This week's smoothie before being completely mixed into an ugly purple-green.
Even before I started eating plant-based, I would throw together a batch of smoothies every once in a while in order to keep my body fully supplied with micronutrients and to stave off sugar cravings. I found that my body would crave less sugar when it was satisfied with enough proper nutrition. Now in addition to creating impulse vegan brownie purchases, my body also tells me that I want real cheese and bacon when I haven't properly stuffed it with enough vitamins via my food. That's when I know it's time to call upon Optimus Smoothie!
This is another one of my recipes that's more of a framework or merely inspiration for your own food. The beauty of the smoothie is that you can throw whatever ingredients you want into that blender! The basic formula I use is: fruits, vegetables, source of fat, and liquid needed to blend to desired consistency.
My liquid base in generally grapefruit juice (not from concentrate and, please, not from a can! I think I threw up in my mouth a little bit just thinking about it). The reason for this is that I just love grapefruit juice, but it's also lower in sugar than most other juices. Some people use water as their base, but I find that it dilutes the flavor too much for my taste.
I also boil flax seeds (about 1/2 cup) in water (about 2 cups) for about 15 minutes so they're easier to digest. Just make sure you let the mixture cool before adding it to the blender and the rest of your smoothie; you don't want to kill all of the vitamins in the fruits and veggies. (If you don't have time to let it cool, you can throw some frozen fruit in there that you didn't have time to thaw. It's a win-win, really.) Another reason I use flax seeds is to have a source of fat for better absorption of the vitamins in the fruits and veggies. Alternately, you can use avocado.
For fruit, I use whatever is in season or that I'm in the mood for. The smoothie in the picture above contains apples, pears, blueberries, mango, and kiwi. Later in the summer I'll use peaches, nectarines, cherries, etc. If you find that your mix is too sour or you added too many vegetables, more mango always sweetens it up.
For veggies, I always use at least one bunch of kale. This last batch also included a bunch of spinach and parsley. It's important to get your greens into your smoothies, and the bonus is that you (or your children) can barely taste them when they're mixed with fruit.
An optional additional for more punch and flavor (not to mention anti-inflammatory benefits) is fresh ginger and/or fresh turmeric. I used to always add these to my smoothies, but I found that my husband and son would drink more if I omitted them. So, maybe I add too much ginger...I might have a problem...
The important thing is to have fun. If you don't enjoy a batch, play around with ingredients until it's something that you love and you enjoy drinking.