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Banana-Parsley-Berry Smoothie

7/6/2012

2 Comments

 
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The meal with which I begin my day often dictates my eating pattern for the rest of the day. In general, healthy choices lead to more healthy choices. My favourite way to break my overnight fast (12 hours between dinner and breakfast is optimal!) is with a fresh, cold smoothie. Starting my day off with a couple servings of fruit, one or two servings of veggies and some omega-3 fats, while staying full and energized for a few hours is my kind of breakfast.

The basis of all of my breakfast smoothies is: 1 ripe banana, 1-2 cups of greens (parsley, spinach, kale, lettuce), 1 cup of frozen fruit (blueberries, mixed berries, mixed tropical fruit, etc), 2 tbsp of high omega-3 fats (ground flax seeds, hemp hearts or chia seeds), and some liquid.

Banana-Parsley-Berry Smoothie
(makes 1 breakfast smoothie, 2 snack smoothies)

1 medium sized ripe/over-ripe banana 
1 cup mixed berries 
1 cup packed parsley, steams included
2 tbsp shelled hemp seeds (hemp hearts)
1 cup of cold water, or non-dairy milk (more if needed)

In a high powered blender, mix smoothie until uniform and all the berries are blended. 

Note: some blenders don't have the ability to liquify greens, especially kale. Experiment with your blender and find its limitations. Depending on your needs, it may be valuable to get a strong and efficient blender to continue using for smoothies, soups, cashew creams, and other sauces. 

2 Comments
Tammie
11/3/2012 02:32:49 pm

I have a HUGE PROBLEM....I ABSOLUTELY HATE VEGETABLES BUT Iknow I need them tip be healthy. I was wondering if you could recommendsome smoothies with veggies so I can get the necessary vitamins and minerals my body needs. I would appreciate any suggestions you could give or maybe a good book. Thank you so much for your time, have a wonderful night. Tammie

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Andrea Lussing link
11/4/2012 03:16:06 am

Hi Tammie,

That is a huge problem! ;) But with awareness and desire for change, you're on the right path. Good for you!

I wonder what it is about vegetables you don't like? As you know, there are tons of different kinds, ways or preparing them, textures, flavours, shapes and tastes. I personally don't like cooked carrots because of the taste and texture, but I love them raw. Have you pinpointed what it is about each that you don't like? Something else I thought about was could your taste buds be skewed from eating too many non-vegetable, more addictive foods? Often we just get used to what we're eating so that other foods taste terrible at first. The good thing about this problem is that tastes change, and quickly too! My favourite food used to be Doritos and now it's kale (a leafy green vegetable). Just one step at a time.

Your idea to make more smoothies is good. Juicing would also be great for you as with a juicer you can make some delicious combinations which include vegetables and by drinking them you get all of the wonderful nutrients they have and you need. The only thing you don't get is fibre with the juicing, but it would be a good place to start for you.

I don't have a book recommendation for smoothies, but if you have a good blender you can have a great time creating new concoctions. I'd always start with a good fruit base and then add in spinach, swiss chard, parsley or kale to the mix, such as the recipe above. With a good blender you can put in whole fruits such as a pineapple, a cucumber, spinach and a banana. Search 'green smoothie recipes' online and watch a few videos on YouTube and you'll be inspired in no time! I also add some sort of booster to my smoothies such as ground flaxseed, flax oil, hemp hearts, chia seeds and so on. Then you get a boost of many more minerals and good fats.

Good luck and feel free to contact me personally on my site for any more advice.

Andrea :)

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