In an effort to put more plants in my diet, I've pulled out my blender to join my "vitamix" happy friends in some smoothie experimentation. Surprisingly, even my run-of-the-mill-Osterizer blender can turn a jar full of healthy stuff into something that tastes like dessert. I am up to two cups of kale, and we just can't taste anything but the fruit. Next week I'll try adding in shredded carrots or maybe some parsnips to see how that works. I had been trying to add an extra side dish to each dinner, but for all that work I was only getting one more serving into my day so it hardly seems worth it. With 7 minutes, a smoothie gets me 3-4 more plant servings each day (and Eleanor too, she loves them). So, I'm feeling like I've found something that works!Each smoothie has the same base (per person):
- 1/2 cup low fat greek yogurt (Trader Joes has best fat to protein ratio)
- 1/2 banana
- 1 peeled clementine
- 2 teaspoons flax meal
- splash of juice or water
- 1-2 cups torn up kale (just leaves, no big stem)
- fruit - whatever we have around, fresh or frozen
