Green Smoothie Madness

For the past five days, we've been making green smoothies at lunch. I love them and so does Charlotte! I have been making green smoothies for well over a year now and often get asked about them or how I get C to drink them. I thought I would share our thoughts and favorite recipes here.

 Taken November 6, 2012.

I think that I introduced Charlotte to them at just the right age. She was two and not in that picky food stage yet. She has always been really good about trying new things as well, even if it's just a quick nibble or sip. It also helped that she saw Ross and I drinking them often so she just wanted to mimic us. Green smoothies are a great way to get a serving of veggies and fruit. The best thing is you can NOT taste the source of the green at all. I promise!!!! Here are our most used and favorite recipes that we follow:

Simple Green Smoothie by Rabbit Food For My Bunny Teeth.
Not only do I love Catherine and her wonderful website, but I LOVE this green smoothie. The orange makes it super refreshing and I always have the ingredients on hand for this one. She recently shared it and I have already made it 3 times! It's easy to swap out the fruit if you just don't happen to have an orange on hand. Frozen mango or strawberries would work just fine!

Spookie Smoothie by Weelicious.
Another Catherine that you should be following if you aren't already. She comes up with the easiest and tastiest recipes for babies and toddlers! This is the very first green smoothie that I made and offered to Charlotte. It quickly became a favorite family request. I make it using Organic Silk Milk. Sometimes I omit the Agave and add a Tablespoon of Peanut Butter instead.

Banana, Chia and Spinach Smoothie by What's Gaby Cooking.
This is fairly similar to the other two recipes, but it was the first time I had seen someone add chia seeds to a smoothie. Genius! We always have a bag of chia seeds in the pantry for when we make these No Bake Energy Bites. They are tiny little seeds that contain healthy Omega-3 fatty acids, protein, fiber and calcium. They are a perfect addition to any smoothie!

Blackberry Green Shake by Sidesaddle Kitchen.
This recipe was at the beginning of one of my Tara Stiles yoga videos (which I LOVE by the way). It sounded so good that we decided to give it a go. It includes a lot of different things that I don't usually add to my green smoothies. For one, it uses kale instead of spinach. It was also the first time I've used cinnamon, ginger and cucumber as ingredients. I omit the parsley because I personally just don't like the taste. This is the perfect example of how to hide a green smoothie too, lol. By using blackberries or blueberries, it changes that vivid green to a deep purple. The link includes a quick video so you can see how easy it is to blend everything up!

Tips:
- Don't throw out those brown, spotted bananas. Cut them in half and freeze them. We always have a   bag in the freezer for making smoothies or Banana "Ice Cream".
- Experiment with different fruits. I often add strawberries, apples, nectarines or pineapple. It changes the taste just slightly and uses what you have on hand. 
- Use a high power blender. I know a lot of people have a Blendtec. We personally have and use a Breville Hemisphere Blender . Works perfectly every time.
- I like to serve mine in a small mason jar with a fun straw. We have been gifted a couple packs of cute paper straws, but now that they are just about used up, I went ahead and ordered these Stainless Steel Drinking Straws. Can't wait to use them! 
- To quickly clean up: Rinse your blender, add a squirt of soap, place it back on the base and hit Blend. It whirls up a soapy concoction as it cleans the sides and bottom. Rinse it back out and you are good to go.

So what are you waiting for? Go try a green smoothie today. You'll love it and so will your body! Your skin will look great, your nails will grow like crazy, it will give you an energy boost while keeping you satisfied and best of all you will feel good for giving yourself some tasty, wholesome nutrients.  Do you have a favorite recipe that you've tried and loved? Please share!! You can find all of the recipes listed above on my Pinterest board! Happy sipping.