Smoothies

For those of you that know me, you know I'm sort of a health nut. You maybe wouldn't tell it from looking at me - quite unfortunately - and I don't really know why that is because for the most part my diet is pretty stellar, but this post isn't for complaining about my middle age bulge (s)…. At least I have good skin… lol

Every morning, I make a green smoothie. People have been contacting me to find out what to put in this drink.

I've progressed in my green smoothies over the years. When I started making smoothies I did them in blenders. Every 4 months I burned through a blender that barely chopped the food, so I did my research and purchased a Ninja for $50. With it came large and small pitchers and it works really great. Right now I have a Nutribullet, a Nutribullet Gold and 2 Ninjas. I blend nuts/seeds/flowers and cauliflower mash in them.

My first attempt at smoothies were quite basic. I bought frozen strawberries (not organic) and put orange juice in the blender and bam! Now there's a toxic sugar buzz!

My smoothies now have become way more complicated. I put in a nice mix of fruits and vegetables and other important nutrients. Here's what I use:

Organic blueberries, mixed berries, strawberries or a combination. (1/2 cup)
3 stalks of celery
1/2 Avocado (essential fat)
1 inch ginger (detox and stomach calmer)
1 inches tumeric (activated with the flax oil)
2 handfuls of organic mixed greens or spinach or kale
1 tablespoon of collagen (repairs gut and good source of protein and skin/hair builder)
1 tablespoon Macaroot powder (hormone help)
10 walnuts (protein, fat)
2 tbs ground flax seeds (colon fiber)
2 tbs hemp seeds
2 tbs chia seeds
3 tbs flax oil (Omega 3 essential fatty acid - needed for body and brain health)
1 scoop vitagreen phytonutrient powder with probiotics
1/2 cup aloe vera juice or gel (gut lining repair)
3/4 cup coconut milk (made from organic milk in a can added with 4 cups water
lime or lemon juice or a few slices of organic orange with the peel. (vitamin C)

Here's the great thing about this smoothie - it contains 7 out of 10 of the best cancer fighting foods in one small drink!

Sometimes I throw in cacao nibs (yum) …great source of magnesium.
You can also put a few cubes of ice in it if you want more of a light consistency.

Here's the important thing. Technically drinking cold drinks is a shock to the body. So if you let it sit to room temperature, your body will thank you. Also, since digestion starts with the saliva glands, swish it around your mouth a bit to start the digestive process, don't just gulp it down.

Smoothies are a great way to get many healthful foods into your system in a tasty and easy way. If you are trying to be more health conscious - this is a good place to start. I would say the best way to make a smoothie is to buy a Nutribullet and get one of their smoothie books that come in the box - there are many great ideas. In addition, there are tons of resources and recipes for smoothies out there on the internet. If you sign up for the right pages they will pop up on your feed. Green Smoothie Girl or Juice for Life are two good resources.