There are several reasons I like to make smoothies for breakfast:
- They are tasty.
- They go together quickly.
- They can be healthy (notice how I didn’t say they are healthy? Excess sugar and fat, I’m talking to you).
- They are portable!
There are a few things I do the same with my smoothies almost each and every time.
- Ice first.
- if I have a frozen fruit, I cut the amount of ice, subbing it for the frozen fruit, of course.
- Next comes fruit. This is my only source of sugar. No kidding!
- Part of that fruit is half of a banana, minus the peel. his adds a little creaminess and body
- I add fresh ginger; because I like it a little spicy.
- I add lemon or lime, including the peel. It intensifies the citrus flavor and I hear the peel is good for the liver so, win, win!
- I add collagen powder (specifically Vital Proteins, unflavored). I find it frustrating that a lot of that expensive powder gets stuck in the bottom of the Vitamix cup when I am using the single serving glass to mix, so now I dilute it in a bit of water first.
- I add almond milk.
- If out of almond milk, I add regular milk.
- If out of milk, I add a dollop of yogurt and water.
- If out of yogurt, I just add water.
And those are the usual suspects.
The unknowns are:
- What kind of fruit?
- Vegetables or no vegetables?
- A little extra something? Cinnamon, nuts, cocao…?
I like to add something green, but typically only if I am not using berries. Kiwis are perfect with pineapple, and regular apple if you want to go green.
PrintA Smooth Smoothie
This smoothie has the sweet taste of summer with a peach from our neighbor’s tree (uh, shhh…) and gets its’ body from home-made almond milk rather than the typical banana. If you don’t have home-made almond milk, try adding 4 or five almonds in as well.
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Cook Time: none
- Total Time: 25 minute
- Yield: single serving
- Category: Breakfast
- Cuisine: Healthy
Ingredients
3–4 1-inch Watermelon “cubes”
2–3 Ice cubes
1 Peach (peeled, seed and skin removed)
1/2 Red Apple (such as Gala, Braeburn, Honey Crisp…); core removed, peel left on
(1) 1/2-inch sliver Key Lime (or 1/4 sliver regular lime), skin on
(1) 1/2 to 1-inch knob of Ginger Root (depending on how much you like ginger), skin removed
1-inch top cut from a Wheat Grass plant, cleaned and patted dry
1 scoop Collagen Powder (diluted in a few tablespoons water)
4 TB homemade Almond Milk (thick)
Instructions
In the order listed above, add the ingredients to a Vitamix and blend in “smoothie” mode.
Pretty simple, right?
Notes
To make home-made almond milk, soak 1 cup of almonds overnight in a bowl of water. drain and rinse. Add to a Vitamix with 2 cups water and blend. It will be thickish which you can dilute with water as you use it. For this smoothie, I like to leave it thick and get the extra liquid it needs from the diluted collagen powder.