How to Get the Most Out of Your Smoothie

Having a homemade smoothie as a meal or snack is a great way to sneak in some vitamins and minerals in convenient and on-the-go packaging. But if you’re not putting the right stuff in, you may not be getting the right stuff out. Read on to see how you can build the perfect nutritional smoothie.

1. Work towards the blade: For this blog we’ll be talking about cups that you fill and flip over to blend, but this can be applied to any blender! You first want to fill your cup with your vegetables, so go ahead and add a cup of greens! We love a mixture of spinach and kale, but collard greens is also a great option. Although you may have a green smoothie in the end, you won’t be able to taste it once we add on everything else.

2. Next, take a banana and break it up into your cup. Then add a handful and then some of your favorite fruit—if you can, use frozen fruit! It will make it so much tastier! We love using mixtures of berries, but feel free to experiment by trying kiwi, mangos, cherries, peaches, etc.

3. Go nuts! With almonds, of course. Or walnuts and pecans! These are some of the best sources of nuts you can get, so add a small handful to the top of your smoothie. If you prefer, get a nut or seed butter instead, like almond butter or sunflower seed butter!

4. Add something special: Try a scoop of chia seeds or maybe some flax seeds. Look around to see what extra boost you want to add to your diet—for blenders that actually break down the seeds so your body can absorb what’s inside, this is a great option! If you’re using this smoothie as a meal replacement or post-workout, then try a scoop or two of protein powder. There are tons of types out there—we love whey protein because it has 9 amino acids your body can’t produce on its own, or try soy protein powder if you’re looking for a vegan option. These are great if you want something to help keep you full longer.

5. We need to get some liquid in here so the ingredients can actually blend together. Keep it simple by adding some water about 2/3 of the way up your cup, or add your favorite milk—cow’s milk, almond milk, coconut milk, etc.

Blend away! If you drink your smoothie right away, you’ll notice it may have a purple color if you added a bunch of berries, but if you drink it later on once it’s settled, you may notice the green from all the spinach and kale you added! Either way, it should taste great from the fruit, and if you’re looking for other ways to add flavor without added sugar, try some cinnamon or vanilla extract before you blend your ingredients. Enjoy!

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