I love smoothies, partly because they taste good and partly because they are so easy.  Plus, smoothies don’t really require detailed recipes.  For a simple smoothie, start with putting fruit, some of it frozen, into a blender.  Then add some yogurt, regular or, if you’d like your smoothie thicker or with more protein, use Greek.  If your fruit isn’t sweet enough, you can add a little honey or other sweetener.  I like a vanilla or almond extract in my smoothies, but the extracts aren’t essential.  Add enough milk or juice to the blender to give you the consistency you like—less if you want to eat your smoothie with a spoon or more if you want to be able to drink it.  Depending on what fruit you choose, you might also like to add a little spice to your mixture.  For example, you might try some cinnamon with an apple smoothie or a little nutmeg in a peach or mango smoothie.  I like fairly simple smoothies, but experiment with adding ingredients (but maybe not all at once!) to see what you prefer.  For example, my son adds spinach, peanut butter, protein powder, and other strange things to his smoothies, which he says are quite good. 

 

All of the smoothie recipes below make one smoothie. 

 

Basic Smoothie

 

1 cup of fruit, half of it frozen (for example, try a small banana, chopped, and

  ½ cup of frozen strawberries)

½ - 1 cup of plain, fat free yogurt (regular or Greek)

1 teaspoon of honey or other sweetener (brown sugar, maple syrup, etc.),

   optional

½ teaspoon of vanilla (or almond, coconut, or other extract)

¼- ½ cup of low fat milk or juice (such as orange, pineapple, or mango)

¼ teaspoon of spice—cinnamon, nutmeg, cardamom, etc. (optional)

 

Put the yogurt, fruit, sweetener, and half the milk in a blender and whirr until blended.  Add additional milk to thin out to a drinking consistency. 

 

Some Smoothie Ideas

 

Peanut Butter and Banana

 

1 large banana, cut up and frozen

½ cup of fat free yogurt

1 tablespoon of peanut butter

½ cup of low fat milk

 

Whir all in a blender until smooth.

 

Pumpkin

 

½ cup of pumpkin puree

½ cup of fat free yogurt

2 teaspoons of maple syrup

1 large banana, cut up and frozen

½ teaspoon of pumpkin pie spice

 

Whir all in a blender until smooth.

 

Pineapple Mango

 

1 cup of frozen mango chunks

½ cup of fat free yogurt

½ cup of pineapple juice

¼ teaspoon of vanilla

 

Whir all in a blender until smooth

 

Banana Chocolate

 

1 large banana, cut up and frozen

½ cup of fat free yogurt

1 teaspoon of cocoa powder

1 teaspoon of brown sugar

½ cup of low fat milk

 

Whir all in a blender until smooth.

 

Blueberry Pomegranate

 

1 cup of frozen blueberries

½ cup of fat free yogurt

½ cup of pomegranate juice

¼ teaspoon of almond extract

 

Whir all in a blender until smooth.

 

Apple Cranberry

 

1 medium apple cored, peeled (optional), and cut into chunks

½ cup of fat free yogurt

¼ cup of frozen cranberries

½ cup of low fat milk

1-2 teaspoons of brown sugar

¼ teaspoon of cinnamon

 

Whir all in a blender until smooth.

 

Peach Melba

 

1 medium peach, pitted and, if you like, peeled

½ cup of frozen raspberries

½ cup of fat free yogurt

½ cup of low fat milk

¼ teaspoon of vanilla extract

1/8 teaspoon nutmeg

 

Whir all in a blender until smooth.