Five to Ten Servings a Day, the Easy Way

So if you didn't already know, one of my favourite things in the world for a couple years now is Smoothies. The gyms started opening Smoothie Bars (which are unfortunately never open when I'm there) and now there's one or two that have popped up on my route to work. But, with a good blender you can save money, and usually sugar additives, and do it yourself.

Smoothies, like pizza, are to me a design concept rather than a rigid recipe. There are key elements to the framework, but unlimited possibilites for endlessly varied, and yummy, meals on the go.

Here's my favourite general framework:

• 4-5 ice cubes, processed on "pulse" setting until crushed up, in the blender
• 1/2 cup to a cup of milk OR yogurt OR soy milk, or if you just want light, crisp, and fruity, fruit juice, ice water or more ice.
• 1 cup or more of semi-frozen fruit chunks.

• Semi-frozen means take the hard-frozen fruit from the freezer and nuke it for 30 seconds to a minute. I was told this by a cranky appliance repair man when I had to take two blenders in for service within only a couple weeks of purchase. Apparently a frozen strawberry could destroy a jet engine and blenders don't have a chance, so part-thaw them first. Bananas can be added fresh and some fruits like raspberries blend easily when fully frozen because they break up.
• Or use all fresh fruit - it'll not be quite as icy-cold but still good. I use frozen for the convenience of not having to chop up and clean up every time I want a smoothie
  

• 1-2 tablespoons of frozen juice concentrate, in place of a fruit you don't have handy or so you can add water instead of juice and still have a richer taste.
  
• Any powdered supplements you want - whey or soy protein to balance carbs, or fibre supplements, or I sometimes use powdered whole-grain rolled oats.
• Sweetener to taste, optionally.
• A few drops of a flavour extract like vanilla or almond adds a nice body. Also optional.

So, having got the basic ingredient categories, the method is:

1. Put in Blender
2. Blend

If you want a little more detail, and to prolong the life of your blender, I do it in the following order:

1. Crush ice
2. Add milk/yogurt/soymilk/water/juice and powders - blend to slushy with ice
3. Add fruit, a bit at a time, blending until smooth.

So, you've got the concept and the method. If you're one those folks who is still reading but thinking you have no idea what fruits go together - the answer is probably that any fruits that you like individually can be put together into a smoothie. But, for those who must have directions, here are a couple of my favourite recent inventions.

The Ontario Summer Market Special smoothie:

• 4-5 ice cubes, crushed.
• Add 1/2 cup of unflavoured or vanilla yogurt and blend
  
• 2 tbsp frozen apple juice concentrate, unsweetened - blend
• Optional: 1/2 scoop of protein powder, fibre supplement, or powdered oats - blend
  
• Add semi-frozen fruit:
• 1/3 cup peaches
• 1/3 cup strawberries and/or raspberries
• 1/3 cup melon chunks
• 1 tsp honey, or to taste, optional

Add fruit a bit at a time and blend each time, then blend until smooth once everything is in.

A Northern Tropical Smoothie

• 4-5 ice cubes, crushed
• 2 tbsp unsweetened orange juice concentrate - blend
• 2 tbsp coconut milk* OR 1/2 tsp coconut flavour extract - blend
  
• Optional supplements: protein and/or fibre and/or oat powder - blend
• Fruit chunks:

• 1 small or 1/2 large banana, fresh or frozen
• 2/3 c. frozen pineapple chunks
• 2 tbsp chopped fresh coconut* or dried, unsweetened coconut

• 1/2 to 2/3 c. of plain or vanilla soy milk
• optional sweetener to taste - sugar, brown sugar or Splenda
  

Add fruit gradually and crush on the "pulse" setting. For some reason this particular recipe works better for me when I do that, then pour the soy milk over, and blend until smooth.

* Coconut prep: I love real, fresh coconut but it's a pain. If you want to do it, drain the coconut water into an ice cube tray and freeze. Bust open and cut up the coconut flesh into french-fry sized pieces, and freeze these. Throw one coconut ice cube and a few of the strips of coconut into the blender with the ice cubes and crush.

If you're not into the whole live coconut project, some ethnic and organic food stores carry canned coconut milk. Get the plain, unseasoned kind, and pour the can out into an ice cube tray and freeze. If you don't like the small chewy bits of coconut in a drink, JUST use the frozen canned coconut milk, as it's quite dense and creamy compared to the stuff you get out of fresh coconut.