Since the 1990s, fruit smoothies have taken America by storm and nowadays almost everybody knows what a “smoothie” is, thanks in part to major commercial smoothie chains such as Jamba Juice and Robek’s.
Fruit smoothies are an ideal alternative to the traditional heavy breakfast consisting of pancakes, waffles, eggs, bacon, potatoes, and other foods that make you feel weighed down and tired.
Fruit smoothies are light, nutritious, and delectable and you can even have them on the go. Basically, it is a liquid breakfast in a cup. However, smoothies are not limited to breakfast time. They are great at anytime of the day, and excellent for detoxing.
This article will give you some fresh new ideas about making your own smoothies and will list many beneficial ingredients you can add to them. Many people are not very familiar with smoothies and are not aware of all the great ingredients that can ben added to them.
The Base
Your smoothie base can contain fruit juice, water, or vegan milk such as almond milk, rice milk, hemp seed milk, oat milk, soy milk, and coconut milk.
Fruit juice can include orange juice, pineapple juice, mango juice, peach juice/nectar, apple juice, grape juice, nectarine juice/nectar, bilberry or blueberry juice/nectar, mangosteen, cherry, acai or just about any other fruit juice you may enjoy drinking.
Good-Berry brand probiotic juices make great smoothie bases. They can be consumed to repopulate beneficial bacteria in the colon. Good-Berry flavors include mango, cranberry-watermelon, and black currant.
Always attempt to use organic brand juices, like from R.W. Knudsen or Lakewood. These juices may be a little expensive for many people due to their quality but organic really makes the difference, especially in the taste and not just the price.
Always try to use organic brand juices because its good quality really makes the difference in taste. You can use bottled fruit juice or freshly made fruit juice.
Ice
Ice is an integral part of a fruit smoothie. Ice helps to make the smoothie cold and can also add liquid to the smoothie if you decide not to use a liquid base. However, ice can be used in your smoothie with or without a liquid base. Traditionally, most smoothies contain both.
Generally, a cup or half cup of ice is recommended and it doesn’t matter if the ice is blocks or little pieces.
Fruit
The key to a fruit smoothie is the fruit. Organic fruit is the healthiest option but any fresh fruit or frozen fruit will work just fine. You could even dice up fresh fruit and put it in the freezer overnight to use first thing in the morning when you make your smoothie.
Select your favorite fruits to add to your smoothie. Some common fruits include banana, orange, grape, pineapple, mango, papaya, apple, peach, blueberry, raspberry, blackberry, strawberry, plum, nectarine, kiwi, and apricot.
I do not recommend adding melons such as watermelon, honeydew, and cantaloupe in your smoothie. Most melons are meant to be eaten in an unfrozen state.
In addition, citrus fruits such as orange, lemon, lime, and grapefruit do not normally taste very good in a smoothie.
If you decide to use dried fruit, I recommend using exotic fruits such as lycii berry, acai berry, acai berry, or goji berry.
Seeds and Nuts
Certain seeds and nuts such as chia, pumpkin, sunflower, and flax may be added to a smoothie for additional health benefits.
Supplements
This list contains so-called supplements commonly added to fruit smoothies for nutritional and therapeutic benefit:
- Acai berry
- Bee pollen
- Brewer’s Yeast
- Bromelain (pineapple enzyme)
- Co-enzyme Q10
- Flax seed
- Goji berry
- Grape Seed extract
- Herbal extracts
- Lycii berry
- Mangosteen juice
- Minerals (liquid)
- MSM Sulfur
- Noni juice
- Papain (papaya enzyme)
- Psyllium husk
- Royal Jelly
- Soy protein powder
- Spirulina
- Tofu
- Vitamins (liquid)
- Vitamin C powder
- Wheat germ
Dherbs.Com’s liquid extracts are great additions to smoothies for nutritive and therapeutic value. Depending on your taste preferences, some powdered herbs may taste well enough to add to smoothie blends while others may not.
Most capsules of formulas sold by Dherbs can be opened and added to a fruit smoothie. Simply take two or three capsules, open them up, and pour the powder into the blender with the other ingredients and blend. With fruit smoothies, always try to consider the nutritional value of the content. In most cases, fruit smoothies often replace breakfast, so nutrition is critical.
Fruit Smoothie Recipes
Banana Date Supreme Smoothie
One (1) cup Coconut Milk (or Almond or Rice milk)
One (1) cup Dates (pitted), organic preferably
One (1) Banana (sliced), organic preferably and not-so-ripe (due to sweetness)
One-half (1/2) cup crushed ice (optional)
Pour coconut (or other) milk into blender. Next, add dates and banana slices to blender. Lastly, add ice to blender (optional). Puree until smooth. Makes 1-2 servings.
Pineapple-Mango Delight
One (1) cup fresh pineapple chunks
One (1) cup mango chunks
One (1) cup orange juice
One-half (1/2) cup crushed ice
Pour orange juice into blender. Next add pineapple and mango chunks to blender. Lastly, add ice to blender. Puree until smooth.
Makes 1-2 servings.
Tropical Strawberry
One (1) cup frozen strawberries
One-half (1/2) cup pineapple
One-half (1/2) cup ripe papaya
One (1) small peach
One-half (1/2) fresh, ripe avocado
One-half (1/2) cup apple juice
One-half (1/2) cup of pina colada juice
One-fourth (1/2) teaspoon coconut flavoring (optional)
One (1) teaspoon lime juice (optional)
Peel, seed and slice pineapple, papaya, peach, and avocado. Combine with strawberries, juices, and flavoring in the blender (or Vita-Mixer). Puree until smooth.
Makes 2-3 servings.
Maple Pecan Banana Swirl
Two (2) frozen bananas
One-third (1/3) fresh pecans
One (1) tablespoon fresh flaxseed
Two (2) tablespoon maple syrup
Two to Three (2-3) teaspoon slippery elm powder
One (1) cup water (adjust as needed)
In advance, peel fresh ripe bananas and freeze until hard. Grind pecans and flaxseed using an electric seed grinder (or coffee grinder). Break bananas into small chunks and combine with water, flax, nuts, sweetener and elm powder in your blender. Blend on high speed until smooth and creamy. NOTE: Be sure to use fresh nuts (preferably organic) and Grade B maple syrup.
Makes 2 servings
Spicy Raspberry Rainbow
One (1) cup frozen raspberries
One (1) ripe banana
Two (2) medium-size, ripe peaches (preferably organic)
One-half (1/2) teaspoon fresh ginger
One (1) cup coconut-fruit blend juice
One (1) tablespoon sweetener, i.e. maple syrup, agave nectar (optional)
Peel and grate a tad of ginger. Peel fresh peaches and slice. Combine with raspberries, bananas and coconut juice in blender and puree smooth. Drink immediately.
Makes 2 servings.
After reading all of the above, you should now be acclimated to the knowledge of how to make a fruit smoothie. Fruit smoothies are real easy to make and you should be able to make more fruit smoothies on your own simply by being creative and improvisational. Use your favorite fruits and be open to experiment!
Thank you for reading!
