My top 7 favourite homemade smoothie recipes

Summer is here and frozen treats are tempting us from all around. Juice bars and smoothie bars are packed with people looking for a “healthy”, cold treat. Are these mixin’ mania bars really that healthy?

One would assume that a fruit smoothie is a healthy treat but be careful because those calories add up fast. Extra calories can sneak in with flavored syrups, sugar additives, sweetened fruit, peanut butter, coconut, and ice cream. I recently had a Papaya Paradise smoothie that packed a whopping 500 calories! Although it was tasty, it was enough calories to replace a whole small meal. And what about these “magical” ingredients that are added to smoothies, such as bee pollen and blue-green spirulina? Though these magic ingredients may increase the cost of your smoothie they likely do not increase the nutritional value. A basic healthy smoothie provides great nutrition with calcium from yogurt, milk and soy products and vitamins and minerals from fresh or frozen fruit.

Smoothies are simple to make at home and are a fabulous way to sneak in good nutrition. When you make them yourself, you control the amount of calories that are in them, as well as the cost. Try one for breakfast, a quick snack or even for dessert. Children enjoy smoothies too – so steer them away from the ice cream bar and into your own mixin’ kitchen this summer.

Some smoothies can be made thick and creamy and some are smooth and frothy. You can also add your own extra ingredients into smoothies for added nutrition. To add omega-3 fatty acids, add one teaspoon of flaxseed oil per one cup serving. For extra calcium, add two tablespoons of nonfat dry milk powder for every one cup serving. For extra vitamin e, add one tablespoon of wheat germ for every one cup serving. For extra fiber, add two tablespoons of oat bran for every one cup serving. Try some of my smoothie recipes and then have fun experimenting with your own mixin’ mania fixins. Enjoy!

This is definitely one of my favourites for breakfast.

Ingredients:

1 cup low fat peach yogurt
3/4 cup peach juice
1/2 cup fresh Raspberries, frozen
1 1/2 cup diced fresh peaches

Preparation:

Combine the yogurt and peach juice in a blender. Add the raspberries and peaches. Blend until smooth and pour into a chilled glass.

Ingredients:

1 cup frozen fruit juice (almost any flavour will work)
1 cup Vanilla Soy Milk1
2 cup fresh fruit like Bananas, Peaches or Strawberries

Preparation:

1. Combine all ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth.

Suggestion:

For a delicious breakfast on the run add 1 teaspoon of Spirulina powder, Spirulina is a chlorophyll rich food supplement derived from Blue-green algae. It is a dense source of protein an natural balance vitamins, minerals, enzymes and trace elements.

Ingredients:

1 cup boiling water
3 tea bags of tea
1/4 cup of granulated sugar
2 cups of fresh pineapple
1 banana cut into chunks
3 cups of ice cubes.

Preparation:

In teapot, pour boiling water over tea bags; cover and brew 5 minutes. Remove tea bags; cool slightly. In blender, process tea, sugar, pineapple and banana.

Add ice cubes, one at a time, and process until frosty. Serve immediately.

Ingredients:

1 ripe banana, frozen
1 cup frozen (loose) strawberries
1 Tbsp. sugar
dash of lemon juice
2 c. milk

Preparation:

If all your bananas ripen at once, just freeze those you can't eat. Peel and wrap in foil or plastic wrap. Frozen bananas make a delicious thick milk shake. Take 1 banana, break into 2 or 3 pieces in container or electric blender. Add strawberries, sugar, lemon juice and milk. Whirl until thick. Makes 3 big glassfuls.