Blueberry Citrus and Tropical Carrot Ginger Smoothies

A brief update on my double smoothie diet. So far so good! I have had 2 smoothies everyday, except last Saturday, for a week now! Doing fairly well with not getting hungry too! I have to admit I snack some, but I am really trying to keep them healthy ie. Kale Chips.  I haven't made it to the gym yet, but I will excuse that with the fact that it is still Christmas vacation from school, therefore I have 3 kids at home PLUS hubs is still working OT.  Hopefully gym time will start soon!

Today's smoothies: Blueberry Citrus and Tropical Carrot Ginger

Blueberry Citrus

1 Banana

1 Fresh grapefruit juice

1 Fresh Orange juice

1/4 -1/2 cup frozen blueberries

1 T honey

1 T wheat germ

2 T hemp seed

1 T ground flax seed

1/2 T barley grass powder

3 T uncooked oatmeal

water to make 4 cups

The grapefruit lends a little bit of a bitter taste to this smoothie, the honey corrects that some. Add more honey for a sweeter smoothie.

For lunch:

Tropical Carrot Ginger

1 large raw carrot, peeled and cut into large chunks

1/4 C frozen pineapple

1/2 C frozen mango

1 ginger ice cube

1 T honey

2 stalks of fresh kale (take the leaves off the stalk and discard the stalk)

1 c water

This made a bit over 2 cups of smoothie.

In addition, I have been curious about the calorie count to some of my smoothies.  I found a site that lets you add food and track your calorie count for the day. Of course, I  don't know the accuracy of this site, but it gives an estimate. I am finding that most of my smoothies are about 500 calories. Not sure if that is good or bad. However, I think the ingredients in my smoothies are all HEALTHY calories. Things like honey and the greek yogurt tend to up the calorie count too, but I still don't feel bad about them. I use raw honey in my smoothies, there is a lot of health benefits that come with that. Same goes for the greek yogurt. PLUS I am useing these smoothies as a meal replacement.   In comparison: an everything bagel with 2 T cream cheese, coffee with cream and sugar is about 450 calories. There, I justified what I do, right?

Barley Pina Colada

One of my favorite smoothies is a coconut / pineapple flavored one.  Takes me back to Hawaii, and lets face it, a ND winter day deserves thoughts of Hawaii!  I often add spinach to my pina colada smoothie, but since I have my new Barley Grass Powder, I added that today. Still a good smoothie!
I also just purchased some Coconut Manna, which is just pureed whole coconut.  I added that in there as well. Be prepared, due to the oil in the coconut manna and the chill of the smoothie, the coconut manna doesn't blend up smooth. Still tastes good!

 

1 Banana

1/2 c greek yogurt

3/4 cup coconut water

1 cup frozen pineapple chunks

1 T ground flax seed

1 T wheat germ

2 T hemp seed

2 tsps barley grass powder

1 HEAPING Tablespoon full Coconut Manna

Almond milk to make 4 cup mark

Blend. Be sure to add the coconut manna at the end. If you add it first it chills, stays at the bottom and doesn't mix into the blend.

Barley Grass Smoothie

I laugh at myself when silly things get me excited! My order of powdered barley grass came this morning, in time for a smoothie!! I really enjoy expierimenting with new ingredients.  So today's smoothie has barley grass in it. For some info on barley grass, click.

3/4 cup coconut water

2 T flax ground flax

2 T hemp seed

1 T bee pollen

1 T Goji berries

1 T wheat germ

1 T barley grass powder

1 banana

1/2 cup Greek yogurt

1 cup blackberry pomegranate juice

1 cup frozon blueberries

Blend.
The results: the kids are taking sips of my smoothie right along with me. Must be good!

Blackberry Pomegranate

Hubs didn't want a smoothie today, so today's recipe is for a 2 cup serving.

 

Blackberry Pomegranate smoothie

1 banana

1/3 c Greek yogurt

1 cup blackberry pomegranate juice

1/2 c frozen blackberries

1/2 T bee pollen

1 T ground flax

1.5 T oatmeal

2 T hemp seed

1/2 T wheat germ

Blend and enjoy. Might add 1 T honey to this.

Also, yesterday I made my first savory smoothie.  It was okay, I will have to get use to this idea of drinking my lunch. Some of my savory smoothies may get turned into soup! I will have to explore the ideas and possibilities of savory smoothies. 

1 cup diced tomatoes (skin off, from my garden, frozen and thawed)

1 raw carrot (cut into chunks)

1 ginger ice cube

handful of raw spinach

water to make 2 cups blended

dashes of salt, cumin, corriander, pepper to taste

 

Pumpkin Cheesecake

SOTD: Pumpkin Cheesecake. Has to be one of my favorites.  Of course there isn't actually any Cheesecake to it. I have made this smoothie before, I added a few new things this time.
 Added: 2 T Chia seeds, 1 T honey, 2 T hemp seeds.  The Chia seeds REALLY gel up in this smoothie, I might not add them next time. Still, love the flavor of this smoothie.  Lately, I have had another fun addition to my smoothies, my 15 month old daughter has been enjoying sipping from mommy's smoothie:)  A good way to get extra nutrition into the kids.

Pumpkin Cheesecake

2 cups pureed pumpkin (homemade from last years jack-o-lanterns, mine is runnier than the stuff you get in a can)

1/2 cup honey greek yogurt

1 banana

2 T oatmeal

1T ground flax

1 T Wheat Germ

dash of cinnamon and nutmeg

Enough milk to make the 4 cup mark.

Add the main ingredients and blend. Then add the milk and pulse a couple times.

 

Plans for SOTD Y2

Almost exactly a year ago I started a new "diet" plan. Not necessarily to lose weight, but to eat better. You see, I HATED breakfast. I don't like to eat a lot first thing in the morning. My breakfast was tea and toast (okay I would substitute pastry with toast sometimes!). I don't like oatmeal or cold cereal, and I actually prefer veggies over fruit.  I was missing some important things from my diet.  So, just after Christmas 2011, before the new year, I decided I would change my diet and have a Smoothie Of The Day (SOTD) every day for breakfast. I did pretty well with that for the whole year! Not EVERYday, but MOST days I have a smoothie to start my day. I am pleased with my accomplishment to change my bad habit of tea and toast for a nutrition packed smoothie. 

So now, a year later I am planning on adding to my SOTD. I want to lose weight now and tone my body.  So, armed with a new Vita Mix blender (SHOUT OUT to the Hubs for the Christmas Present!), and some fun new smoothie cups (SHOUT OUT TO "LD" for a Christmas present, the sipping cup say "Leanne's Smoothie of the Day"!), I am developing a new plan for SOTD and my life.

The challenge: 2 Smoothies a Day!  My plan is to replace breakfast and lunch with a healthy smoothie,then, eat the supper meal as a family.  I know I will have some challenges to meet, some that I see are:1) eating what is laying around the house, or what I prepare for lunch for the kids.
2) Bad snacking 3) Not feeling satisfied 4) wanting the act of chewing 5) boredom. I have plans to combat some of these, chewing gum, adding fiber and protein into my smoothies, LOTS of variety in the smoothies. I know I will have to branch out and do some savory smoothies to avoid the boredom.  I also have some new ingredients to try out, Chia Seeds and Barley Grass Powder being two of the new! I have confidence that my blender can handle it!

I am also planning on hitting the gym. Hopefully, soon, my Hubs will be working less now that the holiday rush coming to a close and I can hit the gym while he watches the kids. That's my plan. We'll see how far I get with it. It is NOT a resolution, just a plan.   This is day 2. My lunch time smoothie today was:
Almond Banana
1/2 banana
2 T almond butter
1 T honey
1/2 C Greek yogurt
1 T ground flax seed
1 T Chia seeds
2 T Oatmeal
Almond milk to make 2 cups blended drink

(Cringe) Here is the next part, accountability. Posting my weight and how many times I get to the gym or work out at home. Wt: 137 lbs  

Cold fighting power house

Christmas Eve! Fighting a cold. So far it is just a drippy nose and sneezing. No cough, no sore throat. I would like to keep it that way and get better quickly. So today's smoothie is a cold fighting power house. 

1 banana
1 cup coconut water (electrolytes for hydration)
handful frozon pineapple (Vit C, Bromalin- natural mucus fighter)
handful frozon strawberries ( Vit C)
Juice of fresh orange (Vit C)
2 T raw organic honey( boost immunity, and energy)
1 T bee pollen
Handful fresh spinach (anti inflamatory, antioxidants)
1 cube Fresh Ginger (anti inflamatory)(I blend fresh ginger with water and freeze in ice cube trays, keeps it fresh!)
There is more benefits to the ingredients that I used, but that is just some of the basics.  It would be nice to rest as well, but it is Christmas Eve and people are coming over tonight!  PRESENTS!!!!!

I will also blend up a ginger, lemon, honey drink to sip on. 

1 cube of ginger
zest of 1 lemon
juice of 1 lemon
1/4 cup raw honey
2 cups warm water


Merry Christmas!