Green(or healthy) smoothie recipies

[hopechap]

yes, the tomato is minor. Actually had it without the tomato and it was fine. You will be able to make some nice soups.

[becca]

So far, we have only played with fun things.  Yummy fruit smoothies for ds, and I had some of his today, and ht chocolate to "christen" the machine yesterday.  White hot choc. for ds. 

Today's smoothie was mango, blueberries, strawberries, pomegranate juice, Greek 2%  yogurt, coconut milk(vanilla flavored), little honey.  Yum! 

Last night was a similar concoction, with a mixed bag of berries that included cherries, and reg. milk, but the rest was about the same. 

I have to work at the school today and there is a great produce market/store close to it, so I waited until today to shop for fresh produce.  They also carry VNF stuff.  Need to get dd some Tannabars. 

Kids heard me discussing smoothies with dh(green ones) so I thought we needed to make some yummy, fun ones so as not to scare them off of them.  Might sneak in a spinach leaf or two, a carrot here and there and ease them into having a bit of veggie in them.  They are not good veggie eaters, so this could help get some into them. 

No way will my kids do a true green smoothie, lol. 

Easy to use and clean, so far. 

eta:  well, the fruit/yogurt/honey smoothie is not going to work for me.  I was hoping there was enough protein in the yogurt to offset the BG spike.  But 142 about an hour after is much higher than I like.  The goal, medically, is under 140(I shoot for under 120) at 2 hours.  Will see where I go over the next hour.  I usually try to stay between 90-120's at all times. 

I am guessing, on top of it being a carb-y smoothie, the blender makes it more rapidly digestible.  Will have to see how greens with fruits go. 

[buttons]

I was given a slow juicer for Christmas and I'm having alot of fun with it.  I guess I'm missing out on the fiber of a smoothie though.  One thing I can't find is a calorie count for anything.  Are there any recipes out there that would indicate that?

[becca]

Well, I do not do juicing.  So, I have no idea on that question.  I figured I want the fiber, especially being diabetic.  So, juices will likely be higher calorie than a smoothie, all ingredients the same, otherwise. 

I eat a lot of salads and veggies soups anyway, so for me, the green smoothie thing will be a way to squeak in some variety, quickly, but not really change things in a huge way.  Just a boost of veggies.  I think it would be overkill to suddenly go to s total green drink cleanse or something.  Just my opinion.  My system would not take that well, lol. 

My smoothie recipes I find on various websites do give nutritional stats.  Calories, and the nutrient breakdowns. 

Of course, if I did my own, I would use fat free greek yogurt, and stevia, not honey.  That would change a lot for my and my BG.  well, the fat can be a good thing, but the honey is horrible wrt glycemic index. 

[becca]

Huh.  And my bg is down to 97, only 25 mins after that 142.  That is odd, it could have been a fluke.  Those strips can be off from time to time.  And under the 2 hour mark, so that is a very good BG reading 90 mins after food. 

[buttons]

Thanks for the reply, Becca.  I've been using some of the recipes on the Williams Sonoma website.  I'll look up some smoothie recipes for an indication of calories.  Of course, high cal, less filling is not exactly what I was going for, lol.

[becca]

Vitamix has some recipes(for smoothies), and I am sure there must be juicing blogs with recipes. 

I am guessing with juicing, the theory is you concentrate nutrients?  So maybe a small shot versus a 12 ounce glass?  People who do some of the green smoothie "diets" or "cleanses" have 1.5 liters a day.  I think that is excessive.  For me it is going to be more like maybe an extra salad each day, that i can whip up in the blender, sneaking in the horrid kale I otherwise do not enjoy, lol. 

[hopechap]

Juicing vs. blending

Juice = fast delivery of vitamins and nutrients to your system,
blend = you get the fiber

both have advantages.


avocados help transition from yummy fruit to yucky all green

[Macabre]

Buttons, YKW was juicing for a while and perhaps still.  I think she may have had a thread.  I can't look tonight but maybe over the weekend. 

So we eat a lot of vegetables (DS is a vegetarian, and we tend not to cook meat at home--99% of the time we don't). And I get plenty of greens as long as they are easily digestible--so plenty of spinach and avocado.  What I am missing is lettuce and kale. I am having a horrible digestive issue with those things--and with anything with a skin on it.  Those things come up my esophogus and sit there for hours after I eat.

I'm wondering if a smoothie might make things doable for me.


I have no idea what the idea behind having green smoothies is--maybe people don't get enough iron otherwise?  And it's not like avocado is beneficial because it's green--because it doesn't fit the profile of leafy greens.  BUT---I adore avocados and I eat them with salt as a lunch sometimes.  I see how they could make a veggie smoothie yummy.

Can I eat lettuce this way?  We do have a nice blender.  There's no way we can afford another one.  Ours makes great smoothies.  I just haven't tried veggies.

[hopechap]

Macabre - it IS about quantity. My avocado drink also has a fistful of kale/spinach and a fistful of cilantro -- in the normal course of eating I would not pack this much green in in the morning (or evening). So, it does condense. I am eating alot more veggies for lunch and dinner too -- the green drink more than tops it off.

You could try the regular blender, or a juicer - but might not liquify like the Vitamix does.

Kale is a tough one. Have you had problems with the raw kale salads? I like those. But if it is about tough texture the power-blending may help. You could try it at a juice/smoothie bar (if you have one nearby).

[becca]

McC, how about raw spinach?  That is how we are starting.  I also eat a good amount of leafy greens on my own.  I have a box of spring mix on hand at all times and generally have a bowl of it on the table fer every meal.  Dh and I have some along with whatever other veggies I do.  often, a sweet potato.  Kids usually have steamed broccoli or green beans with a protein, and a starch.  Or fresh fruit. 

For me, this will get more in throughout the day.  And will eventually, hopefully, get more kale into me, and other greens, without me cooking them into nothingness.  I tend to eat lower carb for the diabetes, so not sure all the fruit is going to work.  You need the fruit in smoothies to make them taste good.  Though some recipes are mostly veggie, and tomatoes for fruit. 

I am not going extreme.  For example, I am having what was left of last night's concoction with my scrambled 1 egg+1 egg white, and 3 small turkey sausages. 

Hard for me to figure out the best way for my body.  Atkins type of eating is great for diabetic management, but I am trying to lower my cholesterol, and I do not eat much red meat, and need the fiber.  If I chase a protein meal with veggies drinks, it should not cause BG issues.  The protein tempers the rate of absorption of the carbs.   

I love soups as well.  And I love that I can do a veggie soup(though all pureed) in this and have it fresh and hot in 5-6 minutes.  It will not be as cooked to death as on the stove top and will be smaller batches.  That works better for me, since I am the one mostly eating the soups I make. 

I try to lead by example, but my kids have no interest in most of my food.  Ugh.  Ds will eat some salad with mild lettuces.  They will drink fruit only smoothies and ds will have yogurt(prefers this) in his fruit smoothies.  But, i would like us to all eat the same things more often! 

Dh drank the entire smoothie last night.  So, it was pretty good.  Think gazpacho.  But less tomato, more green.

[becca]

Here is my first green smoothie.  Really, by the time I have added water, ice, and the fact that this has become 3 servings, it was not that much veggies.  It replaced my salad last night.  So, i save on the calories in the oil in my dressing, I suppose.  And sugar that would be in that.  And now, I am having it for breakfast, so I am getting veggies I otherwise would not, but not really that much.  There was a large handful of spinach in the original mix.  I added ice this morning to freshen it up, so really, pretty dilute.  But great taste.  The lime is key in this one. 

[hopechap]

http://professional.wsj.com/article/SB10001424127887324624404578257770727552306.html?mod=ITP_personaljournal_0&mg=reno64-wsj   

[becca]

Tried soup.  Tomato.  Tossed the rest of a can of petite diced ones in left from last night, added fresh celery, 1/2 a small onion, 1/2 a large carrot, and 2 cloves garlic.  Some water and salt.  Whizzed away.  it was HOT in 5 minutes.  But the onion and garlic was still very raw tasting and burned my eyes, lol, when I opened the blender.  So, I ripped off 2 Kale leaves, rinsed them, threw them in.  Then put the whole blended soup in a pan and simmered for 10 minutes with a bit more water and a bullion cube.  Now it is yummy! 

So, all in all, not as great as i expected, as in soup in 5 minutes.  But still a fresh and tasty soup, in about 15 minutes.  No chopping, no pots to wash, no sauteing.  Everything went in in big chunks. 

I finished it with 2T of 1/2 and 1/2.  Salt and pepper. 

[Macabre]

I do well with raw spinach. It digests easily i guess. But any type of lettuce is coming up my esophagus. I know I need to get that checked. However this is an issue for me and I'm missing out on salads these days, because eating them makes me miserable for hours later. Also kale--even cooked. I miss kale. Fennel is coming back up (cooked even). Bell peppers, too. I miss these veggies!