Peach Coconut Smoothie

As you may have suspected if you follow my blog (or by glancing at the huge gap between my fairly regular May posts and the two measly June posts) this month has been crazy!

My new job in advertising has meant long days/weeks and I'm lucky if I get a full night's sleep let alone have a chance to cook dinner. It has also been increasingly difficult to squeeze in my morning workouts (though I often do so at the expense of sleep, hence not getting any!)

Given all this craziness it's more important than ever that I eat healthy and especially that I don't skip breakfast. This smoothie is packed with nutrients and includes enough protein to get me through the morning. It's also perfect for summer weather which has finally arrived in Southern California. Heat wave!!

Ingredients:
1 cup raw spinach
1 cup frozen peaches
1 cup frozen pineapple
1 tsp organic flax seed
1 tbsp dried coconut flakes
1 scoop protein powder
1/2 banana
1 cup almond milk

Directions
Add almond milk, spinach, peaches, banana and pineapple to the blender. Add flax seed, coconut flakes and protein powder. Blend until smooth.

Wahoo Watermelon

I  absolutely LOVED all the mango and pineapple in the Tone It Up Beach Babe 5 day slim down. But I realized I have been neglecting my favorite summer fruit. . . watermelon!!

To compensate for that I included watermelon in both my breakfast and my lunch today. I had never included watermelon in my smoothies even though I have one for breakfast everyday. Nor had I grilled watermelon (or even heard of such a thing.) So today was not only a day of watermelon, it was a day of firsts.

Grilled Watermelon, Mint and Feta Salad

1 small watermelon cut into 1 inch thick rounds
1/2 cup small mint leaves, torn
2 ounces feta cheese, crumbled into large chunks
1 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
1/4 tsp salt and black pepper

Heat grill or pan over high heat until very hot. Grill watermelon rounds, turning once, until charred (about 2-3 minutes per side). Transfer watemelon to a cutting board and remove ring; cut rounds into wedges
Arrange watermelon on a serving platter, sprinkle with mint and feta. Drizzle with olive oil and vinegar, then sprinkle with salt and pepper.

*You can also serve over a bed of watercress or arugula 

 Watermelon Lime Frosty

3 cups watermelon, frozen
1 ripe banana, frozen
2 tsp agave nectar
Zest from 2 limes
Juice from 2 limtes (about 4 tsp)
1/2 cup water

Wahoo!!!

You're a Clean One Mister Grinch

I posted my first "green juice" recipe on Oct 10th. Although smoothies had been a breakfast staple for months I was just getting into green juice. It seemed almost too natural, pure and, dare I say, "hippie." (Although, with my kale, kombucha and yoga habits I'm leaning in that direction!)

I became hooked almost immediately. Within 1-2 weeks I had replaced all fruit smoothies with green juice and haven't skipped a day. (My parents laughed when I came home for Christmas with a mini cooler. "Are you making an organ donation?" they asked. Nope - just my flax oil and fresh produce from the farmers market:)

The more excited I got about green juice, the more I talked about it and the more I talked about it the more I realized how popular it is. I've lost count of the friends who have posted about it on facebook in the past couple months. And it even came up in conversation on a recent trip to the esthetician. In fact, she's the one who shared the below recipe with me. (Thanks Lisa!)

Grinch Power Nutrient Smoothie
1 small ripe banana (the spottier the better for sweetness)
1 ripe kiwi (washed and stem removed but skin left on)
2 cups raw spinach, kale or chard
1/4 cup chopped mint leaves
1/2-1 tsp stevia
1 cup chopped celery
1 cup chopped cucumber
1 cup chopped mango (frozen is best)
1/4 cup unsweetened aloe vera juice
Juice from 1 fresh squeezed lemon, lime or 1/2 orange
1 cup room temp or chilled strong green tea (2-3 teabags)
1/2 cup (or more) ice cubes
For optional protein add 1/4 cup slivered almonds

Glowing Green Smoothie

I am AMAZED by this smoothie. It's 100% natural and is the equivalent of eating a pear, an apple, a banana*, half a bag of lettuce, half a bag of kale and three stalks of celery. More nutrients than some people get in an entire day (or week!) and I got it all in one glass. Thanks Brooke!

Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups water
1/2 bunch kale
3-4 stalks organic celery
1/2 head of a large bunch or 3/4 of a small bunch of spinach
1 organic apple, cored and chopped
1 organic pear, cored and chopped
1 organic banana
Juice of 1/2 fresh organic lemon
optional:
1/3 bunch organic cilantro (stems okay) (if you know me you know I passed on the cilantro;)
1/3 bunch organic parsley (stems okay)

Directions:
Add the water and chopped head of romaine to the blender. Starting the blender at low speed, mix until smoothi. Gradually moving to higher speeds, add the celery, apple and pear. Add the cilantro and parsley, if you are choosing to add them. Add the banana and lemon juice last.

Blend until smooth. This may take several minutes and, as smoothies tend to get warmer the longer you blend, be sure to serve over ice. (It makes enough for two smoothies so you can keep the other half in the fridge and won't need ice the second time.)

* Just as olive oil and avocado are "good fat" fruit is "good carbs" and is much healthier than other sources of carbs like rice, bread and pasta. However, for those who prefer to get less sugar from fruit use the chart below to substitute.

Low to Medium in Sugar:
Strawberries, Papaya, Watermelon, Peaches, Nectarines, Blueberries, Cataloupe, Honeydew, Apples, Guavas, Apricots, Grapefruit Fruits

High in Sugar:
Plums, Oranges, Kiwi, Pears, Pineapple

Very High in Sugar:
Tangerines, Cherries, Grapes, Pomegranates, Mangoes, Figs, Bananas

Smoothies!!

I had smoothies for breakfast 100% of the time while I was losing weight (and have them about 50% now , the other 50% split between oatmeal and egg white scrambles.) They are the perfect way to ensure that you're consuming less than 300 calories in the morning...or that you're eating breakfast at all for "non-breakfast" people.

Besides being delicious and low cal you can pack them with all the nutrients your diet is lacking. I put magnesium and flax seed oil in every smoothie I make (great for digestion) and protein if I've worked out that morning. (You can save money by substituting silken tofu for protein powder.) You can even sneak things like spinach and kale into your smoothies. (Tone It Up has a delicious Kale smoothie!)

 Here is one of my favorite recipes, the cinnamon roll smoothie, courtesy of my friend Heidy:

1 cup unsweetened vanilla almond milk
1 cup nonfat greek yogurt
1 scoop vanilla protein powder
1 frozen banana
1 spoonful almond butter
1tbsp flaxseed
1 tbsp chia seed*
sprinkle of cinnamon
LOTS of ice

*Chia seed can be purchased at Whole Foods. It's pricey ($8.99/bag) but since you only use 1 tbsp at a time it lasts a long time. (It is also used to make "healthy" deserts like chocolate mousse and chocolate chip cookies.)