Getting Started with Smoothies

Seems like smoothies are all the rage - doesn't it? Everyone is posting pictures of their Green Smoothie du jour on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook. If you're like me, you want to give this trend a try, without too much investment of time or money. So how do you get started? Let me walk you through how I got started with smoothies.

The first question is "What kind of tools/equipment do I need?" The Vitamix, Ninja and Nutribullet get great reviews. But I wasn't ready to invest that kind of money yet. So I pulled out my blender that I got as a wedding shower gift. . . (ready for it?) 18 years ago. It works just fine for my current purpose.

So now I have a vessel to make my smoothies in, but what do I put in them? I found a couple good infographics and posts that I pinned to my Healthy Living board. I also started following  simplegreensmoothies on Instagram. They post very simple recipes, ideas and instructions. Armed with these things, I picked up some supplies on my next Trader Joe's trip.

The basics look like this for 1 smoothie:

• a handful of greens (spinach, kale, etc)
• 1/2 cup liquid (water, coconut water, orange juice, frozen fruit)
• fruit (blueberries, banana, mango, apple, etc.)
• superfoods (flax, chia, acai etc)

What worked for me:

1 cup baby spinach, 1/2 cup of orange juice, 1 banana, 1 apple and a scoop of flaxseed
blend until smooth, pour into a glass, add a straw and enjoy

Looking for something creamier? Why not add some greek yogurt?

I did discover that mixing colors - such as blue (blueberries) and green (spinach) can make an unattractive, but still tasty smoothie. Try not to judge by how it looks, but the goodness in it and how it tastes. The more pure and real your ingredients are, the better your smoothie will be for you.

Remember that I'm no Doctor or nutritionist, but on my journey to better health this year, I'm sharing how I'm working smoothies into my routine.

What's your favorite smoothie recipe?

catch you soon -