favorite smoothie recipe

we are getting ripe mangos at the grocery store- finally so today I decided to make my favorite smoothie/meal replacement for lunch. I have also recently discovered greek yogurt with honey- this is a store brand- which I think made today's smoothie extra delicious.

2 cups chopped mango
two scoops meal replacement/protein powder (I use Apex brand meal replacement powder)
1/2 cup skim mil
3-4 ounces of vanilla or greek honey yogurt
A dash or two of McCormicks cocoa chile blend.

throw it into a blender, blend for a couple of minutes and drink. YUMMMMMM!!

About 12-16 ounces, 350 calories, little or no sugar, good protein to carbohydrate ratio, low fat.

I love strawberries so it's usually a slosh of skim milk, a handful of strawbs, a glob of whatever yoghurt is around and some honey. Stick blend; quick and easy. Yum.

I love green smoothies. I usually start with a frozen banana, some berries or mango, handful of spinach or kale, and enough soy milk or water to get it to blend. Oranges, apples, blueberries, peanut butter, pumpkin, anything can end up in there.

My favorite is green!

1 handful fresh or frozen strawberries;
1 handful fresh or frozen blueberries or pineapple;
1.5 scoops rice protein powder;
1/2 cup or so OJ or other juice;
2 - 3 cups fresh spinach!

My smoothies are pretty simple-

juice (orange, or whatever I have)
a banana
fresh or frozen strawberries, mangos, mixed berries and/or pineapple- whatever I have

or

milk
banana
chocolate syrup
fresh or frozen strawberries if I have it.

Ooh, I want to experiment with getting more greens through smoothies. Good ideas! Thanks.

I am curious about the green smoothies. Do you get a strong spinach taste or is the spinach overpowered by the fruit. I love raw spinach salads but don't like the taste or texture of cooked spinach at all.

My favorite go to smoothie is made of
frozen strawberries, pineapple and mango
1 scoop protein powder
1/2 cup unsweetended cranberry juice
water
2 tbsp ground flax seeds

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Originally Posted by ridenread

I am curious about the green smoothies. Do you get a strong spinach taste or is the spinach overpowered by the fruit. I love raw spinach salads but don't like the taste or texture of cooked spinach at all.

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Spinach is pretty mild anyway so the fruit overpowers the flavor, the spinach really just affects the color (and the nutritional value). Sometimes I have issues with kale smoothies tasting a little too green, but then I add more fruit.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by ridenread

I am curious about the green smoothies. Do you get a strong spinach taste or is the spinach overpowered by the fruit. I love raw spinach salads but don't like the taste or texture of cooked spinach at all.

My favorite go to smoothie is made of
frozen strawberries, pineapple and mango
1 scoop protein powder
1/2 cup unsweetended cranberry juice
water
2 tbsp ground flax seeds

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OH..thank goodness! I thought I was the ONLY one that couldn't stomach the taste and texture of cooked spinach! YUCK!!! And I especially dislike frozen spinach that has been thawed/squeezed out and then added to recipes...double YUCK! It's so stringy, chewy and gross. But raw baby spinach I can do. ;)

I love green smoothies too and was amazed to discover that bananas and strawberries really DO overpower the spinach flavor.

I do 1 banana
1 cup of frozen strawberries
2 cups raw spinach
1 cup of almond milk

and sometimes I'll add a scoop of Raw Protein for added punch.

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Originally Posted by Reesha

I love green smoothies too and was amazed to discover that bananas and strawberries really DO overpower the spinach flavor.

I do 1 banana
1 cup of frozen strawberries
2 cups raw spinach
1 cup of almond milk

and sometimes I'll add a scoop of Raw Protein for added punch.

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Do you taste the spinach at all? This looks like a very nice after-bike drink but I would replace the almond with skim milk. I just don't care for the taste of any of the nut milks.

So would a smoothie be a good place to use spinach that's looking a little tired and old? Like the wilted stuff or when it accidentally freezes?

I use smoothies to take care of over-ripe fruit...but I never thought about using them to finish off spinach that's a bit too old for salads! Please tell me you all have tried it and it works fine?!

I can't imagine why it wouldn't work, as long as it isn't slimy or something. Haven't tried it, as I prefer to keep my salad out of my smoothies. :D

Yum smoothies, the best way to start the day.

8oz hemp milk original flavor by trader joes
1 cup grapes (great for the skin!)
2 scoops of trader joes vanilla hemp powder
blueberries
strawberries
cherries
spinach

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Originally Posted by Catrin

Do you taste the spinach at all? This looks like a very nice after-bike drink but I would replace the almond with skim milk. I just don't care for the taste of any of the nut milks.

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I don't notice it, but you could always adjust the greens or use baby spinach to get an even less noticeable taste. If you realllly want to mask the spinach, shoot for raspberries. Powerful stuff.

I love smoothies, but I don't have them for breakfast because they don't keep me full. My favorite smoothie blend:

Toss frozen pineapple and/or mango into the blender bowl.
Splash in OJ.
Add a few big spoonfuls of plain yogurt.

Yeah, that's why I usually have 2-3 large smoothies for breakfast. The spinach definitely helps with the fullness factor I think.

Tomorrow I'm doing my first 30 + miler of the year and I think I'll start my day with oatmeal, eggs and a smoothie!

Mine:
Fresh or frozen fruit (strawberries, bananas, peaches, raspberries...whatever we have on hand)
splash of milk or orange juice
A few spoons of yogurt if we have it.
Blend. Hope that blender doesn't catch fire in the process.

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Originally Posted by Owlie

Mine:
Fresh or frozen fruit (strawberries, bananas, peaches, raspberries...whatever we have on hand)
splash of milk or orange juice
A few spoons of yogurt if we have it.
Blend. Hope that blender doesn't catch fire in the process.

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Sounds pretty much like how I make mine, except I usually add a tablespoon or two of ground flaxseed. I'll have to experiment with adding some greens to the mix--that sounds like a good way to get more veggies in.

Ha, made my boyfriend a 'hangover cure' this morning: 1 banana, 1 cup strawberries, 1 lime, juiced, 1 tbsp raw honey and a cup of water. We'll see how it works.

Made something similar for myself for pre-ride fuel. :)

I remember reading somewhere, and being told by a foodie friend, that we should not eat fruit and vegetables together as they require different digestive enzymes & digestion times. I think there was some concern of the different enzymes cancelling each other out & upsetting the digestive process.

However - I LOVE spinach & strawberry salad, and can't say I had a bellyache afterward.

At any rate - I keep my morning smoothies all-fruit. DH doesn't like to eat in the morning so this makes us both happy:

2 bananas
1 cup frozen blueberries
handful of strawberries or 2 plums, or mango, or 2 peaches, or whatever looked good
2-3 tbs peanut butter
almond milk

Yum baby yum!

my smoothie recipe comes from the website "Oh She Glows"...
2 cups spinach, microwaved for 2 min to wilt (blends better this way)
1 scoop EAS whey protein powder
1 cup frozen fruit (I really love blueberries)
1 banana
2 tbs ground flax seed
1/2 cup soy milk, or whatever it take to get it blended.

wilting the spinach really makes it pretty much liquefy once you blend it, and between the banana, protein powder and berries, I don't taste it at all.

It keeps me full until about noon if I eat it at 7:30. Of course, I have to force myself to eat breakfast instead of just drinking coffee most days (even if I don't eat, I still get hungry for lunch at about the same time), but I've learned the hard way (bonked rides) that I have to start fueling early.

1 cup froz peaches
1 cup froz raspberries
1 cup OJ
1 banana

Throw all into the blender and whizz until you like the texture

My own homemade from our cows yoghurt
tinned pineapple
home grown (but not my home) passionfuit or better some wild not-too-looked-after ones
home grown mango

nectarines (freshly frozen from my tree)
half a frozen banana
protein power
chopped baby spinach
dried green veggie power (Trader Joes carries it)
soy milk
water
little cinnamon, and a little ginger.

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Originally Posted by Sylvia

nectarines (freshly frozen from my tree)
half a frozen banana
protein power
chopped baby spinach
dried green veggie power (Trader Joes carries it)
soy milk
water
little cinnamon, and a little ginger.

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Ginger root or powder?

I have two favorite smoothies:

Frosty Basil Lemonade Smoothie

3 cups water
1 1/2 lemons peeled, halved and seeded
1/4 sweetener (sugar) I use Splenda because of diabetes
1/2 cup basil leaves
1 cup ice cubes

Cucumber Melon Smoothie

1/4 cup soy milk
1 cup green seedless grapes
1 1/2 cups cantaloupe chunks
1/2 cup cucumber peeled and chopped
1 small lime, peeled (cut in half is easier)
1 cup ice cubes

Both recipes from the Vitamix Book

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Originally Posted by margo49

Ginger root or powder?

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I use just a little ground ginger.

Actually just took my own advice from the "carrot juice yuck" thread and added a cucumber (peeled in "stripes") to my mango, pash and fruit, pineapple smoothie ...very good apart from being the colour of neo-natal poop.
Just now sittng calculating (well, imagining) the % -age increase in nutrients and health in general...I think my skin has a certain new glow!

Tonight after my ride with one heck of a hill, I resorted to Baja Bobs s/f sweet and sour mix, fresh lime and two shots of tequila. Some people might call it a s/f margarita. I will call it a smoothie with salt. :D

I've been really into smoothies lately. My favorite is my green frappuccino lol:
3 Tbsp cocoa powder
2 Tbsp instant espresso powder
sweetener to taste (or sugar to sweeten if that's your preference)
one whole bag frozen/chopped spinach
Greek yogurt + water OR almond milk OR coconut milk OR just water
sometimes add a scoop of plain protein powder (chocolate or vanilla would work too I just keep plain on hand)