Many of you may not have a juicer but have a blender. Many may just prefer using a blender for the efficiency and the added fiber. I am sure many of you may have even been given a Nutri Bullet or some brand of blender for Christmas and are only dying to get struck into some super healthy green smoothies! I am regularly asked for green smoothie recipes. This is my favorite recipe, if I do say so myself it is absolutely delicious! It is ridiculously good for you as it is bursting with nutrients, vitamins and minerals. It also has the added bonus of being a fab smoothie if you are looking to slim down.
It seems like there are a zillion ingredients in this but when you break in down you probably have many of these ingredients readily available in your cupboard like the chia and the spices. The parsley and mint are very easy to grow in the garden and take no effort at all. I always have a supply of ginger and banana in the freezer ready to go.
Ingredients:
1 large handful of kale
1 large handful of spinach
1 banana (frozen and sliced if possible)
1/3 cucumber
2 celery sticks
1 pear (1/2 large pear)
Juice of 1/2 – 1 lemon
200ml of coconut water (or filtered water if you are out of coconut water)
¼ inch ginger
1 tablespoon of mint
1 tablespoon of parsley
2 teaspoons of chia
pinch of cayenne – optional
pinch of turmeric -optional
pinch of cinnamon – optional
Method:
Simply pop all the ingredients into your blender and blend until smooth.
**Top Tips:
Use as much organic as possible, where non organic use a veggi wash which removes the excess chemicals from the outside of the veg/fruit. If I am after a yoga asana practice or workout I add a scoop of vegan protein powder like pea protein or hemp protein.
If like most of us the morning we are just too busy to make a juice or smoothie, why not have pre prepared smoothie bags in the freezer. Chop up all your ingredients and put into a bag then pop into the freezer and when you need a smoothie in a rush just take your smoothie bag out of the freezer and empty ingredients into your blender possibly just adding your spices then. The fruit and veg won’t have as much of the nutrients as it would have if you made it fresh but you won’t be too far off.
If you are hoping to slim down why not switch a meal for a smoothie.
Why is this smoothie so good for me:
Kale – high in Iron, Vitamin K, A & C,Calcium and antioxidants Helps to detoxify the liver because it is so high in sulphur.
Spinach – low in fat and even lower in cholesterol, spinach is high in niacin and zinc, as well as protein, fiber, vitamins A, C, E and K, thiamin, vitamin B6, folate, calcium, iron, magnesium, phosphorus, potassium, copper, and manganese.
Banana – helps you reach your weight-loss goals, keep your bowels healthy, provide nutrients that regulate heart rhythm and have vitamin compounds for eye health.
Cucumber – source of electrolytes helping the body to become hydrated and provides you with Vitamin B.
Celery – great source of potassium, folic acid, magnessium, calcium, iron and amimo acids. Celery also has the added bonus of being one of the most alkaline food in nature reducin