One of the simplest and most enjoyable beverages can also be very good for you (if you are putting in the right things) and a very enjoyable summer treat. The benefit of blending is that you get the whole food; all the fiber and nutrients in a broken down form. Because of being broken down it makes it easy for the body to finish breaking it down and for the body to absorb all the nutrients.
There are many different ways you can make a smoothie, but ill share with you what I put in mine. This simple smoothie is low in calories and high in nutrients, great for boosting the immune system and help eliminating some extra calories if replacing a meal.
2 cups mixed frozen fruit (I usually buy a mixed bag, warning- Black Berries & Raspberries have seeds and will make it gritty)
1 Ripe Banana (the more brown spots the better, this makes it sweeter)
2 Handfuls of spinach fresh or frozen
Water to blend or sometimes Almond milk (water keeps it even lower in calories)
The reason for the spinach is to increase the amount of nutrients I am consuming and I find it keeps me from being hungry longer. Because of the nice ripe banana you can't taste the spinach although it does make it a funky color. If color bothers you put a lid on it and you wont even notice =) If your blender is not amazing place the spinach and water in first to blend then add the fruit. Fruit chunks are fine, but who wants green chunks! If you are going to be making a lot of smoothies you may want to invest in a high powered blender such as a Vita-mix, BlendTec, or some other industrial blender. I've found it to be totally worth the investment!
photo credit: tiffanywashko
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