I received the book “Simple Green Smoothies” for Christmas. The kids and I have been having a blast with finding new green smoothie combinations!
So, this 10 day smoothie challenge consists of 1 green smoothie per day for 10 days. The book includes a grocery list for days 1-5 and 6-10. This is because most produce like bananas would be past their prime before day 10.
Real Results:
1. I lost 1 pound. I weighed myself on day 1 and then day 7 just for fun. Dropped from 138 lbs to 137 without changing any diet or exercise routine.
2. The kids got their fruit and veggies every day (me too of course!).
3. We never got sick. (well the sample size of 3 people is quite small, but hey, it’s a positive!)
My notes about the smoothies:
1. If the ingredients were not available fresh, I bought them frozen from Trader Joe’s.
2. Blackberries were very tasty 🙂 They are on sale in many stores right now.
3. To make a smooth smoothie, make sure to let the blender form a tornado and blend that for about a minute.
4. Put in the ingredients from first to last: liquids (water, almond milk), spinach/leafy greens, nuts/flaxseed, chunks of fruit, ice. This order blends the liquid properly and allows the heavier fruit to fall and blend into the smoothie.
5. Add ice to make it cold.
6. Spinach about to go bad? Freeze it! I add mine to freezer bags all of the time. It is easy to blend, keeps the nutrients from breaking down and I don’t have to worry about having spinach on hand each week.
7. Use orange peel or lemon peel for a citrus zing! I love this trick and it really cuts down on the bitterness of the greens. This is the trick for our Green Lemonade. I had to increase the orange peel to a 1.5″ square.
8. Kids love grape juice? Try blending red grapes in the blender with some water. Totally natural! Add some spinach and they may not even notice it’s there.
9. Use pint jars with lids for easy storage.
10. No time in the morning? Pack the recipes in bags, jars or containers at night! Then, all you have to do in the morning is dump some water and the contents of the bag into the blender. Stick in a straw and you are on your way out the door!
11. To replace a meal or use after exercise: I usually add about 1/2-1 cup of Greek yogurt. Rolled oats is another great option. Cooked beans are another great choice that you do not notice in the smoothie, but provide lots of fiber and protein.
Things I Didn’t Follow in the Book:
1. I used water and not coconut water. The coconut water at Aldi I purchased had 13 grams of sugar per cup.
2. Instead of avocado or grapes, I used an apple. Apples are cheap and I had them on hand. 🙂
Simply Green Smoothies at Amazon
Don’t need another cookbook? It is at our local library – so it may be at yours, too! Our library system has 7 copies.
Website to Sign Up for the 30 Day Smoothie Menu is here.
- 2 cups water
- 2 cups baby spinach
- 2 cups strawberries
- 1 cup chopped mango
- Add the ingredients to the blender in the order listed. Blend for 2-3 minutes or until smoothie. Feel free to use frozen spinach, strawberries or mango! They are all delicious. You may want to thaw them in the fridge overnight or the microwave to blend properly.
- Add ice if you wish for a colder smoothie!
The following photo was for a smoothie containing red cherries and green spinach. The result is naturally brown. Because back in preschool I learned red + green = brown. I have no idea how the photo in the book turned St. Patrick’s Day green if blended according to the recipe. It was still tasty though!
