Inspired Smoothie

(Yummy Bing cherries for today's smoothie!)

I have many inspirations for today's smoothie and here they are listed below:

1)

(Probably the best ice cream ever. Plus, you gotta love they named it after Jerry. B and J must love their jam bands, they have another flavor named after Phish. Cherry ice cream, cherries, and fudge pieces...it doesn't get better than this chocolate-cherry combo)

2)

(Who couldn't eat a whole jar of this stuff... hazelnuts and chocolate are certainly a match made in heaven. This was one of those foods that I always wanted my parents to buy when I was growing up. I was one of those deprived children when it came to junk food, as I am sure my future children will be. If your thinking Nutella is good for you because it is marketed as a health food, think again. First ingredient on the list is sugar...)

3)

(Theo got it right when they combined cherries and almonds in their luscious dark chocolate. Now were getting close...)

4)

(Dad and me at my wedding)

Probably the biggest inspiration for this smoothie is my dear old dad (we'll see if he's reading). He is the biggest chocolate-cherry combo fan I know. When I was a kid he used to request a chocolate-cherry cake for his birthday every year. Now on to the smoothie recipe...

(Hazelnuts AKA filberts went in today's concoction)

Sunday (George's) Smoothie

Handful of Bing cherries, pitted

1/2 frozen banana

2 tablespoons raw hazelnuts

2 tablespoons Vega chocolate protein powder

1/2 cup almond milk

4-5 ice cubes

(This smoothie was the most delicious one I have made all week. Here's to you Dad!)

Smoothie for Lunch

This morning I ran 5 miles at 6 am. When I got back to the house I was famished and really needed something more substantial than a smoothie. I decided on an omelet, which was really delicious. I decided it was okay to have a smoothie for lunch and so that is what I did. I bought this amazingly sweet heirloom melon and I knew I wanted to use that, but with what? Since I hadn’t done any green smoothies yet I decided on kale. The drink was very hydrating and refreshing! I also threw some mango in there, just cause.

(It aint easy being green...)

Saturday (Lunch) Smoothie

1 cup of chopped melon

½ mango

2 big leaves of curly kale, de-stemmed

4-5 ice cubes

¼ cup water

Peach Perfection

(Fuzzy goodness)

One of my favorite things about summertime is a ripe and juicy peach. I love it when you bite into one and the juice just runs down to your elbows. There is some debate where the best peaches come from, some say Georgia, others South Carolina, and still others say California. I did find some organic, local Texas peaches and I have to say, not bad, not bad at all. When buying peaches, choose organic. They are #4 on the dirty dozen list, one of the fruits with the highest amount of pesticides.

(Choose plain lowfat Greek yougurt. It is packed with protein and the only ingredients are milk, cream, and cultures! Delicious!)

Today’s smoothie was more like a milkshake. It was that good. And so simple.

Friday (Peaches and Cream) Smoothie

1 whole ripe peach, peeled and pitted

½ cup low-fat Greek yogurt

4 ice cubes

(Looks and tastes like a milkshake. Yummers.)

Blend away and enjoy on a hot summer day!

Dessert for Breakfast!

(Ingredients in the blender and ready to go!)

Who says you can’t have apple pie for breakfast? This apple pie smoothie was very hearty and delicious. Simply all you need to get your day going and I wasn’t hungry till lunch!

Thursday (Apple Pie) Smoothie

½ cup of rolled oats

1 cup milk of your choice (I used almond)

5 pitted dates

1 whole apple, peeled and core removed

2 tablespoons walnuts

1 tablespoon maple syrup

4 ice cubes

Pinch of nutmeg

Pinch of cinnamon

Combine oats and milk in a small dish and soak overnight. In the morning put the oat mixture in the blender with the rest of the ingredients and blend. Enjoy!

(Foamy and delicious smoothie!)

Seattle Smoothie

(Oh yes I did!)

Another training run this morning at 5:45am. We are having record heat here in Houston so the earlier the better for exercising outside. I have to admit I was feeling a little homesick this morning, I was in a total rush, and feeling pretty wiped out from the whole early rising thing. The combination of these factors lead me to my smoothie recipe this morning, which I lovingly call the Seattle smoothie.

(Straight from the Evergreen State...so much for eating local today)

Wednesday (Seattle) Smoothie

1 cup fresh organic blueberries

½ cup almond milk

2 tablespoons cocoa powder

4-5 drops vanilla Stevia extract

8 ice cubes

2 shots of espresso

(This is what Stevia looks like. Find it in the grocery store next to the sugar in the baking isle)

The blueberries in this smoothie are Washington grown and I’m sure you get the whole espresso-Seattle thing. I used Stevia because it doesn’t raise your blood glucose like sugar and is calorie free! It is pretty much the only calorie free sweetener that I use because it is minimally refined and is not made in a chemistry lab like Splenda or NutraSweet (Aspartame). This smoothie was yummy, especially if you like coffee. It definitely gave me a little pick-me-up and it was super quick and easy to make. I did have a little sprouted grain toast and peanut butter on the side since there was not a lot of protein in the smoothie. Give this one a try instead of your usual morning coffee and I guarantee you will hit the ground running!

(Pretty color huh?)

Taste of the Tropics

Ingredients for today...

In honor of it being over 100 degrees every day this week according to the weatherman, I decided on a tropical smoothie for today. The cool thing (pun intended) about my neighborhood here in Houston are the fresh fruit stands. We have a guy on every corner selling “cocos frios”, (chilled coconuts that come with a straw inserted so you can drink the water inside), mangos, papayas, pineapple, you name it. I love tropical fruit! It is naturally high in digestive enzymes that help with your digestion of protein, fat, and carbohydrates. Also, being so close to Mexico where a lot of it is grown, we have great access to it here in Houston. Juicy pineapple = eating local =Awesome!

Elizabeth enjoying a coco frio after yoga

I was at Harris County Public Health doing dietary education for patients, in EVERY single case today the dietitian advised his patient to eat more fruit! An easy way to get in your 2-3 servings a day is in a smoothie! Here is the recipe for today…

Tuesday Smoothie

1 whole mango peeled

1 whole kiwi peeled

2 tablespoons raw cashew nuts

2 tablespoons shredded coconut

1 1-inch piece of ginger root, peeled

Splash of water

5-6 ice cubes

Blend the cashew nuts first until they are finely chopped, then add the rest of the ingredients and blend! Serve with a little umbrella in it. I didn’t have one...next time.

Finished smoothie...now, which way to the beach?

Beat the Heat

(Smoothie ingredients)

I just started my first dietetic internship rotation today. I’m in a HIV clinic in Houston, Texas. More information on that to come. In the mean time I figured that this is the perfect time for a challenge. I decided on another ½ marathon in Austin on October 9^th! I am really excited about this one and just started my training regimen this morning with a run at 6am. If you have even been to Houston in the summer you know that this is the ONLY acceptable time to go running. By 4:00 today the thermostat in my car read 111 degrees.

(I took a picture to prove it!)

After finishing my run this morning I was ready for a little breakfast. Problem is, not much sounds good when the temperature is in the 100’s. Of course, being the nutrition freak I am, I could never skip breakfast. That is sacrilege! Especially after a run! I needed protein to rebuild muscles and carbohydrates to replenish my glycogen stores. What satified? A smoothie of course! Honestly, my new roomie Elizabeth and I have been drinking smoothies non-stop since our arrival in Texas and they certainly hit the spot on a hot day. So, challenge of the week: a different smoothie every day! Yeah! And I’m even going to share the recipes with y’all (note Texas slang).

Monday Smoothie

1 ripe banana

½ cup organic blueberries

1 tablespoon organic peanut butter

2 tablespoons Vega Chocolate Shake & Go Smoothie

5-6 ice cubes

½ cup unsweetened almond milk

(Go Texans!)

This smoothie has it all, the Vega products are really awesome too. This particular one provides 11 grams of protein and contains all natural minimally refined ingredients. You really need to be careful when selected protein powders as they have a lot of garbage in them and super refined/processed. Products you can trust are Vega and Nutiva.

I threw in some peanut butter to add some healthy fats and the peanut butter-chocolate combo was super yummy too! Enjoy!