Smoothie Kick

[blissful]

After our lettuce in the garden stopped producing (no salads), we planted some more and it's almost ready.

In the mean time, we are on a smoothie kick.

Three 12-14 oz smoothies in a blender
1/2 cup oatmeal cooked with a cup of water
1 cup buttermilk
1 plum
1 apple
1 peach
cinnamon
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup cranberry concentrate (frozen)
ice

We've also made them with any combination of:
Almonds (ground fine in the blender)
Mixed nuts (ground fine in the blender)
plums
peaches
apples
bananas
milk or buttermilk
oatmeal cooked
fruit juice concentrates
sugar or honey

The nuts make it a little gritty but it sure fills you up like a full meal. It feels like--"I'm full".
I've tried to add green peppers--not so good.

I make three 12-14 oz glasses at a time (full blender) and put them in the freezer. We either let them thaw or spoon them out like a shake or ice cream.

It's a good breakfast or afternoon snack in addition to a main meal at another time of day. It's one way for us to get our fruits into our diets even if it is every other day.

How do you make yours? (I can't seem to sell the eaters here on veggie smoothies yet--but I'm working on it. With the tomatoes, peppers, other veggies--like a smooth gazpacho?)

 

[Fabiabi]

Sounds good, I love breakfast smoothies with oats and nuts. I've also tried the veggie juices and they're sometimes a bit too green and savory. Kind of tastes like a liquidised pizza but they're so good for you.
A good way to get your vitamins if you're a busy person and don't have the time to prepare meals.

 

[blissful]

Thanks for the reply.

I do have time to cook, but having something raw, all that fiber, good vitamins........a smoothie sure fits the bill. I can't get all that in my cooked food.
It's not in my nature to eat 1/2 an apple, 1/2 a plum, 1/2 a peach and hope someone eats the rest.

Maybe the green stuff is better juiced, and you can drink it fast.... where the smoothie has all the fiber in it and it takes time to drink/eat?

 

[Fabiabi]

Yes, you should eat as much raw as you can. I try to eat lots of fruit and veg and to be honest I think i'm pretty healthy, thought I do like sweet things too. Oh well, can't be good all the time!
With the veggie juices, I find that by adding a fruit like an apple, some lemon or lime makes it a bit more pleasant.

 

[pengyou]

I am on a similar quest...though right now I am at the "learning how to juice" phase, as well as searching my neighborhood to see what kinds of veggies I can buy - or even order locally online. There are veggies that are "sweet" - carrots and beets come to mind. Tomatoes provide a familiar taste that covers a multitude of bitterness. If I were making a smoothie out of these I would use plain yogurt instead of buttermilk because it is easier to find and more familiar to my taste buds. You could also freeze one of the juices and use the frozen juice to make your smoothie in lieu of the dairy product altogether. I guess it depends on how you define "smoothie". I have a friend who uses fruits and ice to make her smoothies - no dairy products at all. There are hundreds of recipes online for various kinds of veggie juices and juice cocktails, that could easy be used in some kind of "smoothie". Also, I think most North Americans are accustomed to eating oatmeal in a sweet form.

 

[CWS4322]

My juicer died so I had to pick up another one. I find juicing tomatoes, etc., gets rid of a lot of produce (3000 sq ft of gardens can be overwhelming) at once and I can get the juice of a lot of veggies in one 12 oz glass. I'm juicing stuff now because frost will most likely happen this week and I have wheelbarrels of stuff to deal with. I am freezing the juice to use later. And, since there is so much pulp left, I'm making up packages of that. Some will go to supplement the chickens' feed this winter, some for the dogs, and some for soups.

 

[Fabiabi]

wow sounds like you have lots of juicing to do before the winter comes. You're lucky to have all that fresh veg to use. Unfortunately I don't have much land to grow my own so end up spending a fortune on produce.