Kermit the Frog once said, “It isn’t easy being green.” He was only partially right. He failed to mention that being green is AWESOME!
You see, he just didn’t want you to get any of his green smoothie.
Now I know what you’re thinking: “Green smoothie? Ewwwww!” You need to trust me on this. Contrary to what it may look like, green smoothies are actually REALLY good! You’ve got to try it to believe it.
I should probably also mention that I LOVE green. It’s my favorite color. I was born in August, so peridot has GOT to be the best shade of green out there! I almost called this the “Peridot Smoothie”, but it’s a little dark, and Kermit was just too cute. Yes, I have a stuffed Kermit decorating my kitchen. Admit it: you’re jealous. Kermit is an old childhood friend of mine, and he now guards the radiator pipe in my kitchen.
Here’s what you’ll need (well…it’s what you’ll need for the one I just made!):
1 c. cold water
1 frozen banana
1 kiwi (leave the skins on if you have a Vitamix)
1 stalk of celery
1-2″ chunk of zucchini
4 large chunks of frozen pineapple (with the core, if you have a Vitamix)
4 frozen peach slices
1/2″ chunk of raw ginger, peeled
juice from 1/4 of a lime
a handful of unsweetened dried coconut flakes
1-2 tsp. extra virgin coconut oil
1-2 tsp. raw honey
2 Tbsp. ground flax seed
LOTS AND LOTS of spinach (1-2 c. raw)
Put all of these fruits, veggies, and other whatnot in your Vitamix, in the order that it’s listed. As you can see from the photo, there’s no need to chop up your ingredients ahead of time if you’ve got one of these awesome blenders. It will power right through it! If you’ve got a normal household blender, you’ll probably want to add the ingredients a bit at a time (after chopping them up).
With your Vitamix, start on variable speed 1 and gradually work up to 10. Blend on HIGH for 30 seconds, and you’re done! You MAY need to use your tamper to shove the spinach leaves into the blades, but that’s about it!
If you’re using a Vitamix, don’t peel your kiwi. The peel is where the majority of the nutrients are! If you’re using fresh pineapple and freezing it, be sure to include the core. The core contains lots of bromelain, which is a great anti-inflammatory. A normal blender won’t be able to chop it, but a Vitamix will pulverize it!
You can also add and delete ingredients if you don’t have them in your kitchen (no weaseling out on the spinach!) If you add an apple, be sure to throw the seeds and core in as well! Apple seeds contain Vitamin B17, which destroys cancer cells while leaving healthy cells alone. (Why not stay ahead of the game?) I do the same thing if I throw in a pear. I don’t know anything about the nutritional value of pear seeds, but I figure it can’t hurt!
I use coconut oil for all of its wonderful immune-boosting benefits. It also adds a great flavor! As for the coconut flakes, I just happened to have them in my pantry from another recipe I was trying out, so I figured I’d use them up.
Raw honey is another gem when it comes to healthy eating. It’s anti-bacterial, anti-viral, anti-fungal, anti-cancer…it’s just all-around awesome! You want to be sure that your honey is RAW, as well. The pasteurized stuff won’t cut it. Your raw honey should last forever, meaning that it never expires. Raw honey was actually found in Egyptian tombs, and wouldn’t you know – it was still good! How’s that for shelf life? It also has amazing healing properties for things like burns, but that’s for a different blog.
Why raw ginger? Ladies and gentlemen, we have yet another powerful anti-inflammatory. It also has a healing effect on the digestive system. Did I mention that it tastes absolutely amazing?
Why do I use ground flax seed? If you remember from my last blog post, it’s loaded with Omega-3s, cancer-fighting lignans, and fiber, which binds to toxins and eliminates them. How cool is that?
If you’re freaking out about putting SPINACH in your smoothie, have no fear: spinach has relatively no flavor. However, it’s packed with Vitamin A, Vitamin C, Vitamin E, Vitamin K, Iron, Manganese, Calcium, Potassium, Selenium, Zinc…how’s that for a super food you can’t taste? If you’re blending it in a Vitamix, the blades are able to break through the cell wall of those leaves, opening up even more of the nutritional goodness of spinach.
So there you go! If you’re a green smoothie nerd, this probably isn’t news to you. If you haven’t tried one, though, give it a shot! I bet you’ll be shocked to find out that something that nasty-looking could be so good!
Now if you’ll excuse me, I have to go retrieve my smoothie from a stuffed frog.
The Clean Creative 