ginger, spinach and mango smoothie

I thoroughly enjoyed this Ginger, Mango and Spinach Smoothie!  I have a few friends that love the use of ginger in their smoothies and green juices, especially at this time of year.  

My recipe was:

- 2 huge handfuls of spinach (approx. 3 packed cups)

- 1.5-2 Cups frozen mango cubes

- 1 Tbsp organic ginger powder or 2 inch cube fresh ginger

- 2 Cups water

- add any omega oils, pro-biotics, etc. for added health benefits

Layer the ingredients with the fresh (and softer) ingredients at the bottom near the blades, frozen (and harder) ingredients near the top of the container.  Add water and liquid before blending.  I usually eyeball and free pour until the liquid reaches the level of the fresh greens.  Use the tamper (insert in the lid) if needed.  Blend using the 60 sec. button. 

You can add maple syrup or honey to add a little sweetness, but I found the mango did the trick!...frozen mango also thickens the smoothie, giving it a creamy consistency.  The ginger is the star flavor in this smoothie, it was really warming for the body, with so many health benefits...helping my digestion and reducing inflammation are a few of the reasons I love ginger.  Mango and Spinach are also full of awesome vitamins, so drink up and enjoy a healthier you!

Wishing you a Healthy and Happy New Year!
Nick and Amber

mostly fruit smoothie (with a little swiss chard)

pineapple, nectarine, apple

 This was an excellent start to our day....I took a few minutes to throw together some fruit with two large leaves of chard, water and ice....for an energizing start!  On weekdays, I seem to take the time to have a smoothie in the afternoon or with dinner, but lately the breakfast smoothies have had to wait until the weekend.  I felt so great this morning that I am resolving to get back into the habit of making it a part of my breakfast...and planning ahead...  Enjoy!  Amber

 

KALE smoothies

 BEAUTIFUL KALE

I was shopping for my usual groceries, and noticed that there were 3 types of kale available...this was a very exciting moment for me so I brought home all 3 and tried them in our green smoothies.  They all blended into the smoothies and all tasted equally mild in the smoothies....the red kale smells floral...like roses.   I love kale for how it works so well in smoothies!  I also chop kale and put into soups and stews and every now and again my friend makes kale chips when we come over for a play date...my oven hasn't been working well since Christmas (but that is another story) ...

Here are a few photos of the beautiful kale and a recipe below to try at home with your JTC Omniblend V blender.  Happy blending!!

This was a really tasty kale smoothie and I just learned that kale is 45% protein!  ...I knew KALE was really GOOD for YOU with the vitamins and minerals and being alkaline forming in your body... learning more about it just makes me even more confident in my choice to put it in my smoothies!!!

there are some other great ingredients in my smoothie today, so I thought I'd share the recipe with you:

 

• 2 - lg. leaves kale
• 2 - lg. leaves green lettuce
• 2" slice English cucumber
• 1/4 avocado
• 1/2 banana
• 1/2 C coconut milk
• 2 tbsp Vega Tropical Tango energizing smoothie
• omega/DHA oils
• ice cubes and water (desired consistency)

 

 

Enjoy!

Amber

healthy soft ice cream

I asked our daughter what she would like for snack after school today and she requested that we make a "HEALTHY ice cream".  This made me smile and realize that using our Omniblend V blender is becoming a regular, kind of like a toaster, type of appliance in the kitchen....and our children LOVE toast with almond butter and honey on it!

We just so happened to be out of some favorite frozen fruit, so we improvised with a mix of fresh and frozen fruit....luckily we had a little coffee cream left over but any kind of milk will work!  One of my current favorites is using unsweetened coconut milk and the good old faithful, unsweetened almond milk, is one of our regular choices.  We have become so used to the natural sweetness from the fruit that we find we don't need to add honey, agave nectar or maple syrup.  Feel free to play around with your recipe!  Avocado emulsifies and makes the desert thick and creamy without any taste coming through.  The frozen banana also helps with the creamy consistency.  I have used a fresh banana in the past and it was tasty but not quite the same consistency. 

today's recipe:
1/2 mango
1/2 avocado
1 frozen banana
1/2 frozen navel orange
1/2 Cup 10% coffee cream (aprox.)

Layer using the soft ingredients near the blades and the frozen ones near the top.  Gravity will help pull everything down into the blades.  I used the 60 second button and gently pushed the ingredients down with the tamper...to get things going.  I love the 60 second setting as it stops half way through the time and this makes sure that any chunks of fruit have had a chance to be pulled down into the blades.

Once I poured out the glasses for the children, I added some kale, apple, salba (white chia seeds), protein powder, water and ice into the remaining soft ice cream.  I blended it again with the 60 second program and made myself a meal sized green smoothie.  All of us enjoyed our after school snack!  YUM!!!



 

healthy soft ice cream

green protein smoothie

Happy Blending!
Amber

red and green smoothie

Do you need an afternoon "pick me up"?

 

With young children and a few more hours until dinner time, I sure do!

 

Here I have a red and green smoothie: 

kale, cabbage, beet and fruit...delish!

 

Remember: layer the fresh ingredients (lighter) at the bottom near the blades and the frozen ingredients (heavier) at the top.  The weight at the top of the container will assist the blending process by naturally pushing the light ingredients into the blades.  You also have a tamper to help push the ingredients down when the machine is in operation.  I also recommend the smoothie contain some liquid and frozen ingredients. 

 

use the tamper to gently push the ingredients towards the blades

 

nice and smooth after using the 60 second button

the omnibled blender buttons are easy to use

 

 

ENJOY your HEALTHY afternoon snack!

Amber

 

 

 

PINK SMOOTHIE

Today we made a PINK SMOOTHIE for snack to keep us cool in this wonderful summer heat!  It turned out such a pretty colour.
There was no official measurements, I used "handfuls" of frozen and fresh fruit, 1/4 avocado, and a free pour of almond milk.  Half of the ingredients were frozen.  The frozen banana and avocado make the smoothie extra smooth and creamy.

ingredient list:

• strawberries
• raspberries
• blueberries
• peach slices
• 1/2 peeled orange
• 1/2 banana
• 1/4 avocado
• 4 ice cubes and 1 C water (aprox.)
• 1/2 C almond milk (aprox.)

Enjoy!
Amber

Avocado Flax Dip

Our family has some exciting news....we are expecting our third child....and its going to happen this summer!  Wow, time has been flying.  With the new arrival coming soon I have been prepping fruit portions and putting them in the freezer, so we can make a quick smoothie snack when needed. 

I have also been testing easy dip recipes that I can whip up in the blender for summer picnics in the yard.  I love making red pepper hummus or a 5 bean version but, today's post is about a new dip I have been wanting to make for quite some time...I ripped the recipe out of an organic food magazine called, "Organic Lifestyles"....and with a few revisions (I never have all the required ingredients, so I make do)....ta-da!...creamy, fresh Avocado Flax Dip...tasty with crackers or veggie sticks.  I bet it would even work really well with a chicken or tuna salad sandwich (instead of mayo) or even tossed in a romaine salad....

Avocado Flax Dip...yumm!

 I was missing plain yogurt so I substituted light sour cream and because of our kids, I reduced the garlic to 1 clove...I would love it with 2 or even 3 as the recipe calls for, but our kids might not eat it with that kind of heat!  I also halved the recipe, and think it made enough for our family to enjoy all week!  Here is what I did....

Avocado Flax Dip Recipe:

• 1/2 avocado
• 1 clove garlic
• 1/2 long English cucumber (leave peel on)
• juice of 1/2 small lemon
• 1/4 tsp Celtic sea salt
• 1/4 C ground flax seeds
• 1 C light sour cream

Place in OmniBlend V blender in order listed.  use 35 second programed button.  you may need to use the tamper if the veggies aren't moving down to the blades.  I didn't need to this time as the moisture and weight of the cucumber seemed enough to pull everything together nicely.

the recipe inspiration!

We are eating this tonight...I will let you know how our kids like it!

Enjoy!
Amber