Going Green (Smoothie)

With my desire to start being healthy, I have started to look at the raw foods world, at least for the summer months.  One thing that I noticed is the whole green smoothie "revolution".  Ok, so maybe not a revolution, but it;s certainly a popular concept.  A few years ago, my husband and I started to make green smoothies.  We bought a book by Victoria Boutenko, who has been promoting green smoothies.  Basically, it is a much easier and tastier way to get in your fruits and veggies, almost like a V8 fruit drink but better and probably better for you since you make it yourself.  Green smoothies basically consist of fruit, a green leafy veggie, and maybe some water and protein powder if you wish ( we've used protein powder in the past but I have used it recently).  I like my greens, but there are only so many I can eat at a time.  I can drink these smoothies and feel like I am being healthy and getting in my fruits and veggies.  Most recently, I have been adding in my homemade kefir with some stevia to sweeten the kefir.  I had some last night for a snack and even when my husband wanted ice cream, I was a little more able to hold off and not be persuaded as easily as I usually am.  I am hoping that one positive impact for me will be relieving me from my cravings.  I don't see it or expect that it will happen overnight, but I am hoping that these small changes I am making will help me with my overall health and in time I'll be able to listen to my bosy and really trust what it is telling me.

Last night, as I was researching green smoothies, I went to a blog I have been following for some time now, www.choosingraw.  One of the things that I read, which totally resonated with me was making small changes.  For along time now, and with many things, I often feel like I have to be perfect right away or else it is a failed attempt.  I am slowly realizing, I can make small changes to my diet that over time will accumulate to large very positive changes.  I am also realizing that it really isn't an all or nothing idea.  I can have some meat even though I want mostly to be a vegan.  I can have dairy even though I don't want to have it every day.  The healthier I get, the more I can listen to my body and the more I can trust it to tell me what it needs..com

Earlier in this post, I mentioned that I have been making homemade kefir.  I am making both milk and water kefir and am loving both.  I love water kefir.  It is fermented water that has some small bubbles in it.  Often I will drink it in a champagne flute or a wine glass just for the fun of it.  I love drinking out of fancy glasses even if it is just water.  I haven't really experimented with flavors yet, but I plan to do that soon.  I haven't really been drinking the milk kefir, but I have been using it in mainly my pancake recipes and have made butter out of it also.  I have strained the kefir and made "kefir cheese" and then used the whey in my pancake batter.  I have started (just yesterday) to add kefir to my green smoothie.  I really enjoyed it though I did need to flavor it with stevia, since straight plain kefir, like plain yogurt, is a little too tart for my taste.  I'm loving my kefir grains!

Green Smoothie Recipe #2

1 apple
1/2 C frozen blueberries
1/2 C frozen berries
1C frozen mixed fruit
1/2 C sunflower seeds (magnesium)
1 head of green leaf lettuce (from my neighbor's CSA share)
water to blend to consistency of your liking
1/2 C kefir/yogurt (optional)
stevia to taste (optional)
 (for the first smoothie of the day, I added the kefir at the end and just stirred it in with about 7-8 drops of liquid stevia.  Later that night, I re-blended a glass of the smoothie with some kefir and stevia and I think blending it made it more amalgamated and I really enjoyed it much more)

I usually blend the fruit and water and then add the greens.  You really can use any leafy greens you want.  My husband is lacking in the magnesium arena so I added the sunflower seeds to help increase the magnesium for him.  Blend to your favorite consistency and enjoy.

I am looking forward to trying more combinations as well as using veggies from our garden.  I will post more recipes as I make them.  I am hoping that, in time, these green smoothies with help me get my health back and as I've said, I can start trusting my body!

Have you had green smoothies?  Do you have favorite recipe?

Amy