By Jo Cooper
I admit it: I’m hooked on green smoothies. But if you have to have a vice, hey.
For me (and everyone’s different, which is pretty wonderful), green smoothies are the perfect start to a day. They taste like liquid sunshine, and make me feel strong and energized all morning.
Here are a week’s worth of photos and recipes to get you started. You’ll note the occasional profusion of jars– a sign that my whole family is hopping on board this smoothie thing. My oldest son (he who does not like vegetables) is up to one quart a day. And if you are getting the idea they are delicious, you are absolutely correct.
Recipes below. A couple of basics: vary your greens, so you don’t O.D. on too much oxalic acid in spinach, for instance. All plants have protective devices– too much is too much. Rotate with kale, parsley, romaine lettuce, chard, and so on. Too thick? Add more water. Or, you can add coconut water, like our faculty member Derek Neal did in our previous post (see ‘smoothies’). For convenience and cost savings, organic frozen fruit is a great option. Freeze bananas that are getting too soft, to add to future smoothies. Add ripe avocados for delectable smoothness. You get the idea.
1. Kale & Cantaloupe (Monday)
1/2 organic cantaloupe, kale (ribs removed), water
2. Pinneapple & Spinach (Tuesday)
1/2 fresh pineapple, spinach, handful of parsley, water
3. Peach Raspberry (Wednesday)
Frozen peaches, 1/4 pint raspberries, banana. small head of lettuce & some mint leaves for zin
4. Blueberry Fig (Thursday)
4 Brown Turkey figs, 1/4 pint blueberries, banana, lacinato (aka dino) kale (ribs removed), water
5. Alex’s Minty Mango (Friday)
Frozen or fresh mango, spinach, mint leaves, water
6. Parsley Passion (Saturday)
1/2 bunch parsley, 1/2 cucumber, peeled, 1 apple, 1/2 ripe banana, 1 cup water
7. Strawberry Nectarine (Sunday)
Nectarine, handful of strawberries, banana, frozen pineapple, lacinato kale
More resources: I highly recommend Victoria Boutenko’s books Green for Life and The Green Smoothie Revolution along with her family’s terrific blog (see ‘favorite sites’) for zillions of recipes, how to introduce smoothies to babies and children, and more.
Enjoy!
