More of an outline than a recipe, this will get you on your way to creating nutritious and flavorful smoothies using whatever you have on hand. Balance is key to blending up the best results... The higher fat and creamy dairy adds depth and texture while high sugar fruits mellow its lower sugar and acidic counterparts. Avoid adding ice as it will dilute your creation and leave you reaching for sweeteners. Instead, freeze 1/3 to 1/2 of your ingredients. I like to keep the fruit in the freezer. For a quick breakfast, blend up the fruit and nuts the night before and freeze in ice trays. In the morning, add your cubes to your dairy ingredients and blend!
A kitchen scale makes smoothie making easy! Just place the blender pitcher on the scale and add and weigh your ingredients. Smoothies are very forgiving; don't worry about being precise.
ingredients
makes one 12-14 oz smoothie
- 4 oz (1/2 cup) Milk or Kefir
- 4 oz (1/2 cup) Yogurt, Kefir, Half-n-half, or Cream
- 2-3 oz Low Sugar/Acidic Fruits, such as berries, yellow peaches, or pineapple, preferably frozen
- 1-2 oz High Sugar Fruits, such as bananas or mangoes, preferably frozen
- 1 oz (1/4 cup) Nuts, preferably blanched and/or soaked overnight OR 2 tablespoons nut butter
- 1 - 2 Tablespoons Honey or Maple Syrup OR 1-2 dates, optional to taste
deviations & tips
- Keep 1/3 to a 1/2 of your ingredients frozen.
- Soaking your nuts overnight yields a smoother result.
- Avoid adding ice cubes unless absolutely necessary.
- You can omit the high sugar fruit and add more tart fruits, you'll just need to add some sweetener or dates to balance out the acid.
- For a smoothie reminiscent of a milkshake, use milk and cream. For a drinkable yogurt flavor, choose kefir and yogurt.
If you're using nuts and/or dates, add nuts, dates, and liquid ingredients to blender and puree for about a minute. Add all remaining ingredients and process until smooth. Enjoy!
Peach and date smoothie with low-fat kefir and full fat Greek yogurt