On a Green Smoothie Kick!

Because I don't own a juicer (although I really WANT to own a juicer. Pretty please, Ben? Christmas present? Hint: Vitamix. Or at the very least, a good Breville?), I have been concocting the next best thing: smoothies. I make them in my little Ninja food processor. 

If you need a good reason to juice/smooth, read some inspirational, hilarious wisdom by Kris Carr, or watch the jaw-dropping documentary Fat, Sick & Nearly Dead. Learn about the INSANE amount of nutrition you can pack into a 16-ounce glass, how you can get your fruits & (mostly) veggies without having to really taste the less appealing ones, and what this can do for your overall quality of life. One interesting factoid: the bioavailability of many foods is actually quite low; in other words, when eating a salad, we're not always reaping every nutrient. That's because most of us don't chew long enough to break down the food enough for our bodies to use it. Juicing eliminates this problem. The juicer not only makes all those green leafies easier to swallow, it also helps extract more nutrients for our consumption. 

If you, like me, sadly do not own a juicer, or even a food processor, you can use a blender or some sort of smoothie-maker. 

I have been doing this just about every morning for breakfast, and I cannot even describe how much better I feel when I start my day with a powerhouse glass of nutrients, as opposed to a bowl of cereal or something. There are a million varieties, and generally you can use the produce you have on hand--just be sure to include some greens! To cut the veggie taste, always throw in a bit of fruit, but never more fruit than vegetables. Here's my current breakfast!

Lindsey's Green Smoothie

1/2 peeled cucumber, sliced

1/2 avocado

1/2 banana

1/2  loose cup mung bean sprouts

1.5 tbsp. chia seeds

liberal amount of cinnamon

dash of agave

handfuls of greens: spinach, romaine, arugula, kale, chard, or a mixture of whatever I have. 

1/2 c. coconut milk, unsweetened

Blend all ingredients! Serve immediately. 

TIP: If you have a small food processor (like I do), you may want to blend the greens and milk first, and then add in other ingredients and blend again. 

Look at that pretty sage color!

If you juice or make smoothies of your own, I would really love to see your best tips and recipes! I'm new to this, after all :)

Lindsey.