I'm on a health kick...

July 13, 2007 1:03 PM

Your favorite smoothie recipe?

A few years ago I remember browsing through a fruit smoothie recipe book that had a lot of really healthy recipes- minimized added sugars, several with green juices, soy proteins, berries, anti-oxidants etc...

I can't remember/ find this book so I'm asking meFites for recommendations...

I'm looking for good-tasting, healthy smoothie recipes (I've tried some with a lot of the above mentioned healthy- energy ingredients that were- maybe a little too intense).

Thanks!

posted by mistsandrain to Food & Drink (28 answers total)

1 raw egg
1/4 lb silken tofu
3-5 ice cubes, depending on season
big spoonful of smooth peanut butter
1 ripe (or even slightly overripe) banana
good-sized blop of SkimPlus (R) milk

Blend until lumpless. There should be enough there for two 16-oz glasses full (for me, that's enough for dinner).
posted by scratch at 1:14 PM on July 13, 2007

I just use fresh fruit. My lunch today was a smoothie made from 2 bananas, a handful of blueberries, and a handful of strawberries. I squeeze an orange for liquid, and add crushed ice, and blend it.

When I make them for my kids I add honey or maple syrup and some vanilla yogurt. I like it much better with just fruit though.
posted by iconomy at 1:19 PM on July 13, 2007

Here's a great list of smoothie recipes. The first one listed, High Protein Fruit Smoothie, is a hit at our house.
posted by Ike_Arumba at 1:34 PM on July 13, 2007

1/2 Scoop whey protein powder
1 glass soy milk
a handful of blueberries
half a banana
sometimes strawberries

Is my fix. (note: my current diet avoids milk and eggs for the most part, except for yoghurt. you can replace soy milk with milk if you so desire.)
posted by tmcw at 1:37 PM on July 13, 2007

1/4-1/3 Avocado (makes a good sub for bananas (which make smoothies creamy) if you don't like the taste of bananas
Watermelon
Almond Milk or Water
Berries
Some honey

Deliciousness!
posted by zia at 1:44 PM on July 13, 2007

2 cups almond milk (Almond Breeze)
1 cup blueberries
3 tbsp hemp protein powder.
2 tsp. flax oil
2 tsp. spirulina

Go, Greased Lightning!
posted by solongxenon at 1:50 PM on July 13, 2007

whoops, make that frozen blueberries!
posted by solongxenon at 1:50 PM on July 13, 2007

3-4 bananas
1-1.5 cup Silk vanilla soy milk
1 tbsp peanut butter
2 cups ice

**********************

2 bananas
1 cup of strawberries
1 8oz. container of vanilla soy yogurt
1 cup vanilla soy milk

**************************

2 frozen bananas
1 fresh banana
large handful of spinach
2 Table. ground flax seeds
1-2 teas. vanilla
1-1/2 c. water.

These are from the recipe archives at vegpeople. I've made the first two. They're both great.
posted by found dog one eye at 2:05 PM on July 13, 2007

Peel a bunch of ripe bananas, wrap them in plastic wrap, and stick them in the freezer. Buy a bag of frozen diced fruit, or berries. Keep that in the freezer too. When it is smoothie time, put a frozen banana and some fruit in the blender. Add fruit juice, and some water if the fruit juice is really sweet. Blend. It's all about the fruit, baby!

That's actually the second best recipe I know of. The best is the way the Juice Joint does (did?) it on Barton Springs Road in Austin, Texas. It's like the above, but the juice is straight from the juicer. The freshly juiced pineapple was just killer.
posted by nonmyopicdave at 2:08 PM on July 13, 2007

Mmmmm, smoothie....
Heh, I'm drinking a mango/blueberry one right now. But my favorite are:

1 ripe banana
1/2 cup frozen blueberries
1 small can of canned pineapple in juice (preferably partially frozen)
1/2 cup water

and

1 cup seedless watermelon
1/2 cup frozen blueberries
1 ripe banana
1/3 cup water

Like iconomy, I usually just use fruit. I think the most important thing when making smoothies is using ripe, in-season fruit. Then you don't have to add sugar. Simple cheat, frozen blueberries and canned pineapple can make everything so much simpler. I tend not to use dairy in mine because it seems to blunt the taste. Though there's a box of mangoes in the kitchen, and this recipe is calling out to me, demanding to be tried this weekend.

On preview, seconding what other people said.
posted by moonshine at 2:17 PM on July 13, 2007

2 ripe bananas
1 cup strawberry yogurt
handful of almonds
splash of milk
posted by cosmicbandito at 2:20 PM on July 13, 2007

I'm all about frozen fruit (look in your supermarket, lots of them don't add anything, it'll just say "strawberries" (or whatever) in the ingredients). I'll pick 2 frozens, a fresh banana, and a splash bit of fresh OJ or milk if needed.
Yummy!
posted by AlisonM at 2:35 PM on July 13, 2007

1 frozen banana
1 scoop protein powder
about half a scoop, or say a tablespoon, unsweetened cocoa powder
1 spoonful peanut butter or almond butter
soy milk and/or water

Chocolate for breakfast with no sugar, yay.

Also, if you could use some extra essential fatty acids, you can sneak them into any smoothie by adding a tablespoon of flaxseed oil - the stuff tastes awful by itself, but the other smoothie ingredients mask it perfectly.
posted by clavicle at 2:48 PM on July 13, 2007

The best bases are banana/avocado/mango/yogurt
pick one and it is easy to go from there. I sometimes add some fresh mint leaves and I love adding pear.
posted by melissam at 3:20 PM on July 13, 2007

1 banana in chunks
1/2 cup frozen pineapple chunks
1/2 cup frozen mango chunks
1/2 cup milk (or your preferred substitute)
water to even out texture as needed

The pineapple chunks, though unsweetened, are naturally sweet enough to make the smoothie taste like a wonderfully refreshing dessert.
posted by tastybrains at 3:24 PM on July 13, 2007

Whatever flavors I mix, I always throw in a package of Sambazon Acai!
posted by jstef at 4:25 PM on July 13, 2007

Mine's a bit nuts, but I love it as a post-workout fix. It's a faux-tropical protein OD with a bit of extra texture (courtesy the coconut).

10 oz Crystal Light Classic Orange (instead of water)
2 scoops strawberry Pro Complex protein powder
10 oz frozen mixed berries
1 banana
2 tablespoons shredded coconut
2 teaspoons L-Glutamine (quite optional)

Liquefy. Guzzle. Sigh contentedly.
posted by mykescipark at 5:32 PM on July 13, 2007

I have a secret ingredient. It may not be what you're looking for but it makes a fantastic smoothie: instant pudding mix.

For example, 8 large ice cubes + 1 cup skim milk + 1.5 tbsp sugar free fat free instant pudding in a flavor of your choice = creamy amazing diet shake/smoothie. You could add fruits or cocoa or flavored syrup or whatever. The pudding mix makes it thick and creamy. The trick is to blend it for a long time, like two minutes at least. If you stop too soon, you have grainy ice milk and disappointment.
posted by beandip at 6:35 PM on July 13, 2007 [3 favorites]

My fave (not sure if this is your definition of healthy), is nothing unusual, but dang it's good. I never measure, so everything is "to taste."

Vanilla ice cream or frozen yogurt (Or a berry flavor)
Ice
Blueberries, strawberries, raspberries (available as a frozen medley)
Bananas
Milk as needed to control thickness
Drizzle some chocolate syrup on top if it's too healthy as-is.
posted by The Deej at 6:52 PM on July 13, 2007

I was just on vacation in Peru. In the main market in Arequipa, there's an entire row (wall to wall) of juice ladies. They all have the same menu and the same prices. They all get their ingredients fresh from other stalls in the market. They all make excellent smoothies.

Now, their "special" drinks have a base of raw eggs, milk, and beer. Not so sure of that myself. But my favorite are the "con leche" drinks. Basically:
- 1 can evaporated milk
plus
- 1 mango
or
- 3ish bananas
or
- a bunch of strawberries
etc.
Blend.

Add water or ice and blend more if you want it thinner.

Not as healthy as some others - maybe if you use low-fat/fat-free evaporated milk - but damn good. 1 can of evaporated milk (preferably chilled) plus one fresh mango is my most favoritest drink in the world right now. Super-easy, too, with no measuring and easy clean-up.

Oh, and don't do what I did when I got back and mistake condensed (sweetened) milk for evaporated. Then you'll be measuring the sugar content of your drink in pounds, and that's just not good.
posted by whatnotever at 7:15 PM on July 13, 2007

1 tsp freshly ground cardamom
1/3 Quart plain whole milk yogurt (Brown Cow).
3 very ripe bananas
2 scoops soy or milk/egg protein
10-12 oz. frozen blueberries

Sometimes I throw in some vanilla extract or freshly grated nutmeg.
posted by BrotherCaine at 9:37 PM on July 13, 2007

Bananas * strawberries * low fat natural yogurt * milk
posted by kenchie at 9:54 PM on July 13, 2007

~1.5 - 2 cups frozen strawberries and mango chunks
~1/4 - 1/2 cup yogurt
small handful raw sliced almonds (or just toss in some almond powder; I happen to like the somewhat chunky texture of the sliced)
1 part soy milk and 1 part fruit juice (orange peach mango is my favorite) to desired consistency

I'm also fond of a combination of strawberry, almond, vanilla, and coconut. Frozen mango with yogurt ("European Style" in the U.S.) and a touch of honey makes a nice lassi-like drink.

If you like a sweeter smoothie, you'll want to increase the ratio of juice to milk.
posted by moira at 10:50 PM on July 13, 2007

I always throw in whatever I have around. Breakfast today was:
1 kiwi
1 banana
1 apple
1 mandarin
3 baby carrots
1 serving of strawberry yogurt
some ice

A nice but rich dessert-type smoothie I like is:
1-2 bananas
1 tsp vanilla
1 cup soy milk
several squares of chocolate
some ice
---what I do to mix the chocolate well is put it in a mug and in the microwave for about 30 seconds on its own, then pour in the soy milk, melt for another 30 seconds and then mix it so the soy milk becomes chololatey and so the chocolate is well integrated into the smoothie. A bit of peanut butter works well, too!
posted by shokod at 11:36 PM on July 13, 2007

I generally base mine on fruit and a non milk or soy based source of protein.

my favourite :

- banana, mango, spoon full of nut butter, water to even out texture

I have also made and liked:

- protein powder, any fruit on hand, water to even out texture

- boiled egg, any fruit on hand, water to even out texture

- cubed cooked meat, any fruit on hand, water to even out texture

the latter two have tiny bits of egg/meat in them cause I can't be asked to blend them long enough to get rid off all but I don't really mind that.

On occasion I have also added ground linseed and pumpkin seed to the mix, which also results in tiny bits floating round your smoothie but is also very nice.
posted by koahiatamadl at 2:43 AM on July 14, 2007

One whole banana
One cup plain acidophilus yoghurt
Two cups soy milk (use one of the whole-bean ones, not the soy-protein-extract ones that taste like paint)

Simple. Good.
posted by flabdablet at 3:36 AM on July 14, 2007

I make smoothies as dessert. My best recipe:

1 banana
4-5 strawberries
2-3 oz pineapple juice
12 ice cubes

The ice gives the smoothie more heft and texture. The juice keeps the blender from choking on the other ingredients (took me way too long to figure that out).

Some twists I do on occasion:

* If the fruit isn't very sweet, add 1 tbsp honey, which provides natural sugar in a small dose.

* For a tropical twang, add a splash of coconut extract (which is much easier to find than coconut juice or raw coconut). Add real pineapple instead of strawberry for a more pina colada-y taste.

* Blueberries are good alongside strawberry, but they don't blend as well and the flavor can overpower the rest of the recipe. Use sparingly.
posted by werty at 4:11 AM on July 14, 2007

Late to the potluck, but I'm currently drinking a smoothie made from:

1 handful of blueberries
1 banana
several globs of plain yoghurt
orange juice
a pile of chopped chard

The chard gives it a great, light, fresh taste, sort of like carrot juice. And it's a good way to sneak greens into your preschooler's diet, if that's something you're interested in (just serve it in a cup with a lid and straw, because it does look odd).
posted by The corpse in the library at 4:39 PM on July 19, 2007