2013 New Year's Smoothie Challenge - Days 6 & 7

 

Collard Green Hodge Podge Smoothie

So the past 2 days, I decided to use the same type of greens. I decided to try something completely different from what I'm used to and that's, COLLARD GREENS! As you may know, collard greens are much like spinach, but stronger in flavor, slightly bitter even, just overall more....green tasting lol. I mixed it with whatever fruits I had left, which included pineapple, grapes, apples, mango, citrus of all sorts. It was a hodge podge for sure! I just wanted to mask the flavor of the collards as best I can and thankfully I did just that. Out of all the smoothies I made, although still enjoyable, this one definitely was not my favorite at all.  I don't know if it's the copious amount of random fruits or the collard greens or both that put me off, but I didn't care for this one. I actually much prefer kale.

 I know. I feel a bit disappointed in myself, but hopefully the more I drink it the more I'll get used to it.

I'm not one to give up on a food just because I didn't like it the first time. Our taste buds change ever few years, so it's always a good idea to keep re-trying different foods because you may be surprised what you end up liking this time around.

Overall, this round of the Smoothie Challenge was as always super fun and informative. Thanks to Katherine for the invite!! I've been working out almost everyday since the holidays ended determined to take back my health and these smoothies have truly helped wonders to jump start a cleaner diet.

I'm not going to lie, I don't drink green smoothies outside of these challenges as often as I should, BUT the fact that I've included them in my diet is a step in the right direction. The more I experiment, the more I learn and I'll include drinking more green smoothies into the 2013 Resolution List! :)

Cheers to all the other participants as well! It was fun reading about your experiences :)

Get Your Feast On!

2013 New Year's Green Smoothie Challenge - Day 5

One thing I'll always be amused by is how the entire first part of our day, the sun is shining, the skies are blue, not a cloud in sight, the wind nippy, but nothing we can't handle---all working in good harmony to make our otherwise day of complete banality a little bit brighter......ONE bathroom break later and I walk outside to a full on blizzard happening.

Gotta love Chicago!

^_^

Day 5

BBC Green Smoothie Broccoli, Banana, and Celery!

I read somewhere that adding celery to your green smoothie is much like adding salt to a cake batter. The sodium...dietary sodium ;)....enhances the sweetness. Not to mention, celery's jam packed with anti-oxidants, Vitamin B's (all sorts of 'em), folic acid, Vitamin C, and my favorite....FIBER!!!

I wasn't ready to add complete stalks, so I used the leaves as well as the small softer branches near the top. I definitely could taste the celery, but I personally like it so I didn't mind at all. I also added some green tea to liquify the situation and some grapes and apples for more fiber and flavor :)

Hope your day was as bright as my first half was! If not, hopefully this picture of my bud, Sherlock can at least put a smile on your face! :)

Go Feast Yourself!

2013 New Year's Green Smoothie Challenge - Day 1 & 2

The first time I was invited to do the Green Smoothie Challenge, I was a little hesitant because I didn't know too much about it, but looking back now I'm so happy I did. It's gotten me more excited about getting healthy and quite frankly let's face it, you can only cook vegetables so many ways. Knowing that I can consume those vital nutrients in a refreshing way that can also possibly satiate my incredibly huge sweet tooth is a plus.

So when I was invited to do it again for the new year, I was too quick to accept. :)

For New Year's, it's a Filipino tradition to prepare 13 different types of fruits (preferably round, but any will do!) to welcome in good luck in the coming year. Much of these fruits will be going into my smoothies. Yum! :)

For Day 1, I unfortunately did not get in my green smoothie. However, I sorta made up for it by having 2 servings today!

Day 2

Creamy Avocado and Banana Smoothie

For Day 2, I made something a little different. One of my favorite bubble tea drinks to get is the Avocado flavor. A lot of people may not associate avocado with desserts or anything sweet, but I swear the mild flavor and creamy texture combined with honey or bananas is an absolute triumph. I tried to keep it as minimal as possible by wizzing up some avocado and banana chunks, some grapes for more sweetness and water content, and a little bit of milk to accentuate the creamy avocado.

The results are amazing! I made enough for 2 servings. One for an in-between breakfast and lunch snack and then the other for after my workout.  I feel refreshed and ready for the rest of the day.

Go Feast Yourself!

Pumpkin Spice & Everything Nice

During this time of year, pumpkins are EVERYWHERE including in our beverages! Yesterday, I pureed a huge pumpkin, so I've been brainstorming up ideas on different ways to use pumpkin puree. The first thing that came to mind is THE Pumpkin Spice Latte made popular by Starbucks. I've heard so many people rave and rave about this drink and since I love coffee and pumpkin, I figured I'd give it a try. I looked at some awesome recipes online and was able to concoct my own easy and healthier version of it.

 I opted to use stevia instead of real sugar and I also added some salt because I just think salt enhances anything sweet. In most recipes you can find, people also like to top this off with a lot of whipped cream. I personally LOVE the taste of pumpkin and so I decided that the whipped cream would've been too much....at least for me.

All in all, I LOVE this. It's so decadent!

Hope you enjoy!

Homemade Pumpkin Spice Latte

Ingredients

• 3/4 Mug extra strong coffee (or espresso)
• 1/2 Mug 2% milk (preferrably whole/half & half)
• 3 tablespoons stevia
• 2 1/2 tablespoons pumpkin puree
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
• pinch of salt

Cooking Directions

1. Brew some extra strong coffee.
2. In a small saucepan over medium heat, combine rest of ingredients (milk, vanilla, pumpkin, spices, & salt).
3. Heat until bubbles start to form. Whisk until it becomes somewhat frothy.
4. Poor into mug with coffee.

As I mentioned, I have A LOT of pumpkin puree, so be on the look out for an onslaught of pumpkin recipes! :)

Get Your Feast On!

7-Day Green Smoothie Challenge - Day 7

not pictured: spinach leaves. I decided to add some for more vitamins!

Can't believe it's Day 7 already! I had so much fun doing this challenge. I've learned so much about how amazing these drinks are for you. I'll definitely be drinking green smoothies more often now.

Thank you to Katherine from Real Food Runner for the invite :)

Strawberry Tropical Green Smoothie

• 1 handful fresh basil leaves
• 1 handful bok choy leaves
• 1 handful baby spinach 
• 2 handfuls frozen tropical fruits 
• 1 handful frozen strawberries
• 2 teaspoons honey
• 1 cup water

On a sidenote, football season is here!! Go Bears!!

Get Your Feast On!

 

7-Day Green Smoothie Challenge - Day 6

Sorry this one's up super late! The weather was on and off again and so was my energy. I think these smoothies are really helping me fight off a cold.  I'm close to feeling 100% again.

Anyways, I was a little skeptical and quite frankly a little disappointed when the color came out kind of murky and swamp like haha, but it tasted awesome especially the basil. I love basil so much I grow my own. I'll definitely be using them in sweet dishes as well now :)

Basil Swamp Shake 

Ingredients

• 2 handfuls baby spinach
• 10 large basil leaves
• 1/2 cup frozen peaches
• 1 cup fruit juice or water

Cooking Directions

1. Blitz and enjoy!

Get Your Feast On!

7-Day Green Smoothie Challenge - Day 3

This is probably my favorite green smoothie so far! One of my favorite snacks of all time is a grilled peanut butter and banana sandwich. I decided to turn it into a smoothie haha. Why not! After using the spinach for  Day 1 I realized that you don't really taste it all, so I wasn't worried about using it here. I used fresh peanut butter, but if you want to make this for after your workouts you can totally use peanut butter flavored protein powder.

This definitely has eliminated my dessert cravings for today. Best part? It's pretty much guilt free.

PB & Banana Greenshake

Ingredients

• 2 heaping handfuls fresh baby spinach
• 1 2 bananas frozen & chopped
• 2 teaspoons peanut butter
• 1 teaspoons honey
• 1/4 - 1/2 cup milk

Cooking Directions

1. Blend it all together!

Get Your Feast On!

7 - Day Green Smoothie Challenge - Day 2

For Day 2, I chose to use kale. I don't regularly eat kale and I always hear about how strong it is, so I was definitely a little nervous. Surprisingly, I think I prefer it over spinach in these smoothies. It has more of that green, herby flavor that doesn't get lost in all the fruit. I think I'll be using it all up this week.

This time I drank this smoothie in place of lunch :)

Refreshing Citrus Kale & Mango Smoothie

Ingredients

• 2 large handfuls kale
• 1 large handful spinach
• 1 cup chopped mango
• juice of whole lemon
• 1 tsp (or to taste) honey

Cooking Directions

1. Roughly chop mango and kale. 

2. In a separate bowl, squeeze lemon juice and massage through kale. 

3. Let sit for 10-15 minutes in refrigerator. 

4. In a blender, pulse all ingredients including spinach until smooth. 

5. Add honey to taste. Enjoy!

7 Day Green Smoothie Challenge Haul

Here are some of the ingredients I went and picked up today: bananas, frozen mixed fruit, spinach, and kale. I already have some other ingredients I plan on experimenting with as well like herbs, ginger, and other veggies. I reckon this will be fun :)

Get Your Feast On!

My Icy Soul

I thought it was only fitting to finally post this great smoothie/icy/slushy/COLD snack idea that I forgot I had prepared waiting to be shared today of all days because Illinois reached a high of 102° F.  The worst part was the humidity that came along with it. The heat index was I believe 110°F....YUCK! I'm not a summer person AT ALL. I enjoy it of course but I'm more of a cooler, mid 70's type of gal. I despise heat....unless it's in food, but I won't ramble on about that xD

Anyways, this is super easy to make.  The best way I can describe it is, it's more rich than a shake, but less creamy than ice cream *scratches head*. I guess you'll just have to try it and see for yourself. You'll be glad you did! So refreshing! Tart from all the berries, sweetened with bananas, and an added creamy richness from the heavy cream...just a tad. Yum!

Mixed Berry Soft Serve

- 1 handful of mixed berries preferably the frozen kind, but fresh is fine
- 1 banana frozen
- 1/2 C fruit juice
- 1/4- 1/2 C cream
- 1/2 tsp Truvia or to taste

Put all the ingredients in a blender and pulse until you reach a smooth consistency. Poor in your serving cups or a large bowl and place in the freezer for about 1/2 an hour.

You can eat it straight away or thaw it out a little like I did so it's a little softer and easier to spoon in your mouth.

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 You can't go wrong with smoothies in the summer time. They're refreshing, delicious, and very healthy!! This is perfect in the morning. You can add some protein powder making it a great post workout shake.

Berry Mango Banana Smoothie

- handful of mango
- 1 banana
- handful mixed berries
- 1/2 C Mango puree
- 1/4 C water (optional)
- 1/4 C ice
- Truvia to taste

Put ingredients in blender and pulse until desired consistency.

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okay I lied

Lake Geneva

Maybe Summer isn't THAT bad :D

Feast On!