Juicers, smoothie makers and blenders often come out of the cupboards at this time of year as many of us try and recover from the excesses of the Xmas season. Juices and Smoothies have such an amazing reputation for health and can be a fantastic component of a balanced diet but there are some things worth thinking about as you dust down your appliances …
Juices: If you have a good juicer (and don’t mind the washing up!) this can be a great way of getting 1 of your 5-a -day…which by the way should actually be more like around ‘8-10 a day’ for really optimum health. A juice can only ever count as ‘1 portion’ as it is the fibre in fruit and vegetables that contains many of the healthy compounds so whole fruit and vegetables should make up the rest of your daily intake. There are some great juicing recipes and books out there so take your pick and experiment. An important thing to remember is that although fruit contains many nutrients, it is also often very high in fruit sugars. A glass of freshly squeezed orange juice might contain as many as 7 oranges with accompanying fruit sugar- you would never eat that many pieces of whole fruit in a sitting and without the accompanying fibre, this kind of pure fruit juice can give a real ’sugar hit’ and add to blood sugar imbalances. Instead try vegetable juices or mix fruit and vegetables together. I find most people enjoy apple,carrot and ginger as this is quite a sweet juice. Or try adding a beetroot for an amazing red juice with an earthy flavour. Here are some more ideas for recipes
Smoothies: I generally prefer smoothies to juicing as you can add in so many ‘extra bits’ for added nutrition and by blending the whole fruit the fibre is included so you don’t lose out on nutrients. ‘Smoothie Makers’ are really just blenders with a tap. I think a goblet style blender is just as good and more versatile – I’d say these are generally the best for making smoothies though some of my clients tell me they can achieve some great results with a good old stick blender so give it a try. There are some amazing goblet style blenders on the market, some so powerful they can make soups from scratch and heat them at the same time, but these are beyond the range of most of us (I am saving up for a Vitamix…long wait!). I currently use a Philips HR2094 which isn’t the cheapest but is glass and quite sturdy so it can manage some heavy blending and can be used to make nut milk with its additional filter- it’s also very easy to clean. This style blender has an adjustable speed dial which is great when adding large objects like quartered apples or soaked whole nuts as it can gradually break them down before turning up to full speed for a finer blend. I’m putting it through it’s paces at the moment so I’ll report in future blogs what it can and can’t do! (let’s hope I don’t kill it!)
Anyway, back to smoothies – there are many recipes out there for amazing smoothies. As a principle, I always try and add a protein food and sources of essential fatty acids to smoothies. Try adding a tablespoon of peanut or almond nut butter (available in health food shops) or if your blender is powerful enough, soak some cashews or almonds for a few hours then throw them in. Nuts really are a great source of protein, minerals and essential fatty acids. You can also add 3-4 tablespoons of whole fat plain yoghurt- additional protein and also contains some low levels of ‘good bacteria’ to support the gut. For something more filling like a breakfast, add in 1/2 cup of porridge oats and blend away or pour a smoothie mix on your muesli for added spice. Blueberries make lovely purple milk- kids love it.
Here’s the smoothie I had as my mid morning snack today. I make them up as I go along adding whatever is handy and might add to the taste and nutrient content…
The smoothie with no name
1 apple- cored and cut into quarters
1/2 a greenish banana ( too sweet if allowed to brown)
3 medjool dates- stoned ( xmasleftovers)
4 strawberries
3 tbsp whole fat live yoghurt
1 tbsp almond nut butter (or any other nut butter)
1/2 tsp of Maca powder (optional – from health food shops)
1 tbsp organic cacao powder (optional)
Method
Put all of the above into the blender. Add a little water for the ‘first blend’ then, once a smooth paste has formed, add more to preferred consistency or top up with ice and blend until crushed
This is quite sweet and a moreish pick me up so a good ‘not too wholesome tasting’ smoothie while you are still in festive spirits. But don’t add real festive spirits…. not in the morning anyway :)
Enjoy.
Tags: Recipes