Awesome Smoothie Recipes
Smoothies have become increasingly popular over the last few years, especially with the advent of big brand blenders and ready-made options (not mentioning any names clearly). Whilst the chilled ready to drink options are very appealing and convenient, they can be expensive and some varieties contain additional ingredients that you would be better to avoid.
It doesn’t have to be a big chore to make your own smoothies at home, with many combinations being suitable for freezing before they are blended.
When you are working out your recipe, there are a few things to think about
- If you want a smoothie with a thick texture you will need to include banana, yoghurt or double cream.
- If you want a thinner texture, look for fruits and vegetables with a high water content like cucumber, tomato and melon, or you can include ice in your mix.
- Vegetable mixes can be sweetened with a dollop of honey and look in your spice cupboard for inspiration – ginger and cinnamon add a great boost.
Here’s some easy options to try out (all recipes make two servings):
Ombre smoothie – chop 1 peeled pineapple and 1 peeled mango into chunks and blend with 125g of water, separately blend 250g of fresh or frozen raspberries. Pour the pineapple mixture into a glass and top with the raspberry blend.
Green Goddess – blend together the flesh of one avocado, 100g fresh or frozen spinach, 1 cored green apple, 1 kiwi and 250ml of water. You can also add in your favourite herb – basil or parsley work well with this mix.
Summer smoothie – blend 1 banana with one fresh peach, 150g of fresh apricots, 150g plain yoghurt, 75ml milk, 3tbsp honey, 1 tbsp fresh mint plus ice cubes if required for a thinner texture. This one is great served over ice cubes.
Easy Banana Berry – blend 150g fresh or frozen mixed berries with 1 banana, 150g plain yoghurt and 75g orange juice, adding honey to taste.
Tropical Smoothie – blend 250ml milk, 60ml of Greek yoghurt, 1 small banana and 1 small papaya. As this one has yoghurt and banana you may need to add some water or ice cubes to stop it becoming too thick.
