Smoothies...

[Celt_Man]

I'm just taking a notion and gonna start making smoothies - try to improve my consumption of fruit (can't see me throwing any veg into them) and to try something different for a change.  I've never really had too many smoothies, homemade or otherwise...  Any advice?

Main things seem to be..

• Fruits
• Thickener
• Liquid of some description

Gonna try to keep them as healthy as possible - all suggestions welcome!

[Maguire01]

I wouldn't bother with a thickener - especially if you stick in a banana. And you won't need any liquid - there's enough water in the fruit.

Carrots are a decent veg to throw in. A bit of fresh ginger is nice, especially with the carrot. And lime adds a nice kick too.

[Celt_Man]

Think I'm gonna throw one together this evening... Gonna go for Strawberries, Bananas, apples, oranges - might even go mad and get watermelon - think I'll have some yogurt on standby for thickener...

More than a little bit sad that I'm kinda excited!

[Maguire01]

Watermelon will probably add too much liquid - I wouldn't use too much.

[AFS]

Think I'm gonna throw one together this evening... Gonna go for Strawberries, Bananas, apples, oranges - might even go mad and get watermelon - think I'll have some yogurt on standby for thickener...

More than a little bit sad that I'm kinda excited!

Went through a phase of making a load of these before I figured that eating the fruit whole was a lot handier than having to clean out all the wee nooks and crannies at the bottom of the blender every evening.

I found that if you overloaded with too many types of fruit you killed the flavour a bit. No harm experimenting though. Strawberry, banana and blueberries was a favourite of mine. Pineapple and kiwi are also nice in certain concoctions.

[The Iceman]

Be careful with the Carrots and avoid high sugar fruits and vegetables.
Juicing is a good job - I try to have one meal per day in juice or smoothie format.
Best Juice IMO is spinach, kale, broccoli and lemon.
Smoothie you can't go wrong with strawberry kiwi banana. Play around with the quantities until you get it right as one flavour can be overpowering.
Loads of resources online for recipes. Matthew Armstrong on you tube is a bit of a nutter at times but does have some good recipes.....

[NP 76]

Check out Jason Vale on youtube juice master very good . I would juice my vegetables and just eat the fruit . I would juice for breakfast and that does me to lunch . Wasnt well ther for a while and got into the routine of them and now feel bad if i dont get them in the morning . Try wheatgrass great stuff 1 shot the same goodness as a kilo of green veg

[Celt_Man]

Not sure I'll get into all that carryon with juice master and having it instead of meals...

I've made one there tonight and will have it tomorrow at work...

1 Banana, 1 apple, 2 small wee oranges, bitta orange juice, water, raspberries and a strawberry yogurt...  makes up almost a litre!

[NP 76]

Did you blend it all together apples juiced are very nice with carrot and some ginger

[Celt_Man]

Aye did surely.  Even from a wee taste, I think I'll leave the banana out the next time.  Tastes very nice though.  I wonder are there many calories in it?  Trying to watch that kind of stuff and my diet in general...

[Tony Baloney]

Aye did surely.  Even from a wee taste, I think I'll leave the banana out the next time.  Tastes very nice though.  I wonder are there many calories in it?  Trying to watch that kind of stuff and my diet in general...

Leave out the yogurt and keep the banana. Banana, strawberries, raspberries and orange juice is handy and tasty.

[Puckoon]

If you're concerned about calories - you want to be cutting out one of your meals in place of this smoothie/juice - otherwise you're just contributing to the deficit.

[Celt_Man]

If you're concerned about calories - you want to be cutting out one of your meals in place of this smoothie/juice - otherwise you're just contributing to the deficit.

I'll probably drink it over two days anyway - its a fair amount! And combine it with a reduced lunch too

[Eamonnca1]

Anybody seen the film Fat Sick and Nearly Dead?  All about an Australian boy who got into juicing to get his weight under control.

I've started juicing vegetables myself, but Jesus it's a day's work!  Takes about half an hour to clean the damn thing when you're done, and all for a pint of vegetable juice!  I need to experiment a bit more with my recipes though, my boss is into juicing now and he makes a very nice drink.  Mine is still a bit on the bitter side and you can't exactly gulp it down, I find myself having to sip it.  A mate at work reckons you can add in a bit of fruit juice to sweeten it a bit, so I might try that.

I've been throwing in kale, broccoli, lettuce, beets, cress, arugula, and about half a dozen other things that I can't remember the name of.  Have to say I've lost the 3pm sugar crash/craving, and I'm not exactly juicing every day as a 100% substitute for all other food.

For smoothies I'll usually throw in a banana, a handful of strawberries, raspberries, orange juice, yoghurt and a bit of protein for good measure. Would the strawberries count as a high sugar fruit?

[Puckoon]

There's a thread on the board somewhere about "fat, sick and nearly dead".