I can't believe how you responded to my post about random things you didn't know about me! Thanks for all your kind words! One thing I didn't mention is that I try to eat a healthy diet for many years now. Part of our family's diet includes lot of fresh juices and smoothies.
One of the best ways to ensure that you are getting all the vitamins and minerals that you need is to start drinking smoothies. They taste delicious and are a great way of getting your five portions of fruit and vegetables a day. Smoothies are now incredibly popular. So you will now see them quite frequently on the shelves of your local supermarket. However, it is much better if you make these drinks yourself. Many pre-prepared ones contain a lot of added sugar.
But how exactly do you make a good smoothie? If you have never tried before, you may be wondering what the secrets are to getting your recipes just right. To help you out when you create delicious drinks here is my fantastic guide to making the perfect smoothie.
Get Some Good Equipment
You will need a blender before you can start making your smoothies. It is important that you buy a blender rather than a juicer. An electric citrus juicer gets all the juice from the fruit you put in it. However, a blender blends together all the ingredients so that you get the goodness from the vegetable and fruit pulp. Using a blender also means you can use other ingredients such as yogurt and tofu to make a creamy smoothie! Vitamix is a trusted make of blenders, and you can look online to find out how one vitamix compares to another.
Think About Your Ingredients
It is important that you use fresh ingredients in your smoothies to help them taste great. Not sure what can go into a smoothie? Here are some of our favorite ingredients to help you get inspired:
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Bananas help to thicken up your smoothie and give it a creamy consistency. They are a great source of instant energy, so will be a great addition to the smoothies you have just before you go to the gym!
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Adding beets to your smoothies will give them an attractive red color. There are lots of nutrients in these veggies that can fight cancers and can also help you increase your endurance while exercising.
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Blueberries are a fantastic superfood and full of vitamin C and potassium. The small berries are also packed full of fiber which can help to reduce your risk of heart disease.
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Peanut butter is great for those of you with a sweet tooth. But it should also be considered if you want your smoothies to be extra healthy! This gooey spread is a great source of protein and manganese. If you eat it sensibly, it can also promote weight loss!
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If you enjoy creamy smoothies, add some low-fat flavored yogurt or natural Greek yogurt. These can help to increase the amount of calcium in the smoothie. It’ll also be adding a great dose of probiotics to your drink.
Think About Ratios
Now that you know some great ingredients to add to your smoothies, you need to think about how to mix them together. For this, you need to focus on ratios. Make sure you add plenty of liquid to your blender to create a liquid base for the smoothie. This can be milk, yogurt, or fruit juice. Make sure you add the liquid before any fruit goes into the blender. Otherwise, you could end up damaging the blades of the blender. Then, add your chosen fruit. You might need to play around until you get a texture you like. Simply add some splashes of liquid if things get thick. If you want a slightly more creamy texture, add a small cube of silken tofu.
Freeze Fruit
Freezing your fruit can make a big difference to your smoothies. Firstly, it is a great way of storing fruit to make it last longer. I always fail to eat my bananas on time and they used to go bad until I decided to cut them in pieces and store them in the freezer! And you don’t have to worry about losing any of the fruit’s goodness. All fruit will retain its nutritional value while it is frozen. It is also perfectly fine to freeze fruit that you wouldn’t normally. It doesn’t matter if they will be slightly softer once thawed, as they will be going in your smoothie! Make sure that you blend the fruit straight out of the freezer. This will create an ice-cold smoothie that is very refreshing on a summer’s day! Seeing as the fruit will be frozen hard, you should expect to have to spend slightly longer blending it. It will certainly be worth it in the end!
Increase All The Goodness
Don’t just make your smoothies out of fruit. Add some vegetables in there as well to increase your smoothie’s goodness and nutritional value. If you are having a smoothie for either breakfast or lunch, you may want to make sure there is plenty of protein in there to help you last till dinner! You could add some protein powder to your usual smoothie. Another great idea is to make a smoothie that uses plenty of peanut butter and tofu. Alternatively, if you want a smoothie that can help you detox, think about making one with coconut water. Or add leafy vegetables like spinach.
Use Your Creativity
It is important to try and master the basics of smoothie making. But then once you know what you are doing and have some tasty recipes up your sleeve, you should play with your creativity. Start adding more flavor to your favorite recipes by adding great ingredients like cinnamon and vanilla essence. You can also add some crunchy texture with some chopped nuts and toasted whole oats. All of these creative additions will help you enjoy a wider range of smoothies. You’ll have more ingredients to make exciting new concoctions! But they won’t just taste fantastic. They will also help you stay a lot more fuller until it’s time to eat!
You’ll find that you easily hit your five portions of fruit and vegetables a day when you start making your own smoothies. They really are incredibly easy to make; anyone can turn their hand to them! Once you start, you may wonder why it’s taken you this long to get into them! Hope you'll give them a try!
Lot's of love
