Summer Smoothies

I am on a total smoothie kick!  It’s 100% due to the HOT weather…after my morning run all I want is something icy cold! 

The smoothie scene in BR is so disappointing to me.  It’s nearly impossible to find a smoothie made from only REAL ingredients!  Whole Foods does a good job.  And I like the PB & banana smoothie from Red Mango (however, it’s a little sweet for my taste due to the frozen yogurt).

Smoothie King is a last resort for me, but when I do go there I always order it "skinny" which means it is only sweetened with honey and they don't add the turbinado (a type of sugar).  It definitely makes the drink less sweet (which I'm used to), but for a 20 oz smoothie it saves about 50 - 100 calories (depending on which one you order).  And I only get 20 oz smoothies...anything more is WAY to much.

One of my favorite smoothies from SK is Mangosteen Madness.

w/ turbinado: 383 cals, 92 g sugar

w/o turbinado: 283 cals, 69 g sugar

Honestly, even without the turbinado, that is too much sugar!  Even if some of it is natural and comes from fruit or dairy.  That's why I make my own most of the time (and why I NEVER get a 32 oz or a 40 oz).

   

What I really want to encourage you to do is make your own!  I hardly ever follow a recipe.  I use about 1 cup of liquid (juice, milk, yogurt, coconut water) and 1 cup of fruit (usually frozen…sometimes I’ll add fresh as well as frozen).  Then I’ll add other ingredients to boost the flavor and nutrition:  chia seeds, vanilla extract, peanut butter, spinach, avocado, nutmeg, cinnamon.  I also add ice to thicken it up even more.

I just about always add a banana…a frozen banana makes a smoothie so creamy!  And it adds the perfect amount of sweetness so that I don’t have to add any other sweetener.  Coconut water is also a regular addition.  Using a whole cup of milk or juice can add extra calories…so when I want OJ in my smoothie I do a 1/2 cup each of orange juice (55 cals, 11 g sugar) and coconut water (22 cals, 4.5 g sugar).  Same with milk…in my banana smoothie these days I do 1/4 cup milk (whole) and 3/4 cup coconut water.

Vanilla extract is also pretty standard in my smoothies. 

Here are some other smoothie tips:  1) use frozen fruit to make the smoothie extra thick and icy (kind of like a milkshake), 2)  add the sugar (or other sweetener) last...you may not need it...but if you do keep it to 1 tbsp or less…add 1 tsp at a time…3tsp=1tbsp, and 3) watch the calories...if it’s a snack, less than 250 calories. 

I've already written about my favorite banana smoothie, mango lassi, and green monster but here are some recipes to inspire you!  Be creative…if you combine ingredients that sound good to YOU and use what’s in season, you can’t go wrong!

Pineapple Coconut Frappe

Strawberry Banana Milkshake

Vanilla Honey-Nut Smoothie*

Fresh Cherry Smoothie

Peach Pie Smoothie

Blueberry Blast Smoothie

Peanut Butter Split Smoothie*

Cantaloupe Yogurt Drink

Fuzzy Navel Smoothie

Banana Peach Buttermilk Smoothie

Raspberry Smoothie (plus other variations)

Strawberry Kiwi Smoothie

* These smoothies are a little higher in fat because of the nuts...watch your serving size!

Mango Lassi

I am OBSESSED with mangos…I wait for this time of year (when they are in season) like it’s Christmas.  Seriously…I walked into Whole Foods last week and there was a display of “5 for $5” champagne mangos and I nearly shouted with joy.  Wouldn’t you??  No?  What if it meant you got to make this chicken salad?  Or this shrimp curry?

Or this mango lassi?

You can read all about my mango infatuation and my cooking experience with Chef Allen here.  Not sure how to cut a mango?  Watch this!  Wondering how healthy a mango is for you?  Read about it here.

Mango Lassi

makes 1 large serving

1 cup chopped mango (peeled and seed removed)
1/3 cup plain Greek yogurt*
1/4  cup milk*
1/4 cup coconut water (or an additional 1/4 cup milk)
1-2 teaspoons sugar (start with 1, taste, then add more if needed)
A dash of ground cardamom (optional…I didn’t)
Ice

Put mango, yogurt, milk, coconut water, sugar, and cardamom (if using) into a blender and blend until smooth.  Add as much or as little ice as you want and blend until ice is crushed.  Serve.

Per serving (using skim milk and fat free Greek yogurt*): 212 calories, 0 g fat (0 g saturated), 45 g carbohydrates, 3.6 g fiber, 10 g protein (exchanges: 1 ½ fruit, 1 dairy, ½ sugar)

* I actually used whole milk and 0% Fage…I think a little fat in a smoothie is a good thing…more filling.

Pumpkin Spice Syrup

Although I hate fall clothes (give me a sundress and sandals over jeans and a sweater any day), I LOVE fall weather (especially on LSU game days) and fall food!  Soups, soups, and more soups!

And pumpkin!  Pumpkin spice lattes from Starbucks used to be high on my list of fall favorites.  But now that I try to steer clear of artificial ingredients in my diet, sadly it doesn’t make the cut.

This recipe from Cook Like a Champion is the PERFECT solution!  I halved the spices (because I don’t care for overly-spiced things)…but you may not want to.  Your call!  Give it a try, you won’t be sorry!

Pumpkin Spice Syrup
adapted from Cook Like a Champion

makes 2 cups (or 32 tablespoons)

1 1/2 cups water
1 1/2 cups sugar
4 cinnamon sticks
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
3 tablespoons pumpkin purée

Combine water and sugar in a medium pot over medium heat. Cook until sugar has completely dissolved. Whisk in remaining ingredients. Cook for about 6 minutes, stirring frequently. Do not allow mixture to come to a boil. Strain syrup through cheesecloth or a FINE mesh sieve into a large glass measuring cup. Transfer to bottle of your choice and store in the refrigerator.

To make a pumpkin spice latte, simply add 1/2 to 1 tablespoon of syrup to your drink…start with less – you can always add more!

Per tablespoon: 37 calories, 0 g fat, 10 g carbohydrates (10 g sugar)

Banana Smoothie

I think one of the very first things I ever "cooked" by myself was a banana smoothie.  I love bananas and always have (when I was little, one of my favorite snacks was a banana wrapped in "wrapped-up cheese"...that's what we called Kraft Singles...how gross is that???).  

We always had a HORRIBLE blender growing up...you know the kind you buy from the grocery store that leaves chunks of ice in your drink?  That's what we always had!

When I moved into my first house (my senior year in college), I bought an Oster from Target... it served its purpose and I still have it.  When I moved to Houston I left the Oster for Hil (she likes a good margarita!) and bought the Cooks Illustrated #1 rated blender.  At the time,  the Braun PowerMax MX2050 was the highest rated so that's what I bought (for less than $50), and I love it!  But last month, Cooks updated their blender rating...and the winner?  The KitchenAid 5-Speed Blender Model KSB580, but its a little pricey ($150).  The runner up was the Kalorik BL Blender Model 16909 for a reasonable $50.  

Enough about blenders and onto the smoothie.  I start with a banana (small to medium...and sometimes its frozen) and then add about 1 cup of milk (skim), a splash of vanilla (or almond) extract, a good pinch of cinnamon, and then blend.  Once this is all blended I start adding ice cubes, a few at a time, until the smoothie starts to thicken up (I like mine really thick and frozen...especially when I plan on taking it with me to the pool or beach!!!).  I taste it and decide if it needs sugar...if it does I add 1 tsp at a time until its slightly sweet and that's it.  If its too thick add more milk...to thin, more ice!

I do this with other fruit too.  I bought a ton of champagne mangoes from Whole Foods today to take to the beach...mango smoothies for breakfast Jess - get excited!  Just blend a mango (peeled of course), some milk and a little Greek yogurt, plus sugar and ice and you have a delicious mango lassi!  

Or start with frozen strawberries and blend with 1 cup of orange juice...to make it creamy add a banana or some strawberry yogurt.

Always add sugar last, after you have tasted it.  You may be able to get away with less!  And when I say sugar, I really mean any kind of sweetener...honey, agave, etc.

Banana Smoothie

recipe (above) by me

Per serving (one large smoothie with 2 tsp sugar) - 231 calories, 1 g fat (.5 g saturated), 49 g carbohydrates, 4 g fiber, 10 g protein (exchanges: 2 fruit, 1 dairy, ½  starch)

By the way, I have a few rules when it comes to smoothies (homemade or purchased).  If it's going to be a snack...keep it under 250 calories (which can be hard to do away from home).  For a meal its okay if its between 300 and 400 calories.  At Smoothie King, order it skinny and order a small (20 ounce).

I find that smoothies don't keep me satisfied for very long...I get hungry once all of the liquid has left my stomach.  So when I know my next meal is going to be sooner than later, I'll let myself have a smoothie for my meal.  For example, today I ran the lakes from 8:30 - 9:30 and then made a smoothie for breakfast around 10...because I knew I would have lunch around 12 or 12:30.  If lunch would have been any later, the smoothie wouldn't have been enough (and in that case I would have had something solid, like an apple, for a hold-me-over snack).

Here is the nutrition info for Smoothie King and Jamba Juice.