Sunday, July 31, 2011

Summer of Smoothies: Chocolate Cherry Bomb


This smoothie is a chocolate-covered cherry in a glass. Any time you feel like having dessert for breakfast, give this one a whirl.

Two notes on the ingredients. First, I enjoy fresh cherries as much as the next person. However, frozen cherries are quite convenient (no pits!) when using the blender. If you have some fresh, pitted cherries at your disposal, you might want to toss a couple ice cubes into the mix if trying out this recipe. Second, I used chocolate soy milk because it's one of my favorite treats these days, but I'm sure regular chocolate milk wouid taste just as delicious. 

Chocolate Cherry Bomb
2 cups pitted cherries
½ cup plain yogurt
1 ½ cups chocolate soy milk

Combine all ingredients in a blender. Blend until smooth.

Tuesday, July 19, 2011

Summer of Smoothies: Blueberry Banana Bonanza


I love fresh blueberries, but would rather snack on them whole than throw them in a blender. Frozen blueberries whirl up nicely in this smoothie.

Blueberry Banana Bonanza
2 cups frozen blueberries
2 bananas
½ cup apple juice
½ plain low-fat yogurt

Combine all ingredients in a blender. Blend until smooth.

Tuesday, July 12, 2011

Summer of Smoothies: Watermelon Wowza!


I’ve got an enormous, delicious watermelon taking up prime real estate in the fridge. This newest Summer of Smoothies creation is a great way to enjoy this juicy summer treat without making too much of a mess. This drink is so refreshing and tasty that you’ll just have to exclaim “Wowza!”

A couple notes before firing up the blender:
• I didn’t need any ice for this one because all the ingredients were either in the fridge (the watermelon and juice) or the freezer (strawberries). If you’re using fresh fruit try adding some ice to make it nice and chilly.
• The next time I make this I might omit the apple juice to thicken it a bit — the watermelon was nice and juicy.

Watermelon Wowza!
4 cups diced watermelon
2 cups frozen strawberries
½ cup apple juice

Combine all ingredients in a blender. Blend until smooth.

Monday, July 4, 2011

Independence Day weekend full of delicious fun

Wanted to share some snapshots from my holiday weekend here in sizzling Sacramento.

We kicked off the three-day weekend Friday evening by checking out Concert in the Park at Cesar Chavez Plaza. I like to make it to Concert in the Park at least one time each summer because the beer garden always makes for great people watching. We sipped on some frosty IPAs, caught up with friends and hit up the Autentico Taco Azteca truck for some tasty pollo and carne asada tacos (four for $10).


Chris and I headed up the hill Saturday in an attempt to escape the heat. We spent the afternoon hiking the south fork of Silver Creek, which presents some pretty cool waterfalls as it makes its way down into the Ice House Reservoir. Deli sandwiches taste even better when you’re enjoying them on a huge granite slab overlooking a rushing waterfall.


I struggled through a scorcher of a run Sunday morning and rewarded myself with a chilly treat.


We bumped our Independence Day celebration up a day and had quite the Sunday Funday. A few friends came over for a good old-fashioned weenie roast featuring grilled hot dogs and all kinds of toppings. We had all the classics but also pimped out a couple condiments to create this hot little ’dog:


The relish (made by the special man friend) is a combo of diced sweet midget pickles (half of a 12-ounce jar) and 1.5 teaspoons sambal chili sauce. The ketchup gets a little kick thanks to curry powder (half a teaspoon per half-cup of ketchup).

Once full of Ball Parks, everyone headed down to Raley Field for a patriotic evening of River Cats baseball, some ice-cold brews and a dazzling fireworks display.

Strawberries sing in this refreshing smoothie

The strawberry is one of my favorite fruits. So much flavor in such a small package! This second Summer of Smoothies concoction is quite refreshing and not overly sweet. It made for a great cool down after a sweltering run the other morning. This recipe made enough to fill two pint classes plus a little extra.


Strawberry Mango Tango
1 pound strawberries, washed and hulled
1 mango, diced
½ cup plain yogurt
½ orange juice
1 tablespoon honey
16 ice cubes

Combine all ingredients in blender. Blend until smooth.