Simple Super Smoothie

Good trade-off for us: buy organic or natural, seldom go to restaurant or Starbucks.

Gluten-free, protein, fruits, fiber, vitamins, detox.  It can look like mud, but it tastes great and is easy to make.  I am no nutritionist, but I have experimented.  I was chemically sensitive and allergic to many foods.  Now I’m well and still eat clean.

Thanks to friends who gave us the Braun hand blender almost 20 years ago -I finally start to use it on a regular basis.  I’ve gotten desperate about my 14 year-old’s green-food aversion and his slow-mo way of getting ready for school.  Something about sensory/texture/taste issues.

Perhaps drinking a meal is faster than chewing it. (turns out not to be the case with my son)

I find wheat grass power flavored with acai and blueberries.  The guy in the grocery store touts that his daughter gets her daily vitamins with a scoop of the magic powder with juice and she loves it.

Okay, I buy a jar on sale. The salesman has no idea who my son is.

The Ninja, as he calls himself, requests Ben and Jerry-like smoothie.  I’d add vanilla ice cream to the mix, which kind of defeats the purpose of a healthy drink.  A friend suggests trying yogurt and agave syrup.  That works.  After some testing and the kid’s somewhat willing taste buds, we have a deal.

Here is the smoothie he has almost every morning.  I modify it for the adults.  Sometimes I add produce that needs quick consumption (a.k.a. going bad):

• = feel free to exchange the type of frozen fruit, veggies, etc.

Try to use organic ingredients, especially the berries.

For kids/the less veggie-inclined:

1 whole banana

1/4 cup frozen blueberries or cherries*

1 scoop (about a tablespoon) of flax seed powder -(protein & omega-3)

1 scoop of wheat grass powder, plain or various flavors -(detox & greens)

1/3 cup of Good Belly probiotic drink

1/4 cup of milk or plain almond milk -(protein)

You can substitute milk with yogurt and agave syrup, or a scoop of ice cream.

For the veggie-inclined:

Add a bunch of chopped cucumber, spinach, or kale (I get pre-washed salads)

For the chocolate-lovers: 

Add a scoop of unsweetened, plain 100% CACAO powder.  (cacao can lower blood pressure)

Grind or blend away.  Add or subtract the liquid and solids for desired thickness.  And, unlike juicing, this lets us keep the fiber.

Oh sweetness. I sought them out when I was allergic to cane sugar.

Use the sweeteners sparingly.  The Good Belly drink contains sugar. I use it to sweeten the smoothie. If you don’t like sweet or the calories, feel free to substitute the Good Belly with another liquid.

Also, beware when you buy protein powders. I’d avoid soy -unless it’s organic, it’s likely to be GMO’d.  Soy presents hormone issues too.  Rice powder is another protein alternative. It tends to get “pesticided” (note that small grains and berries get whacked with them) so try to get that in organic too.

Where to find the ingredients: Your favorite local natural grocer, Whole Foods Market, The Vitamin Shoppe, Costco -for large bags of frozen organic berries/cherries, and www.vitacost.com (a great discount place for natural, organic foods and vitamin supplements).

More yummy, detoxing smoothie recipes (vegan peanut butter smoothie?!):
http://www.incrediblesmoothies.com/category/recipes/

Kris Carr’s 6 ingredient green smoothie. She is full of light, btw:
http://kriscarr.com/recipe/kris-go-to-green-smoothie/