by Joanna | Green Smoothies, Smoothie Recipes
If you are like most people, you may be thinking of parsley just as garnish.
You know, that green stuff that is used to decorate food platters that everyone carefully separates from the real food and tosses to the side.
It’s a shame, because parsley has amazing health benefits, adding a powerful dose of vitamins and minerals to a green smoothie.
What’s so special about parsley?
Parsley is finally being recognized as a powerhouse of nutrition and flavor. Recently it has been recognized as a superb addition to any green smoothie.
The Amazing Parsley: Health Benefits
* Parsley is rich in calcium.
Forget milk, yogurt or cheese. 100 grams of parsley delivers the same amount of calcium as 100 grams of milk, plus more and minus the health risks. One cup of fresh parsley in a green smoothie delivers 83 milligrams (8% RDA) of calcium. When blended with with oranges, kiwi fruit and/or figs, it’s a delicious way to take care of your bones, without the health risks of dairy products (not to mention hormones and antibiotics, and inhumane treatment of animals).
* Parsley is rich in iron.
One cup contains 3.7 milligrams of iron. Parsley is the richest source of iron from any leafy green that you’d get from the supermarket.
* Parsley contains lots of vitamins.
It is rich in vitamin A (as beta-carotene) and provides up to 168% RDA in just one cup. Like most leafy greens, they are an especially rich source of vitamin K providing up to 820% RDA. Two tablespoons of parsley have a whopping 153% of the RDA of vitamin K, which is necessary for the synthesis of osteocalcin, a protein that strengthens the composition of our bones. Vitamin K also prevents calcium build-up in our tissue, thus helping prevent atherosclerosis, cardiovascular disease and stroke. They provide an excellent source of folate (23% RDA) and vitamin C (89% RDA).
* Parsley has anti-inflammatory properties.
Along with luteolin, the vitamin C found in parsley serves as an effective anti-inflammatory agent within the body. When consumed regularly, they combat the onset of inflammatory disorders, such as osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis .
* Plus, unlike dairy, it is low in Saturated Fat, and very low in Cholesterol.
* It is also a good source of Protein, Vitamin E (Alpha Tocopherol), Thiamin, Riboflavin, Niacin, Vitamin B6, Pantothenic Acid, Phosphorus and Zinc, and a very good source of Dietary Fiber, Vitamin A, Magnesium, Potassium, Copper and Manganese.
In combination, parsley’s volatile oils, flavanoids, and high Vitamin A content may help reduce cancer risk.
Parsley versus Dairy
The good of milk: This food is a good source of Protein, Vitamin D, Vitamin B12 and Phosphorus, and a very good source of Riboflavin and Calcium.
The bad of milk: This food is high in Saturated Fat, and a large portion of the calories in this food come from sugars. (source: http://nutritiondata.self.com/). Not to mention all the hormones, antibiotics, and animal misery that is in that food.
So, which one would you rather have?
Well, I don’t know about you, but I’ll skip the dairy and go for a green smoothie!
So, let’s get to it.
How To Use Parsley Leaves In Green Smoothie Recipes
Parsley has a distinct, strong taste so it is best to use no more than one cup in a smoothie recipe. You can combine it with non-bitter greens like fresh baby spinach or romaine and green leaf lettuce. Parsley pairs best with fruits like pear, coconut, pineapple, mango, oranges and kiwifruit.
When added to a smoothie, it turns the drink a delightful bright green. Not only that, it has breath-freshening properties, too. Available year-round in any super-market, it is inexpensive, especially compared to other greens. One bunch of parsley is usually available for a dollar or less.
Buy parsley with deep green colored leaves. If leaves are wilted and yellow, it’s not fresh. Rinse it in cool water and shake or spin it dry, and store in a plastic bag in the fridge. It can also be wrapped in foil or plastic and then frozen.
Parsley Lemon Smoothie
Ingredients
- 1 bunch of flat leaf parsley (keep the tender stalks and chop off the tough ones)
- 1-2 lemons with the rind, pith & seeds removed
- 1-2 bananas
- 2 cups of water
Blend well in your Vitamix (or whatever blender you have) on high for 30 seconds or until the smoothie is creamy.
Tip for beginners: add some sweetener of choice e.g. agave, or stevia.
Iron-Rich Parsley Pear Pineapple Green Smoothie
- 1 cup parsley
- 1 cup spinach greens
- 1 large pear, cored
- 1 cups pineapple, cubed
- 1 cup water
Add all the ingredients except for the greens to your smoothie maker, and blend on high for 30 seconds or until the smoothie is creamy.
Parsley and Mango Green Smoothie Recipe
- 1 cup parsley
- 1 ripe mango, peeled and sliced
- 1 cup water
Cut mangoes into nice size chunks or slices. Blend all ingredients on high until everything is smooth and creamy. As for most green smoothies, I highly recommend a powerful blender.
Pineapple and Parsley Smoothie
- 1 cup non dairy milk (such as oat, rice, soya, almond, hemp, coconut drink or raw nut or seed milk) If you are drinking this straight away, substitute half a cup of milk with half a cup of ice or frozen milk cubes to be added at the end.
- 3 cups fresh pineapple chopped (1 small pineapple)
- 2 medium bananas (fresh or frozen)
- 1 cup parsley chopped, tightly packed or 2 cups loosely packed. (Or spinach or any other mild greens if you aren’t brave enough for the parsely yet.)
- 1 cup oats (Yes, you can add oats to a green smoothie to make it more filling and smooth. If you don’t have a powerful blender and want the smoothie very smooth you can soak the oats for an hour before blending.)
Blend the ingredients in the order listed. Add more water if required to thin it out. Substitute any of the ingredients for whatever you already have. If your smoothie is too warm, you can cool it down in the fridge, add a few ice cubes, or frozen fruits (and blend again).
For all my blending recipes I use Vitamix. If you don’t already own a VitaMix, I strongly encourage you to check out what this machine is capable of! For more information about VitaMix you can go directly to the VitaMix website. You may also want to read my post about the Best Blender.
I LOVE my VitaMix and highly recommend investing in one if you are ready to make serious changes to your diet. I have had mine for almost 5 years and use it daily!
If you decide to purchase Vitamix – be sure to use Promotional Code 06-004554 to get free shipping.
Inside my Vitamix: The making of green smoothie!
This recipe has been featured on Raw Foods Thursdays.
Questions? Comments? Suggestions?
If you have a favorite recipe, why not submit it here in the comment section of this smoothie recipes blog for others to enjoy too!
I also welcome any comments, questions and suggestions. Thanks!
by Joanna | Green Smoothies, Kids, Smoothie Recipes
If you are looking for easy healthy recipes and an super-easy way to add super-important nutrients to your everyday diet, you are truly lucky to have found this page!
Because what you will learn here – if you just try it and stick with it – will likely change your life and health for the better (really, I don’t exaggerate one bit – because it happened to me a few years back).
Introducing…Green Smoothies
You probably heard about green smoothies by now, as everyone is raving about them. You may call them blended drinks, green shakes, green smoothies, green fruit smoothies, drinkable salads or salads straight from your blender.
It doesn’t really matter what you call them — as long as you drink them!
The fact is that if you are having problems with eating a healthy diet, and especially if you have picky-eaters in your house who will not eat a green vegetable if their life depended on it – this is a perfect solution to your problem.
The idea to blend various kinds of leafy greens, fruits and vegetables to create a liquid soup with a baby food consistency is not new. About 5 years ago that Victoria Boutenko (from the Raw Family) greatly popularized the concept of the Green Smoothie.
The Green Smoothie is essentially a blended salad made with fruits and leafy greens, with some optional water, blended at high speeds to smooth consistency. Generally, hard or savory vegetables such as carrots or tomatoes are avoided, or only added in small quantities. Only fruits, leafy greens, and some vegetables are included.
Many of you may cringe at the idea of adding spinach or kale to a fruit smoothie, thinking these greens belong to a salad or dinner side-dish and not in a sweet drink.
However, the fact remains that this is the EASIEST, FASTEST, and TASTIEST way to consume large amounts of greens on a regular basis.
Just think about it: it’s MUCH faster to drink the same amount of greens in a smoothie than that it would take you to prepare and consume (and that includes chewing properly!) the same amount of greens, fruits and vegetables in a salad or other dishes.
Great things I love about smoothies is they only take about a minute to prepare (with a good blender, such as Blendtec or Vitamix), and a minute or two to drink.
And, when you make a green smoothie, the smoothie making blender will do the chewing for you!
There is really no excuse not to have them!
Important: Quick preparation does not also mean quick consumption. Do not just gulp down the entire glass of smoothie quickly. It is recommended that you drink your smoothie SLOWLY – mixing it with your saliva for best digestion and assimilation of nutrients.
Benefits of Green Smoothies versus Green Juice
Drinking freshly made juices made from vegetables, greens and fruits is an EXCELLENT way to add important nutrients to your diet. Juices contain super-concentrated nutrients that the body can absorb almost instantaneously — there is no need to digest anything! This gives the body a rest, while flooding it with great nutrition — great for people who have serious health problems and want to heal quickly.
However, juicing may or may not be an ideal solution for you.
One problem is that you may be skipping juicing — and therefore not benefiting from it — because it’s more work. I used to do a lot of juicing in the past and I still try to do it, but let’s face it – it is quite time consuming and really messy. My problem is over since I started making green smoothies. Making smoothies is a super easy way to eat lots of greens, and a great alternative to juicing. It is much faster, less messy, and you also get fiber in addition to juice, so you get that feeling of satiety. If you can discipline yourself to make fresh juices regularly, great! Otherwise, stick with green smoothies, or — I believe the best solution is to drink both!
Another problem with juice is that you leave behind the valuable fiber that slows down the absorption of nutrients and provides the feeling of fullness. This can be seen as a benefit, but can also be a problem ;-). Drinking a juice is not a “satisfying meal” in itself. So if you juice, then go on to eat junk food because you feel hungry, it’s better to have a green smoothie, that will leave you satisfied for longer.
Fortunately, whichever option you choose, you cannot go wrong. Whether you are making vegetable juices or blending green smoothies, you are doing your body a huge favor.
So, How Do You Make A Smoothie?
Let’s start with some great ingredients for your smoothie creations.
Great Ingredients For Your Green Smoothies
GREENS: kale, bok choy, chard, spinach, parsley, romaine lettuce, iceberg lettuce, mint, basil, cilantro, or other.
FRUITS: bananas, pears, apples, mango, strawberries, raspberries, blueberries, peaches, kiwi, pineapple, melon, papaya, watermelon, grapes, or other.
VEGGIES: cucumber, celery, avocado (small amount only).
Some fruit and green combinations you may want to try:
- Spinach with bananas and strawberries
- Spinach with apples, bananas, and some lemon or lime juice
- Spinach, bananas, peaches, mango
- Romaine lettuce with bananas
- Romaine lettuce with cucumber and bananas
- Romaine and celery with blueberries
- Parsley and ripe pears
- Parsley, celery, apple and pears
Add 1-2 cups of water and blend until smooth. Adjust proportions to your liking. Try to experiment with different greens and fruits. Fruits are added for sweetness, so make sure they are really RIPE, especially bananas. Beautifully ripened bananas look like this:
Okay, so I need to add more spinach here, but I really love sweet taste of bananas!
In the beginning, when you are just starting out with the green smoothies, you may want to add just a little bit of mild tasting greens (such as spinach), to let your taste buds get used to the taste. Start adding more greens of various kinds (many of them are stronger tasting) later on.
Greens to add to your smoothies: spinach, arugula, Swiss chard, dandelion, kale, collard greens, beet tops, and whatever else you can find in the store or in your garden. Young, tender greens are better. Iceberg lettuce, although not very green at all, can be used too.
This is what a green smoothie looks like:
Don’t be discouraged by the “greenness” of this drink. It tastes delicious, trust me on this!
Just try it for yourself, OK?
(Plus, if you really don’t want the green color, you can easily make it into a purple or red smoothie by adding lots of mixed berries, and fewer green ingredients).
Green Smoothie Recipes
Here are more ideas for your delicious green smoothie creations. Feel free to adjust the quantity of ingredients:
Spinach-Apple-Banana
- 1 head of spinach
- 1 apple
- 1 banana
- 1-2 cups of water
Spinach-Raspberry-Strawberry
- 1/2 head of spinach
- 1/4 cup of raspberries
- 1/2 cup of strawberries
- 2 cups of water
Pinapple – Mango – Romaine
- 1 small pineapple, peeled, cored, and chopped
- 1 large mango, peeled, cored, and chopped
- ½ head romaine lettuce
- a tiny piece of fresh ginger
You may want to add some water.
Personally I don’t really love Romain in my smoothies, but sometimes it works well. You’ll just have to try it for yourself. If you don’t care for it, substitute a different green.
Kale – Banana – Berry
- 2 leaves kale (kale is rather strong tasting, so you may want to start with less)
- 2 bananas
- 1 cup of strawberries or blueberries or raspberries
- 1 cup of water
Apple – Mango – Lettuce
- 5 pieces of green leaf lettuce
- 1 ripe mango
- 1 apple
- 1 cup of water
One note here on using frozen fruits in your smoothies. Personally, I don’t like smoothies that are really cold, so if I’m using a lot of frozen ingredients, I add some hot water to the mix to make them room- (or rather – stomach-) temperature. I know that many people like frozen drinks, but drinking a lot of frozen smoothies is not really that healthy, in my opinion.
I admit – I am totally hooked on green smoothies!
However, I never use exact recipes – I constantly experiment by adding different ingredients, depending on what sounds good to my body each day. Even thought some concoctions taste more delicious than others, I haven’t been completely disappointed yet!
Now that you know how to make some basic easy healthy recipes for green smoothies, you can experiment with other variations on this theme. When you are ready, start incorporate other, stronger tasting greens into your smoothies.
Submit Your Smoothie Recipe!
When you find a taste you love, why not submit your favorite smoothie recipe in the comment section below!
Find more smoothie recipes and tips on my blog.
by Joanna | Green Smoothies, Smoothie Recipes
Have you ever heard someone say “I don’t buy green bananas”? I suppose it’s a reflection on getting older, when there is no guarantee that we’d still be alive tomorrow, so we don’t make plans that far ahead. Apparently there is even a song that refers to that:
‘I don’t own an umbrella, if it rains, I guess I’m gonna get wet. I don’t buy green bananas because I don’t plan that far ahead.’
I don’t subscribe to that dim view of the future, and I usually buy bananas in all stages of ripeness, including green, since I only go shopping once or twice per week. Today, however, I found myself with no ripe bananas in my kitchen. All I had were really, really green bananas, which left me with a dilemma: to blend or not to blend.
You see, lately my morning smoothie routine depends heavily on ripe bananas. I have to admit that I use them all the time. Especially now, in the cold wintertime, I depend on them on filling me up with their sweetness and calories.
I decided to treat it as a challenge to come up with a smoothie that’s filling and delicious, and yet banana-less, using the ingredients I had in my fridge and pantry. Here is the result and the recipe, if you decide you want to try it too :-).
Peach Avocado Celery Smoothie with Strawberries and Dates
- 1.5 cup peaches, frozen
- 1 cup strawberries, frozen
- 1/2 small avocado
- 1 head of romaine lettuce
- 3 celery stalks
- 6 dates
Blend in your favorite blender until smooth. Enjoy!
To find more recipes for smoothies without bananas read this post.
by Joanna | Green Smoothies, Smoothie Recipes
Since I started experimenting with nut butters in smoothies, I find myself craving them more and more as the weather gets colder. After this banana-almond butter smoothie, I’m trying all kinds of nut and seed butters, including sunflower, cashews, tahini, and – of course – peanut butter.
Now, when buying peanut butter pay attention to the label. You don’t want any ingredients that don’t belong there. Ideally, you should see only peanuts.
If you never tried adding peanut butter to a smoothie, you are in for a treat!
It adds delicious creaminess and decadence to the smoothie that makes it perfect for satisfying your sweet tooth.
Peanut Butter Banana Smoothie Recipes
Peanut Butter Banana Smoothie (with Oats & Greens!)
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cup almond milk, or any other dairy free milk
- 3 bananas
- 1/2 cup oats (I use uncooked quick oats)
- 1 cup peaches or other fruit, fresh or frozen
- 2 cups mild greens, such as lettuce
- 2 tablespoons peanut butter
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla butter or extract (optional)
Instructions
- Blend all ingredients until very smooth, pour and enjoy!
3.1
https://greenreset.com/peanut-butter-banana-smoothie/
Variation:
Simple Chocolate Peanut Butter Banana Smoothie
For a super simple chocolate variation, use chocolate soymilk, or try this simplified version:
2 cups light chocolate soymilk or other non dairy milk
2 tablespoons peanut butter
1 large banana
3-4 ice cubes (optional, if you want a cold smoothie)
Ground cinnamon and fresh nutmeg help this smoothie taste like banana bread.
The banana-peanut butter smoothie combination may be the most popular variation of this recipe, but don’t stop there. Hazelnut, macadamia, cashew butter, tahini, sunflower, pumpkin, etc. – adding any of this will make your smoothie deliciously rich, creamy and distinctly buttery.
Health Benefits of Peanut Butter in a Smoothie
The good fats in the peanut butters will help with absorption of nutrients, and slow down the release of the fruit sugar into your bloodstream. They will also provide additional calories in the smoothie – which may be something you’re looking for – or NOT. For my nine-year-old son – it’s perfect. He is not a big eater in the morning, so a smoothie with nut butter, with some oats, is a great option for breakfast or snack.
But even if you are looking for smoothie recipes for weight loss, you don’t have to avoid peanut butter in your smoothies.
This may be counter-intuitive, but adding peanut butter to a smoothie (and other nut butters) may actually help you lose weight. Even though they contain up to 200 calories per serving, all the fiber (2 g per serving) and protein (8 g per serving) will fill you up and keep you feeling full longer, so you eat less overall. Plus, there’s nothing more indulgent than licking peanut butter off a spoon–and indulgence (in moderation) helps dieters fight cravings and stay on track.
Peanut butter is also packed with nutrition. A serving contains 3 mg of the powerful antioxidant vitamin E, 49 mg of bone-building magnesium, 208 mg of muscle-friendly potassium, and 0.17 mg of immunity-boosting vitamin B6. Scientists point out that consuming peanuts can decrease your risk of heart disease, diabetes, and other chronic health conditions. One study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association found that consuming 1 ounce of nuts or peanut butter (about 2 tablespoons) at least 5 days a week can lower the risk of developing diabetes by almost 30%.
A Cup of Compassion??
If you read the title carefully, you may be wondering what’s with the cup of compassion.
Well, it simply means that you’ll be using a cup (or two) of VEGAN-ONLY milks for the smoothie – no animal’s milk please!
Choosing to use plant-based milk is a true sign of kindness and compassion towards millions of animals who needlessly suffer to satisfy our desires and tastes.
It’s not about deprivation, but abundance. You can drink soy, almond, coconut, rice, oat, or hemp milk, to just name a few. Many of these alternatives even come in different flavors, such as sweetened, unsweetened, vanilla, or chocolate! There are so many options, and it’s fun to taste-test a few in order to determine which one you like best.
Plus, there are many more non-dairy, cruelty-free sources of calcium – check them out here.
For all my blending recipes – including smoothies, soups, nut butters and milks, I use Vitamix. If you don’t already own a VitaMix, I strongly encourage you to check out what this machine is capable of! For more information about VitaMix you can go directly to the VitaMix website. You may also want to read my post about the Best Blender.
I LOVE my VitaMix and highly recommend investing in one if you are ready to make serious changes to your diet. I have had mine for almost 5 years and use it daily!
If you decide to purchase Vitamix – be sure to use Promotional Code 06-004554 to get free shipping.
Questions? Comments? Suggestions?
If you have a favorite recipe, why not submit it here in the comment section of this smoothie recipes blog for others to enjoy too!
I also welcome any comments, questions and suggestions. Thanks!
by Joanna | Featured, Green Smoothies, Smoothie Recipes
Have you already tried a green smoothie recipe with kale?
Kale —and other lelafy greens— are true superfoods. They deliver a bonanza of vitamins, minerals, and phytonutrients. They are loaded with calcium, essential for strong bones and healthy. They provide stress-fighting B vitamins and help our eyes with vitamin A. They even contain small amounts of Omega-3 fats.
But when was the last time you had a bunch of kale?
The fact is kale (and other greens) is often neglected when it comes choosing your ingredients. It’s certainly not most people’s first choice when it comes to preparing salads or vegetable side-dishes.
Especially in winter, when there are fewer in-season vegetable choices — kale and other dark, leafy greens that thrive in cooler weather are a great addition to the menu. Plus, they are great for boosting immunity – so a kale smoothie recipe may be just what the doctor ordered ;-).
When cooked, greens provide more than nine times the recommended amount of vitamin K, which helps our blood clot.
I read once that it was common for our ancient ancestors to eat up to six pounds of leaves per day. You can just picture them wandering from one place to the next, just picking and chewing leaves as all they long they went. That’s a huge amount of greens by anyone’s standards today.
Can you picture yourself devouring a grocery bag full of greens each and every day?
The USDA recommends we eat a minimum of 3 cups of dark leafy greens a week, and very few of us even eat that per week or even month.
How would you feel if you could get those three cups in one large glass?
kale smoothie recipes
Health Benefits of Kale
Kale is really the Queen of Greens. Many health experts consider kale as one of the most nutrient-dense foods on the planet.
Kale belongs to the Brassica family (Brassica oleracea). This family also includes broccoli, bok choy, kohlrabi, cauliflower, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, Chinese cabbage and collard greens. All these greens are well known for their sulfur-containing phytonutrients, which are claimed to help with cancer prevention.
They are also rich sources of vitamin K, vitamin A, vitamin C, and manganese, and is a very good source of dietary fiber, copper, calcium, vitamin B6, and potassium. The health benefits are so numerous, it will be hard to list them all here!
So why not add it to your family’s diet with these easy recipes!
Kale Smoothie Recipes
I use kale A LOT in green smoothies. My son loves kale smoothies too!
I find it really mild tasting (unlike lettuce, Swiss chard, or dandelion greens, for example), so you usually don’t even know it’s there. The fruits really help to mask the strong flavor of the greens.
For most greens, you don’t need a high-speed blender to make a good green smoothie, though the process will be quicker and the result creamier if you do. Kale, however, can be really tough on your blender, so it’s best to use a high power blender, like Vitamix or Blendtec.
Tip: If you don’t own a power blender, try removing the rough stems first, and then just blending the leaves with water for a few minutes first, before adding the rest of the ingredients.
A banana, an avocado, or a small handful of nuts is very helpful to good texture, and a few dried dates will bump up the sweetness in a relatively nutritious way. But beyond that, it’s fun to vary the other ingredients. Try mango, banana, lime, and cilantro, for example—or whatever your palate desires.
Kale Smoothie Recipes You and Your Family Will Love!
Ingredients
Instructions
- Blend all ingredients on high speed until creamy. If you like, you may also add a piece of avocado, to add more healthy fats and more creaminess to your smoothie. Add more banana (can be frozen) for a more sweet, thicker smoothie. Enjoy!
3.1
https://greenreset.com/kale-recipes/
6 Delicious Kale Juice Recipes
Kale is also great for juicing.
If you have tried to make kale juice before and it tasted horrible, you may have given up. Plus, some juicers are just not made to juice something like kale.
Do not give up! With the right kale juice recipe, you will love drinking this green!
Just remember that dark greens have strong taste that is not palatable on its own. Always mix green juice them with other sweet tasting veggies and fruits.
You’ll need a lot of kale to make juice. A 1.5 pound bunch of kale yields about 1 cup of vivid green juice using a juicer. You will get more from the kale if you roll the leaves into balls and juice them together with the carrots and apples.
Ingredients
Kale Apple Juice
- 5 granny smith apples
- 5 kale leaves
- 1-2 inches of ginger root
-
- Place all ingredients in a juice extractor or Vita-Mix, juice/blend and enjoy! Serves 4. For babies 12 months and older: dilute by 50% with water and serve!
-
Green Kale Lemonade
- Green lemonade contains a big bunch of kale in it along with apples, celery, ginger, and an organic lemon. It tastes amazing.
-
- 1 bunch of kale
- 2 stalks of celery
- 1 inch piece of ginger
- 2 apples
- 1 lemon with the ends cut off.
-
- Wash all your goodies thoroughly and pass through the juicer. Ginger adds heat to this tart kale lemonade.
-
Miracle Tonic Kale Juice
- This variation has some carrots and cucumber added to the mix.
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- 4 Medium carrots
- 2 Stalks celery
- 1 Big or 2 small red apples (pitted)
- 4 Kale leaves
- 2 inch length of cucumber (peeled)
-
- Run ingredients through your juicer. Yield about 2 servings.
-
- Tip 1: If you feel like having a special treat, you can add some watermelon or cantaloupe chunks if available. This may push the juice quantity up to 3 small servings.
- Tip 2: You can add some ginger for extra bite if you wish. Lemon also goes well with this combination.
3.1
https://greenreset.com/kale-recipes/
More juice recipes:
Minty Kale Juice
Mint adds an interesting touch to this kale juice.
1 1/2 pounds kale
4 peeled parsnips
4 large (or up to 8 small) green apples
1 lime (more or less to taste)
12 ounces mint leaves (about 2 large bunches)
yield: makes about 1 pint of juice, serving two.
Juice and enjoy!
Mixed Greens Juice Recipe
2 limes, zest removed
½ bunch Swiss chard
½ bunch kale
½ bunch dandelion
½ cucumber
2 Granny Smith apples
Juice and enjoy!
Kale Mary
Here is a good one – a Bloody Mary inspired non-alcoholic kale drink.
2 pints grape or cherry tomatoes (they taste better than out-of-season regular tomatoes)
about 1/2 pound kale
4 ribs celery
2 lemons
1 teaspoon prepared horseradish
1 tablespoon soy sauce
Dash hot sauce
Garnish: celery rib
Mix horseradish and soy sauce in a glass. Add tomato juice and stir well until horseradish is well distributed. Add kale juice, celery juice, lemon juice, and hot sauce. Stir well. Serve with celery rib garnish, over ice if desired. Serve immediately. Makes about 1 cup juice (Recipe via Seriouseats).
Enjoy with some crunchy kale chips!
Kale Chips: Low in Calories, Guilt-Free Chips
Here is a recipe for a healthy alternative to potato chips. These crispy little bites of raw kale nutrition are a big hit with young kids (and adults).
Kale Chips: No-Cholesterol, No-Guilt Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 bunch of curly kale, washed well and cut into pieces
- 1 lemon, juiced
- a splash of olive oil
- a splash of agave or maple syrup
- seasoning to taste: salt, pepper, etc.
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 300 degrees.
- Wash 1 bunch of curly kale and cut into chip pieces.
- Arrange in a single layer on a baking sheet and toss with olive oil.
- Add some seasoning to taste: salt, pepper, etc.
- Add the juice of 1 lemon.
- After you’ve massaged your kale with oil and seasoning for a few minutes, take about 1 tablespoon of agave and slowly drizzle it over the kale.
- Bake for about 30 minutes.
- Be amazed!
Notes
Keep in mind that the kale will shrink, so you may try make more than you think you need. If your oven can be set on a low temperature, around 100°F, you can also try to make raw kale chips in the oven. Otherwise you’ll need a dehydrator to make raw kale chips. If using dehydrator, let dehydrate 12 plus hours, until kale is crunchy!
3.1
https://greenreset.com/kale-recipes/
For a much more detailed raw kale crisps recipe, visit this website.
Kale Chips: healthy alternative to potato chips! via http://www.flickr.com/photos/ilovemypit/3425805140/sizes/z/in/photostream/
How To Choose Kale
The deeper the color of the leaves, the higher the nutrient content will be. Make sure that the kale looks fresh and not wilted. Avoid leaves with a lot of yellow or decay. Smaller, tender leaves are best. Pay attention to the stems as well. Make sure that they have a healthy appearance and trim off any thick stems and small blemishes before juicing or cooking.
You can choose either the dark green curly kale or a purple variety. Alternatively you can opt for ornamental kale, which has a less potent flavor. Dinosaur kale is a slightly sweeter choice.
The bitter taste of kale becomes more pronounced the longer it is stored, so it’s best to use it when still fresh. Kale keeps quite well in the fridge, provided that you store it unwashed. As with most of your leafy greens, it is a good idea to wrap the leaves in a paper towel, before placing it in a plastic bag to keep them fresh.
It’s best to buy organic kale grown to avoid toxic, systemic pesticides that are difficult to wash off. Unfortunately, when grown with petrochemical pest controls, kale is number 12 in the Dirty Dozen, tying with collar greens and slightly less than lettuce. Chemical pesticides are toxins, and eating lots of them can be toxic to the central nervous system –including the brain and spinal column, others may disrupt the endocrine function in the body which secrets hormones directly into the blood stream; they may increase the risk of cancers and other diseases.
Make sure you thoroughly wash your greens. Some of the leaves come from right on top of the ground and are usually covered in grit and sand.
Kale can be used in salads and in place of lettuce on sandwiches. However, for these purposes, use only very young, small, tender leaves. Kale is also delicious when steamed with diced onions, and garlic, a little bit of salt and pepper.
For all my blending recipes I use Vitamix. If you don’t already own a VitaMix, I strongly encourage you to check out what this machine is capable of! For more information about VitaMix you can go directly to the VitaMix website. You may also want to read my post about the Best Blender.
I LOVE my VitaMix and highly recommend investing in one if you are ready to make serious changes to your diet. I have had mine for almost 5 years and use it daily!
If you decide to purchase Vitamix – be sure to use Promotional Code 06-004554 to get free shipping.
The Making of Kale Smoothie: Inside of my Vitamix
Questions? Comments? Suggestions?
If you have a favorite recipe, why not submit it here in the comment section of this smoothie recipes blog for others to enjoy too!
I also welcome any comments, questions and suggestions. Thanks!
by Joanna | Green Smoothies, Kids, Smoothie Recipes
Let’s face it – with our busy schedules, we don’t always have time to sit down and eat a healthy salad or prepare proper healthy dishes that the whole family would enjoy.
So I have a solution for you! Below are some super-easy smoothie recipes. Choose one that you like and whip up a quick green smoothie for yourself (and your family). It will give you energy, and fill your belly for a couple of hours with all the right foods.
Spinach is typically thought of as a lunch or dinner ingredient in a savory recipe, so spinach in a fruit smoothie may sound strange at first, but – even if you don’t enjoy its taste by itself – the other ingredients will mask the flavor, I promise.
If you haven’t been eating your greens every day, simply jump-start your day with a green smoothie, so that before you even start your day, you’ve already sucked down your veggies, greens, and fruit to boot.
And better yet? So have your kids and other family members.
Benefits of Spinach
Do I even have to talk about the benefits of spinach? We all know it’s good for us. Spinach has been cultivated in many parts of the world for hundreds of years, not just as a food source, but also as an important medicinal plant in many traditional systems of medicine.
Spinach benefits cannot be overstated. In the past it has often been regarded as a plant that helps restore energy, increase vitality, and improve the quality of the blood. The main reason for this is that spinach nutrition provides twice as much iron as most other greens.
Other nutrients it contains include calcium, magnesium, potassium, vitamin A, and the B-complex vitamins. It is also a good source of Niacin and Zinc, and a very good source of Dietary Fiber, Protein, Vitamin A, Vitamin C, Vitamin E, Vitamin K, Thiamin, Riboflavin, Folate, Calcium, Iron, Magnesium, Phosphorus, Potassium, Copper and Manganese.
Spinach, just like other greens that contain chlorophyll and carotene, is a remarkable protector against various diseases, including cancer, anemia, digestive problems, skin problems, as well as acting as a mild laxative. Women who are worried about osteoporosis should consume spinach because it is a rich source of calcium and vitamin K.
In fact, when compared calorie for calorie to other vegetables, some say that nothing is as nutrient dense as spinach, while also being very low in calories. And no, you don’t have to worry about the oxalates in spinach hurting you.
Spinach is Super Low In Calories & Super Dense in Nutrients = Great For Weight Loss!
Spinach, it’s really low in calories, so it’s an excellent ingredient for all weight loss smoothies, as well as meal replacement smoothies.
1 cup spinach, raw (30g) = 7 calories (!)
1 bunch spinach (340g) = 78 calories (!)
The great thing is that once you try a spinach smoothie recipe, you’ll be consuming lots of it and it won’t matter anymore if you or your picky-eaters at home don’t enjoy munching on spinach salad!
Just adding a few spinach leaves to a your smoothie recipe, is so easy, tastes delicious, and it’s also incredibly good for you!
A bunch of spinach has a mere 78 calories, while providing 10g of protein.
So, how do you prepare a spinach smoothie?
When preparing spinach smoothie recipes, as in the case in most other greens, feel free to experiment and include a wide variety of other fruits and veggies.
By experimenting with different combinations, you will be able to come up with something that you and the whole family will love. You’ll even have an easier time getting your children on board to adopting a healthier diet.
The great thing about spinach is that it’s mild tasting, so it’s a perfect starter green for green smoothies. Even the most picky eaters won’t mind a few leaves of spinach in their fruit smoothie (use some deep colored fruits, such as berries, or colored glass containers to mask the green color for those most green-resistant eaters).
Generally speaking, Vitamix or Blendtec blenders will do a great job with any type of greens, including the tougher greens such as kale, collard greens, or celery tops. These smoothie makers will give you smoother liquid, compared with other blenders.
However, even if you have an inexpensive blender you can make spinach smoothies without worrying about rough texture – spinach is soft enough, so most blenders will handle spinach well.
First, when buying fresh spinach it should be dark green and free from any evidence of decay. Choose spinach that has vibrant deep green leaves and stems with no signs of yellowing. The leaves should look fresh and tender, and not be wilted or bruised. Avoid those that have a slimy coating as this is a sign of decay. Slightly wilted spinach can be revived to freshness by dipping it in cold water.
Do not wash spinach before storing as the exposure to water encourages spoilage. Place spinach in a plastic storage bag and wrap the bag tightly around the spinach, squeezing out as much of the air as possible. Place in refrigerator where it will keep fresh for up to 5 days.
Prior to preparing a smoothie, wash spinach under running water. If using non organic spinach, you may want to soak or spray it with a biodegradable wash, then rinse. Use a salad spinner to dry.
The leaves can be used as is. You don’t need to remove the stalks, as you would for a salad.
Put the leaves into your smoothie blender together with your fruits and veggies – bananas, strawberries, apples, celery, etc.
That’s basically all there is to it!
Spinach Smoothie Recipes
Here are a few green smoothie recipes with spinach for you to try!
I encourage you to experiment mixing spinach with other fruits, greens and vegetables. Also, I’m really not good with exact proportions, so you will need to experiment with quantities, to get that perfect green smoothie for your taste.
More Green Smoothie Recipes with Spinach
Spinach-Mixed-Berries
2-4 cups of fresh spinach
a handful of strawberries (fresh or frozen)
1/2 cup blueberries (fresh or frozen)
1/4 blackberries (fresh or frozen)
1/4 raspberries (fresh or frozen)
(OR 1 cup of mixed berries from BJ’s)
2 bananas (fresh or frozen)
1 1/2 cup water (more or less, to desired consistency)
For the Mixed Berries Smoothie I usually use frozen organic mixed berries I buy at BJs – a big 3 lbs bag for $9.99 – they are amazing in smoothies – and this is simply my favorite smoothie!
Spinach-Blueberry
1 large banana, ripe
1 cup blueberries, frozen (or Wild Blueberries from BJ’s)
1 cup oz spinach, fresh
1 1/2 cups water (more or less, to desired consistency)
This is my son’s favorite. For this smoothie, I’m using frozen Wild Blueberries from BJ’s – a big 3 lbs bag for $7.99 – they are amazing in smoothies – and this is simply my favorite smoothie!
Spinach-Mixed Tropical Fruit
1 large banana, ripe and peeled
1/4 avocado
6 oz spinach, fresh
1/2 cup pineapple, fresh or frozen
1/2 cup mango, fresh or frozen
1/2 cup grapes, fresh or frozen
1/2 cup strawberries, fresh or frozen
1 1/2 cup water (more or less, to desired consistency)
For this smoothie, I’m using frozen mixed fruits from BJ’s – a big 5 lbs bag for $9.99 – great value and taste!
Spinach-Pear-Celery
2 pears
1 stalk of celery
1 cup spinach
1 cup water
Spinach-Peach
6 peaches
2 handfuls of spinach leaves
2 cups water
Spinach-Kiwi
1 banana
2 peaches
2 handfuls of spinach leaves
1 cup water
Spinach-Watermelon-Strawberries
One half small seeded watermelon, peel and all
10 strawberries
1 bunch spinach
1 cup water
Spinach-Mango Green Smoothie
1 large banana, ripe
1 cup mangoes
1/2 cup strawberries
5 oz spinach
1 1/2 cups water
Spinach-Banana-Orange Smoothie Recipe
2 large ripe bananas
2 oranges
2 large handfuls of baby spinach
Spinach and Cantaloupe Melon Smoothie Recipe
1/2 cantaloupe melon
1 cup of spinach
Spinach-Tomato
Here is a savory recipe for a spinach-tomato smoothie:
4 ripe plum tomatoes
1 handful of spinach leaves
4 leaves of basil leaves
One note here on using frozen fruits in your smoothies. Personally, I don’t like smoothies that are really cold, so if I’m using a lot of frozen ingredients, I add some hot water to the mix to make them room (or rather – my stomach) temperature. I know that many people like frozen drinks, but drinking a lot of frozen smoothies is not really that healthy, in my opinion.
I admit – I am totally hooked on green smoothies!
I never use exact recipes – I constantly experiment by adding different ingredients, depending on what sounds good to my body each day.
Although some smoothies taste more delicious than others, I haven’t been disappointed yet!
Note: Because of the high oxalic acid content of spinach, some experts recommend to keep your spinach intake down to once or twice a week. While I don’t subscribe to the view that greens (including those rich in oxalic acid, such as spinach) are dangerous, if you have any health issues such as kidney stones, speak to a qualified doctor or nutritionist about your concerns and any changes to your diet.
Now that you know how to make some basic spinach recipes, you can experiment with other variations on this theme. When you are ready, start incorporate other, stronger tasting greens into your smoothies.
For all my blending recipes I use Vitamix. If you don’t already own a VitaMix, I strongly encourage you to check out what this machine is capable of! For more information about VitaMix you can go directly to the VitaMix website. You may also want to read my post about the Best Blender.
I LOVE my VitaMix and highly recommend investing in one if you are ready to make serious changes to your diet. I have had mine for almost 5 years and use it daily!
If you decide to purchase Vitamix – be sure to use Promotional Code 06-004554 to get free shipping.
The Making of Spinach Smoothie: Inside of my Vitamix
Questions? Comments? Suggestions?
If you have a favorite recipe, why not submit it here in the comment section of this smoothie recipes blog for others to enjoy too!
I also welcome any comments, questions and suggestions. Thanks!
