Friday, January 6, 2012

Peach Almond Green Smoothie (with Swiss Chard) & other Green Smoothie recipes

Back in October my sister came to visit. She was reading a book about Beauty Detox when she came and although we didn't agree with everything in the book, we both decided that we would incorporate green smoothies into our diet. I had had them before, but not consistently, because I always felt that I was getting enough greens in my normal diet. Swiss Chard is my all-time favorite food. We eat tons of kale, spinach, swiss chard, beet greens, turnip greens, collards, etc., and even had a very successful first summer/fall of growing swiss chard in the garden. (I still have some sprouting up out there!)

Taking all of this into account, my sister and I started having a green smoothie almost daily. She went back to Utah and we would email or text our different recipes and ideas
. I experimented with some of my own concoctions, some were delicious, some not so good-(which I still got drank, somehow). I also tried a bunch of different recipes that used different greens besides spinach, which I am going to share. I haven't taken a picture of every single one of these recipes, but I have enjoyed each of them 5+ times in the past few months. My go-to, on hand, I-don't-want-to-think green smoothie is banana, frozen mixed berries, spinach and cold water. I don't like using yogurt/milk or juice because it adds unnecessary calories, in my opinion.

Now I have some sort of green smoothie 3-4 days a week. I find they are very refreshing as an after workout snack/meal, but also are great as a breakfast or snack anytime of day.
I don't add any honey/agave/sweetener because I think the fruit makes them sweet enough. My kids drink them with me and really like them. I know many people try to eat healthier as the New Year rolls around and green smoothies are a great and easy way to up the number of veggies/fruits you consume.

I have made and enjoyed each of the following Green Smoothie recipes at least 5 or more times. My kids love them too.

Peach Almond Green Smoothie (pictured above)

1 cup frozen peaches

1 sliced banana

2 cups chopped (torn) swiss chard

1 T raw almond butter

2 cups water+ a few ice cubes

Optional: 1 T ground flax seed

Blend all ingredients in blender until smooth


Blueberry Kale Smoothie

1 cup frozen blueberries

1 1/2 sliced bananas

2 handfuls (1 1/2 cups) chopped kale (I like to use red russian kale, it has a better raw taste)

2 cups water

handful of ice

Optional: 1 T ground flax seed

Blend all ingredients in blender until smooth

Grape Fig Cleanser

3 cups grapes (purple or green)

3-4 black mission figs

2 cups chopped spinach

2 cups water

1 cup ice

Optional: 1 T ground flax seed


Oat Berry Green Smoothie

1/4 cup oats (ground up in blender before other ingredients are added)
1 sliced banana
1/2 cup chopped fresh or frozen mango
1 cup frozen blackberries or blueberries (or mixed frozen berries)
2 cups spinach
2 cups ice cold water

Glowing Green Smoothie by Kimberly Snyder

1 1/2 cups water

1 head organic romaine lettuce, chopped

1/2 of large bunch of organic spinach (or 3/4 of small bunch)

3-4 stalks organic celery

1 organic apple, cored and chopped

1 organic pear, cored and chopped

1 organic banana

Juice of 1/2 organic lemon

Optional: 1/3 bunch organic cilantro (stems okay), 1/3 bunch organic parsley (stems okay)

Directions:
  1. Add the water and chopped head of romaine and spinach to the blender.

  2. Starting the blender on a low speed, mix until smooth.

  3. Gradually moving to higher speeds, add the celery, apple, and pear.

  4. Add the cilantro and parsley if you choose. Fresh herbs, like cilantro and parsley, have cleansing properties that help extract heavy metals and other toxins from the body.

  5. Add the banana and lemon juice last.


Here is a link for Green Smoothie Cups that I plan to try really soon since I located coconut water at Trader Joe's last week

8 comments:

Katmomma3 said...

Green smoothies each and every day will provide you with the nutrition necessary in the way the body can assimilate it. We plant eaters, not meat eaters! This is one good way to start converting to the healthiest diet on the planet: raw organic vegan!

Michele said...

Oh, I love this! I lost my green smoothie habit when I got pregnant because I was so sick and had food aversions and now I'm finding it hard to get back into it. These look like great recipes that I can't wait to try. Plus I got a Blendtec for Christmas, perfect for green smoothie!!!

Kati said...

I love this!! I have been trying to feed my kids more Green Smoothies (sometimes it is the only veggies I can get into them) thanks so much for sharing these recipes. I am now a follower of your fun blog :)

Laura Dawn said...

Thanks for posting these Mare, I need to get back in to it. I have been slacking :(

Mumsy said...

Love these! I have everything for the first one. I'm going to make it right now.

Socially Savvy said...

Monday's are smoothy days - thank you for sharing these wonderful recipes! xoJoy

Mary Jolley said...

I love my morning green smoothie and I am always looking for fun new idea. I haven't ever tried oats before...
I like adding raw hemps, too- change up the typical flaxseeds sometimes.

Elissa said...

I made your peach almond green smoothie this morning and loved it!!