Anyway, I keep reading blogs of people who are making all kinds of smoothies and green monsters and I wanted to try them for myself.
Before Christmas I invested in a very small blender that does one smoothie at a time and then you drink from the container. I've been looking for recipes with no avocado and no bananas and I finally saw one that Cammy posted that sounded really good to me. She called it Strawberry Cheesecake Smoothie and who doesn't like strawberry cheesecake? I usually have cottage cheese around anyway.
I've never purchased protein powder either so that was another thing to check out and invest in so I could make a good, healthy smoothie. Sunday, we went to GNC and they were having a sale on lots of things. I talked to one of the people working there and told him I preferred a protein powder without flavoring or sweetener and he suggested one of their protein powders which the label says is 100% whey protein and has 24 grams of protein per serving.
I used a half cup of cottage cheese, five strawberries, two thirds of a serving of the protein powder, some vanilla, a tablespoon of chia seeds and a cup of water. It wasn't sweet enough so I added in a half tablespoon of no sugar, instant vanilla pudding mix. It was tasty and I didn't get hungry for about four hours. Today I added more berries, but I still wanted it a tiny bit sweeter. I would like to avoid the artificial sweeteners, but I know I won't drink a smoothie that doesn't taste good and I don't want to add sugar. Decisions, decisions.
I could eat (or should I say drink!) smoothies all day. Chia seeds are around $15 a pound in Australia so I don't use them. I use flax seeds (linseeds) and they're about $3.50 a pound. We're waiting on bananas ripening any day and I'll be making some banana and mango smoothies for breakfast with some protein powder and a little milk.
ReplyDeleteI tried flax seeds first and when they started giving me a stomachache, I switched to the chia seeds. They are about the same price as flax seeds here and I like them better.
DeleteLast year I learned I had to have smoothies infrequently or the scales did not budge for me. I do love them though.
ReplyDeleteI always find that a frozen banana sweetens it and thickens it up at the same time :)I usually chop one up and freeze it then just use some of it when I'm making them.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the mention, Caron! I'm glad you gave the smoothie a try!
ReplyDeleteI wonder if using a little non-fat dry milk in the smoothie would sweeten it up. I know it would add a little protein and the natural milk sugar might make it taste sweeter. I think I'll try that next week.
Suzi's right, too, with the banana, especially if it's a really, really ripe one. Yummy! :)
I haven't had a smoothie for years though there was a time when I would make them almost everyday. I think the hassle of the cleanup afterwards wasn't worth it for me. For me a bit of frozen mango always sweetened up the mix :)
ReplyDeleteI'm going to try the mango. I'll bet it does the trick and it will be just sweet enough.
DeleteWe don't do smoothies much but the kids sure do like it when I do. Do you do stevia for sweeteners?
ReplyDeleteI have tried and tried and tried to like smoothies as a meal replacement, but I just don't. Every once in a while I will make a smoothie in an emergency type situation where I need nutrition but don't have time to make a breakfast for example. I definitely prefer to chew my calories most of the time - I think it's a satisfaction thing rather than how many calories I've taken in.
ReplyDeleteI always say I don't want to drink my calories but with the chia seeds I get to chew the smoothie. Ha ha
DeleteAs you know, I have a smoothie every day for breakfast. I always use 100% whey vanilla flavored protein. I guess I should go home an read the label to see what gives it the sweetness, but I love it! I never have a problem with my smoothies not being sweet enough.
ReplyDeleteIf you don't want the vanilla flavored, then I suggest frozen pineapple, the unsweetened kind. It's really good and sweet.
Best of luck!
Next time I'll probably just get the vanilla flavored protein powder with the artificial sweetener. I can always add vanilla flavoring and a little Splenda to my smoothie. I can't eat pineapple or bananas or avocado without getting a very painful stomachache. I don't have a problem with mango so I'm going to try that next. :)
DeleteI like smoothies, but I love the ingredients by themselves even better. :D
ReplyDelete:-) Marion
I have never been a smoothie gal... I want to eat my calories also... I think of smoothies more of for when I am sick... Jamba Juice has that cold buster... I used to drink when I was sick (an a BIG gal) it probably has a bagillion calories in it!!!
ReplyDeleteThat would be a perfect before run drink for me. I never thought of using cottage cheese! Thanks for the recipe:)
ReplyDeleteSame here! My stomach aches when I eat pineapples, bananas, and mangoes. So, as much as possible, I refrain from eating them. I love smoothies, but I don't like the process of making it. Haha! I always buy it from juice bars but I found out that it's cheaper to make them yourselves. I'm really not that adventurous with my smoothie and I always stick to the "Strawberry-Banana" mix, but it's getting boring. Haha! Do you have any recipes for smoothie beginners like me? Thank you!
ReplyDeleteJoseph Carr