Chocolate Banana Spinach Smoothie

This smoothie has become my favorite snack when I’m craving something sweet but don’t want to resort to eating candy or a cookie. Even though it contains 2 packed cups of fresh baby spinach, this smoothie’s green hue is the only indication it contains vegetables.

Chocolate Banana Spinach Smoothie 
1 large banana
2 packed cups baby spinach
2 teaspoons unsweetened cocoa powder
1 cup milk (I use low-fat cow’s milk, but it’s also really good with unsweetened almond milk)
A couple ice cubes

Combine all ingredients in a blender, and blend until smooth.

Strawberry Carrot Orange Smoothie

Remember that Great Green Smoothie Experiment I told you guys about a while ago? Well, it’s still going strong, but some days I just feel like sipping on something on the sweeter side.

Strawberry Carrot Orange Smoothie
4 ounces fresh strawberries, hulled
1 large carrot
1 large navel orange, peeled
Cold water

Combine all ingredients in a blender, and blend until smooth. Yields about 16 ounces, depending on how much water you add -- I suggest starting with ½ cup and adding more until you get the desired consistency for easy sipping.

The Great Green Smoothie Experiment

I’ve become quite the lean, mean, green smoothie-making machine. Smoothies are no stranger to our breakfast routine, but in the past they’ve been heavy on the fruit. Well, times are a-changing and we’re trying to work more vegetables into the mix. A few days I brought home a cornucopia of produce and started what we’ll call The Great Green Smoothie Experiment -- tossing a different mix of vegetables and fruit into the blender each morning aiming to create something that doesn’t taste like a sippable salad. We’re three weeks in and no epic fails yet!

A few notes about this ongoing quest for green-smoothie greatness:

1. Don’t overthink it or worry about exact measurements when adding your ingredients to the blender. 
2. A little prep work goes a long way. If you’re making smoothies every morning, spend a few minutes cleaning, peeling and chopping your ingredients in advance so all you need to do in the morning is throw some goodies in the blender. 
3. Water is your friend. No need for juice when you’re working with flavorful fresh fruits and vegetables! 
4. Each of the following recipes yields about 32 ounces (enough for two substantial smoothies). 
5. The ingredients for these smoothies vary but the directions remain the same: combine all ingredients in a blender, and blend until smooth. 

Green Smoothie No. 1 
1 ½ cups cold water
1 green apple, cored and sliced
1 cucumber, peeled
1 tablespoon peeled ginger
1 tablespoon flax seeds
2 handfuls green kale
2 handfuls spinach

Green Smoothie No. 2 
1 ½ cups cold water
1 navel orange, peeled
1 banana, peeled
1-2 tablespoons peeled ginger
1 cucumber, peeled
4 handfuls spinach
4 romaine leaves

Green Smoothie No. 3 
2 cups cold water
1 red apple, cored and sliced
1 Asian pear, cored and sliced
½ cucumber, peeled
1 carrot, peeled
4 handfuls spinach

Green Smoothie No. 4 
1 cup cold water
1 red apple, cored and sliced
1 tablespoon peeled ginger
Juice of 1 lemon
2 stalks celery
4 handfuls spinach
2 romaine leaves

Green Smoothie No. 5 
1 cup cold water
1 red apple, cored and sliced
1 stalk celery
1 banana, peeled
4 handfuls green kale
1 tablespoon flax seeds
Splash of lemon juice

What goes into your favorite green smoothie?

Summer of Smoothies: The Classic

Strawberries and bananas go together like peanut butter and jelly. These classic flavors taste great together when mixed up with some yogurt and milk.

The Classic
1 ripe banana
2 cups strawberries
¾ cup plain lowfat yogurt
½ cup nonfat milk

Combine all ingredients in a blender. Blend until smooth.

Summer of Smoothies: Peachy Keen

We’ve been hard at work this weekend cleaning up the house, cars and yards. This smoothie totally hits the spot, providing the perfect cool-down for when you work up a sweat.

Peachy Keen
1 cup frozen sliced peaches
1 cup frozen strawberries
1 ripe banana
½ cup plain yogurt
½ cup orange juice

Combine all ingredients in a blender. Blend until smooth.

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.

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.