I've done so well with this whole "eating healthier" change that I've decided to go on an official diet. Now, normally I don't condone diets in any way, shape or form. BUT, I only have eleven more pounds to lose before getting back to my pre-pregnancy weight, and our trip to Hawaii is in just over two months, so you do the math.
I'm thinking I need to add more smoothies to my regimen, because I LOVE ME a good smoothie. So, all you health fanatics out there, is there any smoothie combination that I just have to have? You know, one of those "boost your metabolism and make your hair all shiny" smoothies? I love pretty much every fruit and veggie... except for papaya. Papayas are gross.
Oh my gosh... you have to try a Kale smoothie. What I do is about 1 cup of frozen fruit (I prefer blueberries), 1 cup juice (I like the "green monster" or whatever it's called from Trader Joe's) and about 1 1/2 cups spinach and/or kale. Sometimes I add a 1/2 a banana... soo good. Seriously.
ReplyDeleteI think in general smoothies are great for boosting your vitamin and minerals intake, however they tend to have a very high sugar content (in a readily available form for very fast digestion and absorption). And you don't have to chew the fruit that you're eating so your brain gets no signal that you're eating and then you're hungry again within 30 minutes. My lecturer once said that if God wanted us to eat smoothies they would be growing on the trees.
ReplyDeleteThat said, I still LOVE smoothies and will come back here for delicious ideas and combinations. I can't wait until strawberries and plums are in season. It's just not the best idea to get all of your fruit and veg intake in the blended form. The process of chewing makes your brain think that you're full. So lots of fibre is recommended!
Those smoothies look hella good.
ReplyDeleteI love green smoothies. My fave is Spinach (stick with me, it's good, I promise) with banana, red berries of your choice and a few blueberries, all frozen. Depending on how healthy you want to be, you can add a juice (cranberry or apple I like) or milk/yogurt until it's the right consistency. I also add flax seed oil, just for an extra boost.
kale is SO great for you, but doesn't taste equally great, so i completely mask it with strawberries and pineapple with a hint of coconut water. its so good
ReplyDeletealso.. if you need a break from fruity tasting smoothies, this one is a treat. requiring a lot of ingredients but worth it if you'll use them all. almond milk, frozen black cherries, cacao nibs, a tiny hint of vanilla, and coconut flakes. yum.
maybe not a magical health smoothie, but raspberry lime and banana is my all-time favorite. heavy on the lime.
ReplyDeletemy current favorite:
ReplyDelete1 cup blueberries (fresh or frozen)
1 handfull baby spinach (don't flinch - can't even taste it)
1 cup milk of choice (I use soy)
1-2 Tablespoons ground flax
sweetener of choice/if you want it (stevia/honey)
Blend away! It's amazing. If you want to make it a chocolatey smoothie (which was the original recipe), add 2 Tablespoons cocoa powder and 2-3 pitted Medjool dates instead of the sweetener. Also fantastic, but truth be told, I can't drink the chocolatey version as frequently because it's pretty rich-tasting.
Oh yeah - add half of a banana into the mix (I ususally freeze the other half to use later in other smoothies or to make banana soft serve, which is also amazeballs).
ReplyDeleteMy favourites are banana with cinnamon and vanilla (overripe frozen bananas are the best), you can use almond milk or rice milk for dairy free. I also like frozen strawberries (i also add yogurt to thicken it up, if its natural yogurt, then I add some honey to sweeten).
ReplyDeleteAlso check out this Vitamix website:
http://www.vitamixaustralia.com.au/recipes.html
It looks like it has great recipes, though I haven't tried any yet. You can download whole food recipe book for smoothies as well as the green smoothie recipe book. This is the Australian website, but there should be a US equivalent.
Oooh - just tried this one over the weekend:
ReplyDelete1/2 avocado
1/2 banana
1/3 cup coconut/soy/almond/dairy milk
1/3 cold water (next time I'm using ice)
juice of 1 lime
honey to sweeten (if needed)
The avocado especially helps it stick around, no feeling hungry 30 mins later. I don't even LIKE avocado, but it was good in this smoothie.
i am not generally a smoothie fan but i've been drinking one every morning since i got pregnant and i like to think it helps.
ReplyDeletea handful of kale, a handful of spinach, half a banana and some frozen pineapple. throw in water to make it the consistency you want. (i like it thin and slushy.) sometimes i add fresh ginger and apple or pear.
who knew i would be the green smoothie drinker?
Papayas ARE gross. Nobody believes me but you.
ReplyDeletei agree with the smoothie love but i could totally down a smoothie and then move on to an entire trucker's breakfast of pancakes, eggs, bacon and toast and be fine. the smoothie is no great weight loss tool for me.
ReplyDeletei recently signed up for weight watchers to get rid of my last post-baby pounds. i have to say, on the days that i do it (instead of eating ice cream for 2 meals) it works really well for me. plus they have a nice app.
but loving these excellent recipes. can't wait to try them!
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ReplyDeleteI love a combination of 1/2 cup skim milk, 1/2 cup plain fat free yogurt, 1/2 banana, fruit of your choice, 1 tbsp flax seed and honey to taste. Mmmm!
ReplyDeletei love a smoothie as well. mine isn't of the ultra-healthy variety...but it is delicious nonetheless! all ingredients are just eyeballed....frozen organic strawberries, frozen mango chunks, frozen pineapple, organic vanilla yogurt or greek yogurt, ground flax seed with blueberries (from trader joe's...delish), splash of organic apple juice. i like using frozen fruit so that i don't have to add ice. yum
ReplyDeleteLove smoothies, but have to agree they are no weight loss tool for me. They are too full of fruit juice and sugar and I still est a meal with one!
ReplyDeleteand yes, Papayas are gross xx
I think lots and lots of yogurt is good on the filling-you-up variety of smoothie.
ReplyDeleteI love adding apple (not juice - chunks of peel on apple). It has a nice filling texture and adds sweetness. I also love adding a generous pinch of ground cinnamon or ginger on top - especially cinnamon. Also a great dessert that I love maybe as much as ice cream is frozen blueberries with milk poured on top. If you pour slowly so that the milk covers the berries evenly it will freeze around them and make an ice cream like treat (go easy on the milk, you can tilt the bowl to get the milk to freeze near the top without overfilling). I'm sure any milk would work fine.
ReplyDeleteI don't know if they will magically make you lose weight or get shinier hair, but I love kefir based smoothies. Active bacteria has to help for something, right? I don't know.
ReplyDeleteFrozen mangos from TJs + kefir + whey protein powder (unless you're sketched out by protein powder - I am a little, but I get mine from Whole Foods and it makes smoothies way better, so I live with it)
Also good with frozen bananas or frozen blueberries. Apparently I am supposed to be putting greens in my smoothies but I'm still too freaked out for that.
For frozen fruit chunks like mango or banana, I put them in the micro for 20 sec or so before blending, it makes it way easier on the blender.
I love kale smoothies! use a handful of kale, half a banana, some honey, a chopped stick of celery, 1/4 cup apple juice and 1/2 lemon. blend with ice!
ReplyDeleteI just read through all the comments and was shocked no one mentioned the "green monster"
ReplyDeletehttp://greenmonstermovement.com/
I try to make one every other day with vanilla almond milk and the ground flax. One blogger said it made her eyelashes grow!!!