August 09th, 2012

My Basic Green Smoothie

The beauty of green smoothies is that they empower you to consume larger amounts of raw vegetables more easily. I particularly prefer this method of getting my dark green leafy veggies in  every single day -- without trying to chew on raw kale, collards, cabbage, etc......those are tough for me but they are so power packed and really important in detoxifying my body.....they are also a great source of so many vitamins, minerals, enzymes, water, fiber, and antioxidants. In fact, since I began incorporating green smoothies into my daily eating plan, I have consumed 2 bags of Kale, 1 savoy cabbage, 2-3 bags of spinach,  and 1-2 bags or chard every week.....in addition to lots of other fresh fruits and veggies that I add into these or my fresh veggie juices. Huge boost from the 2-3 servings of greens I was choking down in salads prior to this. 
The basic gist of a green smoothie is that you can take fresh organic greens and get their nutrients while tasting the sweetness of fruit instead of the expected bitter taste some of those veggies impart. 

I start out with 8 oz of filtered water in the blender followed by 4 oz of "chia gel" (2-3 T of chia seed soaked in a qt . of water). 
I then add my greens: 2 kale leaves, a handful of spinach, maybe a leaf or 2 of cabbage. 
1-2 T ground flax seed for my daily Omegas

Other ingredients depend on what I have:
1 golden delicious or gala apple OR pear, cored and chopped
1 banana
1/2 cucumber 
stevia packet or 1 T honey or agave

If I don't have fresh fruit on hand (like on market days -- I go twice per week so my ingredients stay as fresh as possible -- someday I will enjoy going more often -- this is just what works for me), I use frozen strawberries or blueberries. 

Pineapple is also really good in it -- even little Jessie guzzles them o

Blend and enjoy!