stomach, inflammation

Although I can't say I've noticed a significant difference in my digestion, this tea is nevertheless a calming and flavorful way to escape the grasps of caffeine. Plus, with all of the herbal ingredients, it's a great source of many vitamins and nutrients.

If you're interested in trying the tea, visit their amazon page: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00NFYLN18

sponsored post. personal review.

NatureBox Review

Hey guys! Happy holidays! This is a bit of a late review, but I ordered a NatureBox free trial last month. However, until now, I haven't had the time to review it.

What is NatureBox?
NatureBox is a monthly subscription site where your choice of healthy snacks delivered straight to your door. There are different subscription plans and over 100 different snacks to choose from.

NatureBox Review
The trial box comes with four sample-sized snacks and one full-sized snack, and each of the samples I received have between 100 and 140 calories. Overall, I really enjoyed these samples. Not only did they taste really good, they also came in small and convenient packages, which makes them really easy to bring around. The full membership, however, doesn't come in small packs, but includes five full-snack bags a month.

Individual Snack Review

When I first opened it, I was surprised to see that there were only cranberries! I thought since the product name was cranberry medley, there would be more than just cranberries. But then I read that they were "pomegranate and acai flavored dried cranberries with blueberries." (I should probably read that first, haha!) Anyhow, they were really good! I could definitely taste some of the pomegranate and acai flavor, and what's awesome is that it's packaged into a 100 calorie serving.

I wasn't really sure what to expect when I saw sea salt sun-crunch, but they turned out to be super adorable, bite-sized crackers! For 140 calories, there were only about 10 crackers, which to a big snacker like me was kind of disappointing, but they were nevertheless delicious! I really enjoyed the crunchy texture and nutty flavor. However, after five cookies, I began to think they were a bit too salty? Then again, they are sea salt sun-crunches, haha, and I have a pretty low tolerance for saltiness anyways.

Yum! These were definitely one of my favorites! I could definitely taste a mix of cashew and coconut. In fact, it tasted like I was biting into macaroons (with two Os! the coconut cookies!). The texture of these cashews was softer than that of regular cashews too, so you don't get the typical crunch but that added to the eating-a-cookie feel haha. It was good! 140 calories for a big handful of "cookies." YESS.

I've never had anything like these, but they were quite good! They have an incredible crunchy texture, which made them really fun to eat! I could taste the cinnamon-sugar coating, but it was actually really light so it didn't actually add too much flavor-wise. It was good nonetheless--again, really fun to eat!

This was the full size item that I received for the sample box. They were really good and I could taste the spices really well, but what freaked me out was that each ~1in diameter cookie was 100 calories! Eeks, and that was after I already ate three cookies, haha. Oops! Must have better self control next time~

Conclusion....
Would I continue my subscription? Yes definitely. However, being a jobless college student in the midst of the holiday seasons, I decided to halt my subscription. I think I'll try starting up again in January or February? So yummy~

The pictures above belong to NatureBox. I simply added text to the images. (All the pictures on my phone got deleted. heh... heh... SOB)

Must Try!! Caffe Bene

Caffe Bene is a super cute cafe with not only delicious drinks—you should try their Misugaru Latte!—but also every dessert you need to satisfy your sweet tooth. They have macarons, gelato, honey bread, waffles—their bacon maple waffle is a MUST!—and now… macaron ice cream sandwiches! But not only is their food delicious, Caffe Bene is also the perfect place to study. There is a entire room upstairs dedicated for those who need to get some work done, and don’t worry, there are outlets and even a bookshelf full of random and interesting books if you need a break from studying. So next time you’re in need of some coffee, something sweet, or simply somewhere to study, stop by Caffe Bene!

Iced Coffee and Macaron! Perfect snack while studying :)

Star of the Show: Maple Bacon Waffle <3 My fav~

Macaron Ice Cream Sandwiches!

Woot Woot. Pic from last year, MCAT books LOL.

So as you can tell from all my pictures, I really really love this place! I've gone so many times haha. If you’ve ever been, please comment below and let me know what you think about Caffe Bene!