Green Smoothie Recipe

     So today I'm posting my favorite way to start the day: a delicious healthy green smoothie! Okay.. so secretly definitely my favorite way to start the day is with cold pizza, but I feel much better when I start with a smoothie.
Starting your day with fruit is great for your body. Fruit is easily digested and quickly yields energy. Your body just went through a long resting period, you don't want to immediately bog it down with slow to digest sugars: carbs (think waffles, pancakes, english muffins, etc.) That being said, just a smoothie alone may not be enough to keep you full, I often start my day with a smoothie and then an hour later have a bowl of oatmeal.*  Here's the how to:

 First you'll want to gather your ingredients

While your gathering/measuring ingredients you'll need to slightly thaw out 1 cup of frozen fruit. Thaw them by placing them in hot water for a five minutes, or letting them stand at room temp for fifteen. You don't want them completely warm because they are the coldest ingredient and help give your smoothie a nice consistency; but, you don't want them frozen either or your blender won't properly break them down... unless you have a really good blender. Now, this mix bag of frozen fruit is great because it keeps forever in the freezer. Fresh fruit can absolutely be substituted, but then you might want to add frozen yogurt or ice to your smoothie.

Fresh fruit, use what you have on hand! If your fresh fruit is about to go bad, or is starting to get a couple of soft spots but is not yet rotting, use it in your smoothie. The texture of the fruit is gone once you blend it, making this a great way to use up fruit past its prime.

One cup of spinach. Don't be freaked out by the spinach! I promise, you will not taste it. You can use any leafy green here, kale would be a great nutrient dense option. I like to use spinach for the iron and calcium.

One and a half cups of milk. I love soymilk so I opted for it, but you can use whatever you like; dairy milk, almond milk, rice milk, etc.

Throw all your ingredients in a blender and pulverize it!

Action shot :-O

 

Delicious and healthy! I like the way it tastes sweetened only by the milk and fruit, but you may prefer to add some sugar. This recipe yields enough for two people, (so you might want to half it) but I like to drink it all and get in my fruits and veggies the easy way!

This is really just a guideline, this smoothie is totally customizable, try adding yogurt for a some creaminess. You can also freeze it in an icepop form and eat it on a warm summer day. I hope you make your own!

Fiona working on the blog with her sheep

*please note that I am not a doctor or dietician, and you probably should not take advice from me

Green Smoothie
1 C mixed frozen fruit
1 banana
1 C spinach
1.5 C milk

Slightly thaw frozen fruit
Break banana into pieces
Add all ingredients to blender
Blend until smooth