21 Day Cleanse: Green Smoothies

I discovered green smoothies this past winter. I've been learning more about the Raw Food movement and I happen to think there's a lot of validity to what they espouse. I have also met a few raw foodists in my day and damn if they don't look amazing - years younger than their age. I don't know if I see myself as a full-time raw foodist but there's some great resources and ideas I've adapted for my own diet that have made my life better. Green Smoothies are one of them.

Everyone agrees that adding more fresh fruits and veggies to your diet is important for good health. These smoothies are loaded with them and taste great! For this Spring cleanse, I have committed to having one of these a day. I typically have them in the morning but I've used them as a meal replacement for lunch and dinner too if I didn't feel like cooking. You can make one, put it in a travel mug or in a large glass jar with a lid and take it anywhere.

Kids love these by the way. This is a GREAT way to get them to eat their veggies. This is also a great way to use leftover fruits and veg you might not get around to using.

Sourcing Your Produce
If you can source your greens at least, from a local farmers' market or a store that carries local produce, that's best, but organic from the store is a good second option. Click HERE for a great list of the fruits and veggies you should by organic and the ones you can safely buy conventional based on pesticide residue.

As spring and summer fruits come into season - especially local blueberries, raspberries and blackberries - use them!! They are loaded with good health.


Young Coconuts
I am a young coconut junkie. You may have seen them in the store and not recognized them because they look nothing like the brown hairy variety. They are large and white with a flat bottom and a conical top. They are usually wrapped in plastic. While their carbon footprint is pretty atrocious, I'll admit, they are one of the most nutritious foods you can eat. Last year I wrote a piece about young coconuts, here's the LINK. They are definitely worth trying. The coconut water inside is incredibly refreshing and full of electrolytes and the spoon meat is full of healthy fat. They are both perfect to add to your smoothies. What spoon meat I don't use, I save for later in a container in the fridge and when I get a sweet craving, I eat that instead and it really satisfies. Click this LINK to check out a whole website devoted to them.

Tips For Making Green Smooothies
The best way to make green smoothies is to put the fruits and liquid in the blender first, blend a little and then add the rest of ingredients. You can always add more liquid to get everything moving. Ice is also optional if you like your drinks cold.

You want a decent blender for sure, but keep in mind I am using a 25 year old Oster and it blends everything great so don't sweat it if you don't have the top of the line Blendtecor Vita-Mix.

If you need to sweeten your smoothie, add a little raw agave nectar. It tastes great, is all natural, has no bizarre chemical aftertaste and is perfect for those with glycemic issues. Be sure to buy the raw version, it's less processed.

Improvising
Virtually any fruit or green can be combined, feel free to improvise with what you have on hand. Do not skimp on the greens and don't be afraid that it will taste bad, because the fruits really balance the flavor so they don't taste funky. They honestly taste very good. For some, it's just hard to get around the visual of drinking something green at first. One that I did a lot this winter was: frozen berries, chopped apples or pears, banana, filtered water and a few handfuls of spinach. Play around with combinations and amounts. You might find you like some better than others.

Recipes
Below, I've provided some recipes to get you started. Let me know if you like them. Any questions? Email me!

Cilantro Pineapple Shake (adapted from the book Living Raw Food by Sarma Melngailis)
2 Servings

Put everything in a blender and drink:

2 small cucumbers peeled and chopped
1/2 pineapple peeled and chopped (2 mangoes can be substituted)
1 large bunch cilantro (cut off bottom of long stems)
1/2 cup coconut water or filtered water
1 tablespoon raw agave nectar (more to taste if you like it sweeter)

Dana Joy's Morning Improv Shake
1 serving

Put everything in a blender and drink:

1 cup papaya, peeled, seeded and chopped (mango can be substituted)
1 banana
1/2 cup young coconut meat
2 cups spinach (black kale, chard, romaine, sunflower sprouts, spring lettuce are all great substitutes)
1 cup or more of coconut water or filtered water
1-2 tbsp. ground flax seed - optional

Banana Basil Smoothie (recipe adapted from the website Raw Epicurean)
1 serving

Blend and drink:

2 ripe bananas, peeled, chopped
10-12 basil leaves
1/2 to 1 cup filtered water (depending on how thick or thin you like it)
raw agave nectar to taste (this is optional)

Pear, Pineapple, Mint
2 servings

Blend and drink:

2 ripe pears
1/3 of a fresh pineapple, chopped
1/2 a frozen banana
1/3 of a large bunch of parsley, stems and all
4 stems mint leaves
1 cup of filtered water
1 cup of ice cubes (optional)

Key Lime Pie Shake (adapted from the book Living Raw Food by Sarma Melngailis)
2 servings

If you have a juicer, this is a delicious shake to make but it's a touch more time consuming.

First juice:
2-3 apples depending on size - you want 1 1/2 cups juice
3 limes (you can throw these in the juicer too but they must have the rind grated or peeled off first)

Add liquid to blender along with:

1 ripe avocado
2 small bananas
1 tsp vanilla
handful of mint leaves
Optional: agave, ice

Blend and serve.

More Resources

http://greensmoothiesblog.com/

http://www.greensmoothiequeen.com/

http://www.greensmoothie.com/blend/green.html