Discover the best healthy energy drink for school kids. Boost focus, stamina and immunity with this easy, natural homemade drink recipe.

My child goes to school at 7.30 am. Like most mothers, my struggle and concern in the morning has been his breakfast. He doesn’t like to eat anything in the morning except for a glass of milk. The school fruit break starts somewhere around 9.30 am and main break starts at 11.40 am.

So this long gap between waking up and the school recess always troubled me. I wanted to give him something substantial. Something to sustain him till 9.30 which can’t happen with just a glass of milk.

More About Energy Drink

Milk and dates have been glorified in Ayurveda for centuries. It helps to balance Vata and Pita doshas and also act as a body coolant. This energy drink is made with A2 cow’s milk, nuts, seeds, raw cacao powder and dates.

This energy drink will keep your child’s stomach full for couple of hours and due to the presence of dates, it will help your child feel energized all day long.

The dry nuts and seeds are soaked overnight. Soaking nuts and seeds before consuming is beneficial as said by many nutritionists. Soaking starts the germination process which activates enzymes making it easily digestible and the nutrients present are better absorbed.

Also, nuts and seeds by nature are protected by phytic acid which is a mineral binder. Soaking them breaks the phytic acid which makes it easily digestible and increases the bioavailability of nutrients.

Raw cacao powder is a storehouse of many antioxidants and magnesium. Calcium alone does nothing to your bones. We need magnesium in our diet to absorb calcium. This is the easiest and yummiest way to ensure that your child is getting daily dose of magnesium.

Difference between Cacao Powder and Cocoa Powder

Cacao beans are dried, fermented, and heated at a low temperature. The heat separates the fatty part of the bean from the rest.

Cocoa powder is harvested the same way as cacao but heated at a high temperature. This difference in processing helps cacao powder retain its nutrients and antioxidants properties while cocoa powder is more processed, decreasing its nutrients and antioxidants.

Truth About Health Drink Powders (bournvita, pediasure, complan etc)

As a mother it’s our duty to provide our baby with best nutrition possible. Pick up the boxes of these health drinks and read the ingredients. The first ingredient is the dominant one followed by the second and so on. The dominant ingredients in these powders are malt extract or malted barley, sugar, liquid glucose, wheat, soy, vegetable oils.

If you compare the ingredients of these drinks, you will realise that you do not need this highly addictive sugary fat filled powder to be added to a healthy glass of milk. In simple words, these “so called health drinks” mainly consists of- grain, sugar, processed junk, preservatives, salt, artificial vitamins & minerals which are difficult for kids digestive system to absorb. Even the proteins it contains is low quality crap.

Malt extract is made from grain and has the same effect as refined sugar. Main carbohydrates in malt syrup is Maltose that has a very high glycemic index even higher than table sugar which will likely not have a gentle effect on your child’s blood sugar levels. It also results to cavities and tooth decay.

There is no food that is as nutritionally dense as real food. If your kid is a picky eater, train them to eat real food. Don’t let those deceiving ads play on your mind and heart. Make sensible choices!

Step by Step Instructions

For detailed recipe, please jump to the recipe card below

1. Soak almonds, walnut and seeds overnight or for 5-6 hours. Remove the skin of the almonds after soaking.

2. Heat a cup of milk in a pan. To hot milk add chopped dates, almond, walnut, mixed seeds and cacao powder. Let it stay in milk for 5-10 minutes for the dates to soften.

3. Add milk mixture in a blender. Blend everything on high speed 2 to 3 times to ensure all the nuts and seeds blend well.

4. You can also sieve the milk if your child is fussy about small bits coming in the mouth. Serve it warm or cold.

Pro Tips

If you wish to sieve this drink, then do not sieve through a fine mesh. Choose mesh which has slightly bigger holes.

If you do not have cacao powder then you can go for unsweetened cocoa powder.

To reduce heat from dates, you can soak dates overnight or for 5-6 hours. However, if your child’s body can tolerate dates well, then you can use them without soaking.

Make sure the milk that you are using is ethically sourced. Avoid pasteurized milk or milk that comes in packets or cartons.

Variations

If your child is lactose intolerant, then you can make this drink with coconut milk or any other plant based milk of your choice. This can even be made with water also.

You can use nuts of your choice. If you don’t want to use seeds, that’s totally fine too.

There are days, I like to add peanut butter along with cinnamon and nutmeg powder to it.

You can add more flavour to this drink like pure vanilla extract or all spice powder.

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