Green Super Food Smoothie

In case you haven't noticed yet, I'm a little bit in love with smoothies. I love their creamy sweetness.  I don't eat much fruit so they are also a nice way to get some of the nutrients that I would otherwise miss out on.  I tend not to order them at cafés, though, because they usually pack them with ice cream as if a smoothie is a milkshake and it is too sweet and not really that healthy. If I want sugary deliciousness I'll just order a milkshake and not fool myself.

When I used to work at a drinks booth in an eatery many years ago I had a customer who ordered a thick shake and asked for skim milk in it, because she was "watching her weight". I said to her "Just so you know, there are five scoops of ice cream in this".  She cocked her head to one side, looked at me oddly and said "Exactly. That's why I want skim".  I just died a little on the inside and sold her the "healthy" beverage.  She walked away happy.  Now don't get me wrong.  I love a good thick shake.  But let's be honest with ourselves about what we are ordering, people.

For me - smoothies are about healthy tasty goodness.  I have found that you don't need any ice cream to make it taste sweet and creamy.  Freezing your bananas helps, and you can add frozen berries and frozen spinach cubes to thicken it up while packing a nutrition punch.  If you want it sweeter, just add a natural sweetener like honey.

Below is the recipe for one of my favourite smoothies that I make a lot. I keep supplies in my pantry so I can make it whenever I want it.  I got the fibre cleanse, chia seeds, LSA and fruit/veg from the local supermarket, the protein powder from a sports supplements shop and the Super Green powder from a health food shop.  This smoothie makes for a good breakfast.  It is choc-a-block full of super foods so it's mega healthy and feels good.  I'm relaxing and having this on my balcony while the Dragon is out having breakfast with a mate.  It is some good healthy me time.

Ingredients

Seves 1. Double to make breakfast for two.

• 1 banana
• 3 desert spoons of frozen mixed berries
• 1 frozen spinach cube
• 1 desert spoon of LSA (ground linseed, sunflower seed and almond mix)
• Small shake of chia seeds
• Small shake of fibre cleanse (psyllium husks, linseed meal, oatmeal, slippery elm and carob powder mix)
• 1 scoop of unflavoured whey protein powder
• 1 scoop of Super Greens (spirulina, barley grass, chorella and wheat grass mix)
• Approx 1 cup milk but it depends how big your cup is
• 5 ice cubes

Potential Spins

In summer I often add a tsp of coconut oil to this as well for some extra nutrition.   Unfortunately mine is solid at the moment and I can't get any out  of the bottle ;).  Add or subtract any super foods you like or change the fruit.  If you want to leave out the ice altogether, you could just add more frozen berries or an extra frozen spinach cube.  You could even substitute 100% juice for the milk for something a little different.  Know that you are adding a fair bit of sugar if you go with this option.

Method

1. Add ingredients to blender.

   

   Ready to blitz!

2. Blend.

I love how simple smoothies are.

My Take Aways

Yummy, healthy, and I feel good for having had this.  It is filling to boot.  Most people won't just have all these ingredients around the house, but it never hurts to stock up one bit at a time to add a little extra health to every smoothie.  I usually add spinach cubes/protein powder/Super Green to almost all of my smoothies as a matter of course, and can't really taste them.  I'm writing this now as I finish my smoothie and am about to fall into a novel and continue to relax for the next half hour or so.  Today is off to a good start.