The Best Smoothie in the World

Is the smoothie you just made.

With a little bit of planning and some getting over that take-out-the-blender dread, there is no reason you can’t have the best smoothie in your kitchen and at your fingertips year round.

Some of you are here just to nab a recipe, so, before the tutorial on how to make your own very best smoothie, here’s a recipe that works for me:

A Smoothie Recipe

Ingredients

• 1 banana
• 8-12 oz coconut water (or milk)
• 1 cup (or a handful) of kale, spinach, or lettuce
• 6-8 frozen strawberries
• 1 tablespoon flax seed

Directions

• Place the banana, coconut water, and greens in a blender. Blend for a couple of minutes until you have a smooth green base.
• Add the strawberries, and blend until smooth.
• Add the flax seed, blend just a bit.
• Pour it up and drink.

Note: Frozen fruit is not a smoothie requirement. It’s what I prefer. But if you’re using fresh fruit instead, add a cupful of ice to your recipe.

After I wrote this tutorial, I discovered Tracy Russel’s site. Check out her site for in-depth nutrition information, focused primarily on green smoothies, and great recipes. This tutorial is to help you plan and have what you need at home to make that smoothie you love.

Now back to the tutorial for…

How to Rock the Best Smoothie

Ingredients

You can start with as few as TWO basic ingredients:

• liquid base
• fruit

You can make it green by adding a THIRD:

• liquid base
• fruit
• green (kale, lettuce, spinach, greens, green superfood powder)

 You can supercharge with a FOURTH ingredient:

• liquid base
• fruit
• green (kale, lettuce, spinach, greens, green superfood powder)
• plug-ins/add-ons (chia, flax, hemp seeds; powdered shake supplements)

So why is the best smoothie in the world the one you just made? Because, you will make it with the ingredients you like. That’s where a little planning comes in handy.

Plan Ahead

The Liquid

I make my smoothies with coconut water, but you can use milk, almond milk, yogurt, or juice. By keeping these on hand, you’re already on your way to on-demand smoothies. If your fruit choices already pack your smoothie with flavor and creaminess, water may do the trick for you.

The Fruit

What fruits do you like best? This is the key to the world’s best smoothie. You might want to use two or three fruits. I almost always start with a banana then add a second fruit. Strawberry is my go-to smoothie fruit, but I keep other fruits on hand.

You can buy bags of frozen fruit, but I prefer to freeze my own. During strawberry and peach seasons, I load up at the farmer’s market. During dewberry and blueberry seasons, I pick berries. We eat what we can fresh, but I freeze most of it so that I can have out-of-season fruit choices for my smoothies year round.

Here are some of my favorite smoothie fruits. You should make your own list.

creamy

• bananas (makes a great creamy base)
• papayas (frozen papaya makes the creamiest smoothie ever)
• avocado (say yes to the green fruit; see this article for recipe ideas: 11 Times Avocado Made Smoothies So Much Better (Don’t Be Weirded Out)
• peaches (smooth and tangy)
• mango (almost as smooth as papaya)

bright

• strawberries (my go-to fruit)
• blueberries (can be pulpy)
• pineapple (sweet)

juicy

• watermelon (this is refreshing and surprisingly delightful in a smoothie)
• cantaloupe
• honeydew

The Greens

Not everyone wants a green smoothie, but if you do, don’t fret. You don’t have to cross town to a specialty store for green smoothie ingredients. Pick up some kale, spinach, lettuce, or any other greens that you like. Remember. This is your world’s best smoothie, so you should choose accordingly. If you don’t often have fresh greens at home, you can keep a tub powdered green superfood in your pantry. It doesn’t wilt.

Many sites tell you that you won’t taste the greens. I do taste them, but they are subtle and, since I like the greens I use, not a distraction from the fruity ingredients.

The Plug-ins/Add-ons

These are the ingredients you choose to enhance the nutrition or flavor of your smoothie. I often choose flax seeds because, like chia seeds, they have anti-inflammatory properties that might help with my arthritis. I’ve recently started using hemp seeds as well. You can also pick up some superfood powder supplements to supercharge your smoothie. If you’re using a green superfood powder in lieu of greens, you’re covered here.

For information on the benefits of flax, chia, and hemp seeds, see this article by Jodi Geigle: 3 Seeds for Supercharged Smoothies. 

You might consider adding a flavor enhancer: a teaspoon of lemon or lime juice, a drop of vanilla (or other) extract. Or be brave and add some fresh ginger or basil leaves. This is your super smoothie. What flavor boost do you fancy?

Make it!

• Follow the same basic directions I provided at the beginning (A Smoothie Recipe).
• If you’re using greens, it’s good to blend those well before adding any of the frozen fruit.
• When you’re done, don’t forget to clean that blender!

What is your World’s Best Smoothie?

Copyright © 2015 by Pennie Nichols, All Rights Reserved.