Warm Cinnamon Apple and Almond Butter Smoothie

Cinnamon apples are definitely a fall delight for the tastebuds. So this warm smoothie hits the spot from fall throughout the winter months.

This one takes a little extra prep work to prepare it just like I prefer it. Even though I use a Vitamix blender, I like to do a bit of the cooking on the stovetop. This is because I like to use banana as a sweetener, but I don’t want to blend a banana in the Vitamix until it becomes steamy. If you do not have a Vitamix (or blender that can handle hot liquids), blend the ingredients first and then warm them on the stovetop.

I hope this smoothies provides a great start to your day. Enjoy!

Tips: Using frozen bananas, you can also use these same ingredients to make a cold smoothie.

INGREDIENTS

1 – 2 bananas, room temperature – unless you want a cold smoothie (or another sweetener of your choice)
1/2 cup applesauce (or 1/2 cup fresh apples that have been stewed on the stovetop using water)
1 cup of water or use plant-based milk for extra creaminess
1 – 2 TBS Almond Butter
Dash of cinnamon spice (or any winter spice you like or a combination of more than one)
1 cup of spinach (optional) – I just like to get leafy greens in any way that I can and spinach is hardly noticeable.
1/2 avocado (optional) – Definitely add avocado if you do not use bananas. This will help to thicken the smoothie. If using avocado, I suggest skipping the spinach or the smoothie will be very green.

DIRECTIONS (For a warm smoothie):

Warm the applesauce (apples) and water (or plant-based milk) on the stovetop until you reach a desirable temperature.
Add the warm ingredients to the Vitamix and blend with the remaining ingredients.

Mid-day Green Smoothie

Ingredients:

1 packed cup of Kale

1/2 slice of 1 inch thick pineapple

1/2 of peeled pickling cucumber

1/2 small nectarine or peach*

1 knob ginger (you can juice using garlic press)

2 coconut milk* ice cubes

1 1/2 cups water

*High FODMAP food – remove from ingredients to achieve a Low FODMAP recipe.

Directions:

Put all ingredients into a high-speed blender such as the Vitamix and process until you reach your desired consistency.

Makes about 12 ounces.

My “Go To” Get Going Green Smoothie

Lately, this has been my “go to” morning smoothie to “get going”.

Ingredients:
2 cups water
1/2 avocado
1 stalk celery
2 TBS nut butter
2 Medjool dates
1 TBS hemp protein
1/2 frozen banana (or add a couple of ice cubes)
1 scoop green “super food” powder

Directions:
Add all ingredients to a high speed blender. I use a Vitamix – it’s my favorite.

Options:
1. Use fresh vegetable/fruit juice or coconut water in place of water
2. I’ve been using organic cashew butter, but I also like almond butter. Almonds are the only alkaline nut and, by the way, cashews aren’t actually nuts.
3. Use different fruits such as blueberries, mangos, pineapple in place of a banana
4. Add even more “green power” by adding fresh leafy greens (spinach, kale, salad mixes) – you might want to add a a little more liquid if you do.

Below are the results from a calorie counting program.

Calories: The calculations show 574 Calories. I need all the “healthy” calories I can get. But, if you want less calories, start my removing the nut butter before any avocado.

https://youtu.be/LSWyYpTnKjc

Orange You Happy Smoothie

This morning it took me a while to get around to preparing my first meal around 11 am. I had already had 32 ounces of water (mixed with barley green powder and 1/2 of a lemon which has now become my regular morning routine.) But at this hour of the morning, I felt like I wanted more than just juice. So I mixed together this quick smoothie.

You can use frozen pineapple, mango* and/or blueberries which are easy to find in the frozen food section of the grocery store these days. Actually, I purchase most of my blueberries frozen because that’s almost the only way I find organic berries. But I prefer fresh pineapple and fresh mango, especially the Ataulfo mangos that are plentiful in the beginning of summer time.

This recipe will make 28 – 32 ounces and can easily be doubled.

Ingredients:
3 oranges
1 – 2 cups of pineapple (slices or chunks, and any of its juices)
1 mango*
5 mint leaves
1 cup blueberries

*High FODMAP food – remove from ingredients to achieve a Low FODMAP recipe.

Directions:

Juice oranges (I used a manual juice press)
Peel and remove seed from mango
Toss all ingredients into a high speed blender (I use my all-time favorite, the Vitamix)

Optional Add-ins:

I added a handful of greens (kale & spinach are my favorite).

Avocado Drink with Basil and Mint

I was browsing my computer this morning and I came across a Vitamix recipe that used milk and sugar in the mix , so I decided to mix it up a bit in a different way for some Real Food goodness and I added a little special touch with the basil and mint addition. This tasted like a milk shake to me…I actually made two servings because the first was so good.

Feel free to adjust to your liking. See more possibilities below.

Ingredients:
¾ cup water
2 TBS nut butter of choice
1 – 2 bananas (depending on how sweet you want it)
½ avocado*, pitted and peeled
1 Date*
3 leaves each of basil and mint
1 cup ice

Optional: Add Stevia (without inulin* or other additives) as an additional sweetener.

*High FODMAP food – remove these ingredients to achieve a Low FODMAP recipe. Peanut butter is considered a low FODMAP food. Since almonds should only be consumed in the amount of 10 or less, almond butter would likely be a High FODMAP food. Also, you might be able to tolerate 1/8 of an avocado and I suggest using maple syrup in place of the date.

Directions:

Place all ingredients into Vitamix in order listed
Select Variable 1.
Turn machine on and slowly increase speed to Variable 10, then to High.
Blend until desired consistency is reached.

Other add-ins or switch-outs:

cinnamon, nutmeg or pumpkin spices in place of basil and mint
peaches or mangos in place of bananas (or along with them)
nut butter choices: cashew, almond, peanut, sunflower
add coconut milk or use in place of water and nut butter
chocolate (raw cacao)
leave out banana and add Stevia or an additional date as sweetener, plus flax seeds

Homemade Vegan Protein Smoothie

I have been looking into the possibility of buying a protein powder to supplement my nutrients and caloric intake. Yet, after reading the ingredients on multiple different protein powder brands, I decided to make my own.

The reason I had problems with most protein powder mixes is mostly due to my Candida Overgrowth. I can’t have sugars, and also I need to avoid whey and most grains due to Leaky Gut (most likely caused by Candida). Also, many protein powders have added vitamins in forms that I don’t need or don’t want to ingest. I’m already taking vitamin supplements that I specifically need, so I don’t need it included in my protein smoothie.

So here is the homemade vegan protein smoothie that I came up with.

Create your own homemade vegan protein smoothie using any combination of the ingredients below.

Ingredients:

1 cup of water (or fresh juice*)

2 – 3 ice cubes

1 – 2 stalks celery

1 green apple, cut into quarters

1 cup spinach (or kale)

1 tsp Spirilina (optional)

1 tsp Barley Grass (optional)

Other Fruit (such as bananas*)

3 TBS Nutiva Organic Hemp Protein

Instructions:

Add ingredients into a blender (a high speed one such as the Vitamix works nicely) in the order listed.

Blend until smooth and creamy.

Notes:

Items marked with an asterisk (*) are NOT RECOMMENDED for Candida Free Diet.

There is always time for a Green Smoothie

This is my morning “go-to” smoothie. Of course, you can change it up or add more ingredients/spices.

INGREDIENTS:

2 bananas, frozen
1 date, pitted
2 handfuls of spinach
1/8 tsp ginger
a few sprigs of parsley
1 1/2 – 2 cups of water or plant-based milk
1 tsp barley green powder (or supplement powder of your choice)

DIRECTIONS:

Add to your blender. For the best texture, I prefer using a Vitamix to create a creamy texture.

NOTES:

Sometimes when I use only water, I add 1 TBS of nut butter
I like to add blueberries to this smoothie too, even though it creates a sort of weird color it still tastes great.

www.realfoodanddrinks.com

Blueberry and More Smoothie

I decided to begin this morning with fruit. But after eating and orange and some grapes, I decided that I wanted more. So I put all of the following ingredients into the Vitamix and out came this delicious smoothie which was enough for two.

Ingredients: (Use frozen fruit for the best smoothie texture.)

1 handful of blueberries
1 banana
1/2 cup pineapple
1/2 cup grapes
(I got a jump start on my greens too!)
1/2 stalk celery
1 large leaf of kale
1 large leaf of romaine lettuce

Vitamix it for about 30 seconds.

Now in about 30 minutes I will move on to some more breakfast options. Note: I always eat fresh fruit at least 30 minutes before or 30 minutes after eating any cooked foods.

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