Friday, February 5, 2010

Back in the Smoothie Groove

I don't know why, but I love me some green smoothies for breakfast and lunch, despite the frigid Montana weather. (I can't believe I just used that horrible grammar in the name of artistic license. Will you ever forgive me?) They're super nutritious as I incorporate protein and lots of spinach (hellooo, vitamin K, vitamin A, magnesium, folate, manganese, iron, calcium, vitamin C, vitamin B2, potassium, and vitamin B6, to name a few spinach perks). Plus green smoothies are energizing, fun to make and eat, and just plain yummy. The only things I don't like about smoothie meals are a) that they stress out my poor little blender-that-could, and b) that I shiver in my cold office after eating one. But then I drink lots of hot tea, so it's all good. The side-effect of the smoothies' chill factor is that I end up consuming more water than I might ordinarily feel motivated to do, which is no small feat.

Today's breakfast and lunch smoothies are fairly representative of the flavor combinations that
I enjoy. These green smoothies might not actually be green, but rest assured that they both contain powerful and verdant nutrition within. Want to eat what I ate today? Give these smoothie concoctions a whirl -- literally! in your blenders! -- and then tell me what you think.

Blueberry Breakfast Smoothie
1 cup of water
1 cup of yogurt (I used plain organic non-fat)
splash of skim milk
1/4 tsp guar gum
1/2 tsp xantham gum
pinch of salt
sweetener to taste
1/2 cup frozen blueberries
a few large handfuls of spinach
3 big handfuls of ice (added after blending all the above ingredients)

Chocolate-Covered Strawberry Smoothie
(Okay, so the strawberries aren't so much chocolate-covered as made one with the chocolate, but the first option makes a better sounding title, don't you think?)
1 cup of water
splash of skim milk
1 scoop of whey chocolate protein powder (I've tried Jay Robb's, but I like my local store's brand better)
1 scoop of Amazing Grass' chocolate Green SuperFood
sweetener to taste
pinch of salt
about 2 Tablespoons sugar-free chocolate syrup
4-5 large frozen strawberries
3 big handfuls of ice (again, blend together all of the above ingredients before adding the ice)

Easy, healthful, tasty, good transporters and keepers -- what else could you hope for in a smoothie breakfast or lunch? What's your favorite smoothie concoction? I'm always looking for new inspiration.

Don't forget -- today is the last day to enter to win free Progress soup! A can of soup is no green smoothie, it's true, but I wouldn't say no a hot bowl of soup, either. Good luck!

2 comments:

  1. these look yummy beth! i have yet to delve into the "gums" that i keep seeing, but i bought some blog fad nutritional yeast today, lol! i had a smoothie of strawbs and soy protein the other morning but gosh it just froze my belly. i like the soups better this time of year. ;)

    ReplyDelete
  2. Did you put the yeast into the smoothie? What did it do? Now I'm curious!

    ReplyDelete

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