Smoothies

There's nothing like a smoothie to taste delicious while filling up on fruits and other goodness.  Following some recent discoveries, like my Cuisinart immersion blender and some delicious powders to add to my smoothies, I've been on what you could call a smoothie kick. Okay, an obsession. And it doesn't hurt that the immersion blender is equally good at making milkshakes...but that's another story. (Pumpkin pie milkshake? Heck yes! It's healthy and at the bottom of this post.)

My typical smoothie follows a fairly easy recipe:

• Put a banana in the bottom. 
• Add whatever frozen fruit I have in the refrigerator, or, even better, in the freezer. Frozen fruit means I don't have to add ice, which is great, because I don't have any ice in my apartment (remember my red plastic shoes?). 
• Pour on milk or coconut water (fewer calories and tons of potassium). 
• Maybe add some powder (whey protein powder or nutritional supplement powder), maybe add some chia seeds or raw oats, maybe add some yogurt or kefir for extra protein...but not always.  
• And blend until smooth.  Easy, right?

Smoothies are also my favorite way to sneak in fruits I may have let ripen a bit too much.  Smushy kiwis, slightly bruised peaches, leftover papaya...  I just chop it up and store it in a plastic bag in the freezer.

So give smoothies a whirl (har de har har). They're cheap and easy and delicious. And they have that awesome feature of making you feel like you're doing something good for yourself.

Behold! A typical smoothie -- banana, berries, kiwi, coconut water,
and Amazing Grass Green SuperFood

Tropical Flat Belly Smoothie

Papaya contains an enzyme--papain--that helps digestion

1 banana

Frozen papaya

Frozen cherries, strawberries, or raspberries

Milk or coconut water

Texture bonus: shredded coconut

This, my friends, is a smoothie-making machine!
I make smoothies way more often using this bad boy
than I ever did with my blender. Why? Because it's easy, it makes the smoothie in a cup,
and it is super easy to clean...which my blender is decidedly not.
Plus it's orange. What's not to love?

Chocolate-Berry Smoothie

1 banana

Frozen raspberries and strawberries

Cocoa powder

Yogurt or kefir

Milk or coconut water

For crunch: almonds, walnuts, or cocoa nibs

Trial packets of Amazing Grass' Green SuperFood drink powder.
Packed full of good-for-you things.
Awesomely tasty, especially in a smoothie.

Hold You Over Until Lunch Smoothie
A double dose of protein and some belly-filling fiber helps keep hunger at bay for longer than the average smoothie
1 banana
2 tbsp. peanut butter
Yogurt
Frozen berries (strawberry, blueberry, raspberry, anything goes!)
Milk or coconut water
Oats (uncooked rolled ones, that is)
For crunch: add some nuts

Go big or go home.
The berry flavor (with goji and acai) as well as the
not-pictured chocolate flavor are my favorites.
Chocolate is hanging out in the refrigerator,
where he's supposed to be after opening.
We visit 2-3 times a week. Don't worry, he's not lonely.

Healthy Pumpkin Pie Shake

1/4 to 1/2 cup pumpkin puree (not the pre-mixed pie filling)

Vanilla or pumpkin or cinnamon ice cream or frozen yogurt

Milk

A few shakes each of cinnamon, ginger, cloves, nutmeg

Graham crackers (either whole crackers loosely crumbled or crumbs)

Whipped cream

Blend everything except the graham crackers and whipped cream until smooth.  Add the graham crackers and whipped cream, blend very, very briefly (about 3-4 quick pulses).  Enjoy!