Saturday, February 7, 2009

Green Smoothies

I promised someone I would get some smoothie ideas up so I figured I'd better do it. My basic green smoothie is fruit, spinach and yogurt but I typically wing it and just toss handfuls into the Vitamix until it tastes good to me. However, I realize that there are some who work better with formulas, at least as a place to start so here is a guideline for you:

Group 1

1 part (1/2 cup to 1 cup) any of the following:
spinach
kale
broccoli (1/2 cup, it's strong!)
cabbage
lettuce
other mild leafy greens that I haven't thought of

Group 2
2 parts (1 cup each) any of the following:
bananas
strawberries
peaches
blueberries
pineapple
pears
apples
grapes
cherries
berries
Basically any fruit you like, in combinations that you like. I like to use frozen fruit so I don't have to add ice. Carrots are sweet and can be added in place of one of the fruits.

Group 3
1 part (1/2 to 1 cup) any of the following:
yogurt
tofu
cottage cheese
milk (start with small amounts until it's the texture you like)

You can add protein powder or other powdered supplements if you like. I like to toss in a handful of almonds to bump up the protein and it gives it a nice creamy texture if well blended.

One combo I really like is Strawberry Banana:
1 whole banana
1 cup frozen strawberries
1 cup spinach
1 oz. tofu or plain nonfat yogurt
1/8 cup almonds
Blend until smooth and creamy. If it's really thick you can either blend longer until it begins to melt a bit or you can add water or milk to thin it down.

1 comment:

Rebecca said...

I'm going to have to try these! Thanks!