Lean and Clean Green Smoothie



Lean Green Smoothie



Incorporating more leafy greens into our daily diet isn’t always easy to do. For one, it’s a lot of fiber to consume if your body isn’t use to it, and on top of that, they’re not the easiest vegetable to reinvent as far as meals go. After all, you can only make a salad so many different ways before you find yourself bored.

click ‘more’ for recipe



Lean Green Smoothie



I originally started to drink green smoothies after reading Kimberly Snyder’s Beauty Detox Solution around a year and half ago. While green smoothies and juices may be everywhere you look, it’s important to remember that not all green drinks are created equal. The difference between green smoothies and green juices is important to note because there are significant differences in the health benefits they offer. With juicing, you are missing out on the fibrous pulp from the skins and flesh of the fruit and vegetables. With a smoothie, that pulp is left intact since the vegetables and fruit are blended in whole form. The fiber in the fruits and vegetables is what makes them so wonderful in cleansing our bodies and keeping us full, so we definitely don’t want to discard it!

When making a green smoothie, it is important to make sure that 70% of your mixture is vegetables and 30% or less is fruit. Even though fruit is a natural sugar, you still don’t want to overdo it. Feel free to switch up your greens and fruits from the recipe posted to make it your own. Often times I will omit the banana and replace it with frozen, unsweetened pineapple chunks for added texture. The only fruits I would not recommend adding to this would be melons of any form since they don’t mix well with the greens, or berries if you want to keep this smoothie (looking) green.

Recipe: Lean and Clean Green Smoothie

Summary: A delicious way to get your greens in anytime

Ingredients

  • 2 cups spinach or 1 cup spinach and 1 cup romaine lettuce/collard greens
  • 1/2 lemon; juiced
  • 1.5 cups ice cold water or cold coconut water
  • 1 Tbsp freshly grated ginger; peeled
  • 1 small apple (chopped) or 1/2 a banana
  • 1 small pear (sliced)
  • 1 handful of flat leaf parsley

Instructions

  1. Place 2 cups of greens and parsley into a blender with water, lemon juice and grated ginger.
  2. Blend on high until greens are thoroughly mixed and smooth.
  3. Add in chopped apple and pear slices and mix on high until smooth. If using a banana instead, only add in pears.
  4. If using a banana instead of apple, add banana in last and mix until smooth.

Preparation time: 5 minute(s)

Number of servings (yield): 1

My rating 5 stars:  ★★★★★ 1 review(s)

Leave a Reply