Smoothies

[Kifferly]

I've been advised by my doctor to add more fresh fruit and veggies to my diet, to help lower my cholestrol. I've heard from a few people that a good way to do that is by making smoothies.  I eat pleanty of apples, organges, pineapple and grapes and I eat plenty of salads. I'd like to try different fruit and veggies, but I am a picky eater, so I know eating them will be a challenge for me.  That is why I've considered trying smoothies.  Has anyone else tried getting fruit and veggies this way? Any other suggestions? 

[WendyB]

I use to but i really prefer to eat them its more filling.

But try it. When I made them I did use Almond milk. made for a good flavor

[Kifferly]

Sounds good.  I never tried almond milk,  but I've heard it's  really good.  My husband loves it.  Thanks 

[Paradise555]

I love those personalized smoothie blender machines. My recipe changes whatever my grocery store has on sale for frozen fruit.

My recipe:

2 scoops of protein powder

1 to 1.25 cups of milk

and 2 hands of frozen fruit with a banana

[Kifferly]

I was in Wal-Mart a few days ago and notice that they have premade smoothie packages in the frozen food section. They include fruits and veggies, with recommended amounts of water, milk or juice. I was really excited about that. Now to find the right blender. I was initially wanting a Ninja Fit,  but the Nutribullet has better reviews  

[Shalvy · Accepted solution]

I add a little of fresh spinach to my frozen fruit smoothies and they're pretty good, can't really taste the spinach once it's mixed up with the fruit.

[Kifferly]

I've spoken to a few people who make smoothies on a regular basis and they all say that the fruit does a very good job at hiding the taste of the veggies....many recommend spinach and kale.  I've also heard using a little bit of yogurt makes the smoothies quite tasty.  I ordered a nutribullet for myself yesterday and I'm super excited to go by a pick it up today, so that I can start using it. 

[Steph_J]

I have had a NutriBullet for about 4 years now, and I consistently eat a protein smoothie at some point during my day. It helps me get protein and veg.  My typical recipe is:

large handful of greens (spinach, kale, red leaf lettuce)

red cabbage

carrot or cucumber (trying to get the rainbow color of veg)

vegan protein ( 1 scoop or 21 grams of protein)

frozen fruit (usually berries, but sometimes bananas)

Almond milk

[Kifferly]

I used my Nutribullet for the 1st time last night...  I made a smoothie using one of the premade packets.  It had apples, bananas, spinach, cucumbers and mint.  I used a little bit of light apple juice and it wasn't too bad. It took me a couple of blends to get it to the right consistency, but overall not bad. I'm going to keep trying until I get it right.  I am loving the Nutribullet though.   Thanks for the encouragement and recipe 🙂 

[Steph_J]

I hope you continue using it and find it useful! 

I can only eat so many salads, and then I start getting very tired of them, so this has helped me immensely. 

[SunsetRunner]

Spinach is a very versatile ingredient and mixes up with many types of food. I add spinach to porridge, milkshakes, even into burgers ( meaty and meatless ). I pretty much use it for everything. On its own, it doesn't have much of flavour but combined with other products it magically starts "shining" 😄

[Kifferly]

I certainly plan to. ☺

[Themotivator]

I'm still experimenting making smoothies.  I like taking seedless watermelon, cut it up in cubes and put it in the freezer.  It's good to snack on or put some in with whatever smoothie you make.  I also put some seedless watermelon in a blender, add some fruit punch creatine, then pour in some ice cube trays and freeze

[Kifferly]

That sounds sooo good!! I LOVE LOVE LOVE watermelon!!  I will definitely give this a try.  On this journey that I'm no, I've found myself eating more fruit and not realizing how much more I prefer fruit to other "snacks."  I've never really been into eating sweets, but lately they've become almost extinct to me.  I'm still using my Nutribullet to get fresh fruit and veggies and I'm still trying to find the right combo of things to use for good tasting smoothies, so thanks so very much for the tip and the encouragement!!  Good luck on your "smoothie" journey as well . 

[kaneohegirl]

be careful of the premade packs as they may have added sugar.... read the label. since you got a bullet it will blend just about anything... experiment.

frozen fruit can be bought in bulk at Costco or Sams club and are great in smoothies. adding spinach or kale is good. I also like to add milk or yogurt I'll take the regular containers of yogurt and put them in ice cube trays and freeze then put in ziplock bags and just add the number of cubes I want and it can act like added "ice" I use an unflavored protein powder called UNJURY you can buy it online  its whey based and blends wonderfully. I also like to add CHIA seeds gives you good omegas as well as a little more protein

Try to add the protein powder to your smoothies it will help make you feel fuller and give your muscles fuel and you won't get a sugar crash

[Kifferly]

Sorry that I'm so late responding, but I love the yogurt ice cube idea!! I never considered checking the sugar content in the prepackaged smoothie ingredients (shame on me ) but I certainly will from now on.  Thanks for the advice and the suggestions.  A friend of mine told me about the frozen fruit at Costco's. I don't have a membership, but have been meaning to get one. I guess i have the perfect motivation to make it happen. Thanks again 

[InkedChic00]

My favorite go to shake is Pineapple and Spinach, all ingredients from Aldi. The pineapple give the spinach a sweeter taste. 

8oz Spinach 

1 Toasted Coconut Yogurt 

1 cup Pineapple chunks

1/2 scoop Vanilla Whey Protein Powder

Add ice cube and blend in standard blender 

[Kephart]

You might also look into juicing...?  It's a great way to get your veggies and fruits mixed in, and the juices are usually good for about 3 days in a the fridge.  You can juice just about anything - spinach, beets, celery, and sweet potatoes to fruits.  One of the sites I started with is: https://juicerecipes.com/recipes/ when you select a juice, it gives you the nutritional values and the health benefits of the different fruits and veggies.  It's another option anyways.

[Dominique]

One thing to consider with juicing is you keep the sugar and get rid of most of the fiber. Moreover, you may be able to keep the juice itself for several days, but it’s not necessary the case of its micronutrients (e.g. vitamins). Drinking your fruits and veggies isn’t optimal if/when trying to lose weight, as solid food is always more satiating than liquids.

So juicing may be a good way to introduce fruits and veggies to someone who previously ate none or very little, but ultimately nothing beats processing them with your own jaws and teeth.

[kickfitgirl]