Smoothies

I've recently been asked to share some suggestions and recipes for making smoothies and I thought that our blog would be the perfect way to do so.  Since I was gifted a Vitamix blender, I have been making smoothies every day for me and my family.  It's a great way to use ripened fruit and veggies while also getting nutrition into your diet!

When I first started making smoothies, I found this recipe from Weelicious  called Smoothie Your Way. I had all the ingredients on hand so I tried it and it was delicious!  From there I experimented with different ingredients and gained the confidence to make a new concoction daily.

Another resource that helped guide me was a chart posted on a blog called 100 Days of Real Food.  From Simple Green Smoothies, this step-by-step How to Make a Perfect Green Smoothie walks you through the ingredients, measurements, and how-to.  When I started making smoothies, they were mainly fruit (with some added healthy fats and protein).  But I really wanted to incorporate veggies into our yummy drinks, especially the greens that we weren't eating in our daily meals.  Slowly I started adding items such as swiss chard, kale, parsley, celery and spinach to the mix.  Of course, the smoothies turned Green- but they weren't overpowering AND didn't taste like grass! 

This morning I winged it and a made a smoothie based on what I had in my kitchen.  It made enough for me and my babes to share (or for me to have one extra large glass) while using up some leftover items.  We drank every drop so it was a winning combo!  Here's what I used:

Green Smoothie

1 cup almond milk
1 cup (or handful) of red swiss chard
1/4 cup (or palm full) flat leaf parsley
1 celery rib or heart (with the leaves)
1/2 green apple
1/2 orange
1 banana, frozen
1 Tbsp flaxseed
5 ice cubes

Place the first 4 ingredients in your blender and blend on high until incorporated.
Add the remaining ingredients and blend until smooth.

Makes 3 cups

Notes:

• If you don't have almond milk, you can sub another milk or water.
• Red swiss chard is mild and great for smoothies.  It can be subbed with spinach or collard greens.
• Use parsely sparingly - it lends a clean freshness to the smoothie but can overpower if too much is added.
• Frozen bananas are ideal for smoothies.  They add thickness and naturally sweeten any smoothie recipe.  Simply peel ripe bananas and place in a ziplock bag.  Freeze for future use!
• Flaxseed lends fiber, protein, and Omega-3's.  You could also use chia seeds or hemp seeds.
• If you want a sweeter smoothie, try adding 1/2-1 cup additional sweet fruit or 1-2 Tbsp honey or maple syrup.
• If you have extra, pour into popsicle molds for a frozen treat!

There's much leeway when it comes to smoothies and they can be tailored to your specific tastes.   Once you make one that you enjoy, try experimenting by swiping out ingredients and trying different combinations.  Don't forget to write down your ingredients - you may want to duplicate that smoothie again!