There are a few good starting points to remember. If this is your first foray into the world of smoothies you will definitely need a good powerful blender or food processor. You’re going to be putting a lot of wear and tear on this machine that you hope will follow you through plunging dress sizes and beyond. With that being said, here are some things I have personally learned along the way:
Start out with as few ingredients as possible. Try freezing a banana overnight then chopping it up into the blender along with a handful of spinach in the morning, with a couple ice cubes and a few ounces of water. Blend it only until the leaves are little green specks but try not to blend too long as nutrients are lost as food is oxidized. Pour into a glass just big enough and drink normally or with a straw just to feel fancy.
See? That wasn’t so bad, was it?
Now, for some basic smoothie equations, here are the kinds of ingredients you’re going to want to play with. Yes, you’re going to have fun, I promise!
1. The liquid. Pure H2O is totally fine, since you’re going to be adding whole fruits and veggies into the mix, anyway. For some added health or flavor, however, you can certainly pour in some coconut water, fruit juices, or milks – dairy, soy, rice, almond, or coconut. By the way, greek yogurt totally counts as a liquid and doubles as a protein source. Coolness!
2. Decide what kind of base fruit you want. This is the stuff that’s going to put the “smooth” in smoothie so you’re going to be looking for things like bananas, mangos, peaches, pears, apples, or papayas. Here’s a cool veggie secret: a cucumber would fit here as well as previously cooked pumpkin, sweet potato, or squash. Pick one of these then you can combine flavors with water-rich fruits like melon or citrus, or berries. Mmm berries!
3. Add flavor to your smoothie with berries (kind of obsessed, I admit it), citrus fruits, melon, or pineapple. If you’re brave you can even try things like ginger, cilantro, vanilla bean, clove, cinnamon or even cayenne pepper (use with a chocolaty smoothies made with raw cacao). Otherwise, think about your favorite beverage, sherbet, or yogurt combinations and let that guide your tastebuds.
4. Finally, add your greens. You can add up to 2 cups of spinach, dandelion, romaine lettuce, kale, chard, and even parsley.
That’s basically it! Now just blend the whole eclectic party up into a mild frenzy and pour into a jar, glass, or plastic tumbler. Whatever. Oh, and about protein powders or fiber sources like wheat germ, or milled flax seeds? Just do it! It’s your body, your health, and your smoothie so own it! Make it happen!
Glory
