In my quest for easy, non-egg breakfasts I've started making smoothies.
*Any blender recs? Don't suggest something that costs more than my car payment (cough:vitamix:cough). Mine is evidently super underpowered and is incapable of chopping frozen bananas. I finally figured out a good process this morning but it's exponentially more difficult than it should be. *What's a good, unflavored protein powder? I don't want to break the bank but I need to add some protein to help keep me full. *Most importantly, what do you put in your smoothies?
I include frozen fruit in my smoothies on the regular, and it chops 'em up like a charm. The key is to increase the speed gradually while you blend.
Regarding protein, I actually prefer vanilla, and have been using Muscle Milk Light for 8 years: www.esupplements.com/products/muscle-milk-light/ It doesn't have an overwhelming flavor at all, and kind of blends (ha ha) into the background in smoothies.
In addition to the green smoothies in the chart above, I will occasionally make one that is banana & peanut butter w/soy milk. Nom nom nom.
We just got a ninja professional. We haven't used it yet.
My H makes his smoothies with frozen berries (we get the big bag from Costco), protein powder (vanilla flavored), milk, greens (we buy spinach and kale, portion it out and freeze it before it gets wilty).
But he's also done chocolate protein powder (we like the Optimum Nutrition Rich chocolate), a frozen banana, and some milk.
Post by irene adler on Jul 8, 2016 10:23:20 GMT -5
I have a magic bullet blender that works fine, but it is by no means amazing.
One of the best movie tips I ever got was to buy the big bag of spinach from Costco, blend the spinach with water and freezing in ice cube trays. It's a super easy way to add green to your smoothies without worrying about the spinach going bad
Post by keweenawlove on Jul 8, 2016 10:28:12 GMT -5
I've just got a cheaper blender from Kohls so I'm no help there. I start with milk or whatever liquid I'm using and slowly add the frozen stuff.
I use plain Greek yogurt in almost every smoothie. I try to use full fat because I really think it helps me feel full longer. I'll also throw in a bunch of spinach.
My go-to combo lately has been banana, mango (from the Costco bag of frozen), coconut, and vanilla protein powder. Peanut butter, banana, and chocolate protein powder is amazing.
One of the best movie tips I ever got was to buy the big bag of spinach from Costco, blend the spinach with water and freezing in ice cube trays. It's a super easy way to add green to your smoothies without worrying about the spinach going bad
I do the lazy version of this and just throw the bag of spinach in the freezer.
Oh and lately my jam has been adding fresh pineapple to my smoothies. So good. I don't really love eating pineapple, but add it to a smoothie? Instant summer!
I bought a NutriBullet at Costco. Best $89 ever spent I usually get vanilla flavored protein powder, and don't stick to a brand, so I can't help there My smoothies are heavy on fruit (whatever's in the fridge/freezer), a little bit of green (typically celery or kale, sometimes spinach), protein powder about half the time, and water/ice. Right now I'm going through my stash of cherries
MIL sent us a bullet and we use that. Works great.
We also use a vanilla whey protein powder. Not unflavored, but not noticeable either. In addition to that, I always put some kind of flaxseed oil or fish oil in there, and cinnamon, because it lowers blood sugar levels and diabetes runs in my family.
Favorite is pretty simple: Greek yogurt, ice, bananas, spinach, blueberries and strawberries H is partial to tropical, so yogurt, ice, pineapples, mango, spinach, banana
Banana and pineapple are the best sweeteners. We used kale for quite awhile, but honestly, it's just not that good. I froze it, I massaged it, I pre-blended it. It was not the worst, but in comparison, spinach is just much smoother and tastier, so we just gave it up.
Well I have a Vitamix. We got it after burning out 4 blenders, so in the end we should have just gotten in from the jump. But my other recs are Blendtec and Ninja.
Post by orangeblossom on Jul 8, 2016 11:52:40 GMT -5
@shoegal good memory! Yes, that was me. I love that list.
I think the biggest thing about smoothies, aside from power, is the order you put it in. Liquid on bottom, harder hinge like Ice on top. I just saw a VM post about ordering. I'll post it later.
Also, don't try to do it all at once. I have a VM, and I still blend water, spinach and celery first, and then do s second blend with the rest of the stuff. Gets it smoother that way, IMO.
I had a Kitchen Aid blender for years, no problems. The only reason we got rid of it was that I broke the pitcher and it was so old you can't get a replacement anymore. Now we have a Black & Decker DH ordered from Macys (we had gift cards) and it works just fine for DDs smoothies. I will admit I don't add ice to them, that might make a difference...the B&D does just fine with liquids, fruit, even PB or almond butter, though.
I haven't used a blender in a while and don't have one right now, but I did make some tasty smoothies when I was younger. I might get on this trend again at some point. We don't really have the counter space for a blender right now. It is something that we should look at getting though.
I always found it necessary to have a banana in my smoothies, whatever else I added. I like drinking vanilla Almond Breeze, I'm not sure that it's the best for a diet because it might be sugary but I like the taste. I also love good coconut milk or coconut water so I'd think about adding that sometime as well.
I'm allergic to mangoes, so none of that for me. I love most other fruits though. I actually have a hard time at smoothie places because of my allergy, so making my own smoothies at home would be a good idea.
If you don't want to spend a ton of money but still have a few hundred, get the Ninja. They also have a smaller smoothie blender for under $100.
It's made by the same company that makes Shark vacuums, and if you order it directly from their company you get a lifetime warranty. I've used the lifetime warranty for my vacuum several times in the last five years and they always ship out new parts for free, no questions asked. We vacuum every single day and we went through our previous vacuums in six months. I haven't used the warranty on our Ninja yet, but it's the same, and it's the primary reason we went with Ninja. I honestly couldn't ask for better customer service.
Assuming you don't have a dairy intolerance and aren't vegan, I would do plain greek yogurt for protein instead of protein powder.
I have a vitamix.
My go to is: plain greek yogurt, flaxseed oil, mix of frozen and fresh berries, 1 banana, lots of kale. If it's too thick I just add a little bit of water.
Post by dragon's breath on Jul 8, 2016 22:05:36 GMT -5
I make oatmeal smoothies. I like the fact that I can make a bunch at once and save for the week. If you have texture issues, you might not like it, but I don't mind it at all (and I do have some texture issues with foods).
BASE INGREDIENTS: **1/4 cup uncooked oats (old fashioned rolled oats recommended; do not use steel cut oats) **1-1/2 teaspoons dried chia seeds 1 cup liquid (dairy or non-dairy milk or juice, or combination) 1/4 cup low-fat yogurt (Greek yogurt recommended, but any yogurt may be used, including non-dairy) 1 cup fruit, fresh, frozen (unthawed), or canned (drained); or 1/2 cup dried fruit*; or 3/4 cup fruit sauce or puree (i.e. applesauce)
OPTIONAL ADD-INS: 1 or more teaspoons sweetener (honey, maple syrup, agave syrup, or your preferred sweetener) 1 or more tablespoons fruit jam, preserves, or spread 1/8 to 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon or other sweet spices 1 or more teaspoons cocoa powder 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon vanilla or almond extract or vanilla bean paste
Directions Add oats and chia seeds to blender; blend on high until texture of flour. Add liquid (milk/juice) to blender; use spoon or spatula to stir in oats/chias from bottom. Add yogurt. Add fruit and any additional flavorings. Blend on high until desired smoothness. Taste and add sweetener, if needed. Blend again. Transfer to pint (2 cup) jar or container; refrigerate overnight, or a minimum of 4 hours, so oats & chias can soften. Will keep in refrigerator at least 2-3 days. Shake before drinking.
IF TOO THICK after the fridge soak, add more juice or milk and shake jar/container or return to blender to combine. FOR A SMOOTHER CONSISTENCY, return to blender after the fridge soak and blend again. TO FREEZE: May be frozen after the 4 hour soak in the fridge. To thaw, move to fridge a day ahead so it is thawed for drinking the next day. For faster thaw, place frozen jar/container in bowl of cold water on the counter for 1-2 hours. Shake before drinking.
*If using dried fruit, increase liquid (milk/juice) by 1/4 cup. ** I make up a large batch of oats and chia seeds, pre-grind them, and keep them in a jar. I have a scoop I use for each individual serving that measures out just the right amount of the mixture.
I have a ninja I really like, but for these, I often just use an old blender. One thing I love about the old ones (at least the ones I've used) is that the bottom screw on piece fits perfectly on a mason jar, so I can make a variety of different flavors in mason jars (using different frozen fruit, yogurt, whatever), blend it up in the jar, put a lid on it, and stick it in the fridge.
@domerjen, protein powder has more protein compared to those alternatives - in my "typical" smoothie, I'll include a scoop of protein powder, which is ~12g protein / 100 cals - to get that much from peanut butter, as an example, you'd need roughly two servings, which would be 400+ calories (roughly roughly). I'm a big fan.
If you don't want to spend a ton of money but still have a few hundred, get the Ninja. They also have a smaller smoothie blender for under $100.
It's made by the same company that makes Shark vacuums, and if you order it directly from their company you get a lifetime warranty. I've used the lifetime warranty for my vacuum several times in the last five years and they always ship out new parts for free, no questions asked. We vacuum every single day and we went through our previous vacuums in six months. I haven't used the warranty on our Ninja yet, but it's the same, and it's the primary reason we went with Ninja. I honestly couldn't ask for better customer service.
I've used my Ninja from Costco for years and it still works great! For a flavorless protein powder I use GenePro link and one tablespoon is 30 grams of protein. It dissolves completely and has no taste at all. I've had it in snapple and it completely disappeared and didn't affect the taste at all. I usually put it in my yogurt. Once I stir it up, you can't even tell its there. For flavored powders I like the Quest Protein powders.
I usually add frozen fruit, a milk of some sort and powder. It really depends on what I'm going for. Mine have been really boring lately.
Post by mrsukyankee on Jul 10, 2016 16:01:57 GMT -5
I can suggest unflavoured protein powder from myprotein.com. It has a high level of protein but is inexpensive compared to many others. I add anything I would enjoy.