Somerville Smoothie

This is my first Medium story.

About 4 years ago I lost 35 pounds and I’ve been able to keep it off primarily by reducing sugar and carb intake and increasing protein intake. I also exercise on a regular basis; daily 5-to-10-minute strength training, walking, and approx 2 days of team sports per week.

For me, exercise is important, but diet is more important. A healthier diet has been the biggest factor in keeping off those 35 pounds. My healthy diet starts with a healthy breakfast that keeps me satisfied until lunchtime.

My smoothie recipe.

Kale, 1/2 avocado, 1/2 banana, dollop of greek yogurt, heaping tablespoon of ground flax seed, about 20 blueberries, 4 strawberries, 10 raw almonds, scoop of protein powder, water… 10 ingredients.

A note about avocados. Avocados ? Yes. They’re the secret ingredient. Not sure why, but the addition of avocados magically makes the smoothie texture better, smoother. And, they contain healthy fats. And, no, the taste does not overpower the smoothie.

Also, I own a Vitamix blender… the smaller one. I can’t speak to other blender products, but can tell you that a Vitamix rocks. It’s great for smoothies, regular blender stuff, margaritas, etc.

As a reader, your first reaction might be… that’s a lot of ingredients… how long does it take to make this thing ? Answer: less than 5 minutes.

Kale… I don’t eat enough vegetables… so, I stuff my smoothie with kale. I suppose that you could technically call this smoothie a green smoothie. Don’t like green smoothies ? Don’t worry… once the rest of the ingredients have been added, the kale taste is not strong. I used to buy kale by the bunch… lately, I’ve been buying it by the bag. I shop at Market Basket where buying by the bag is a slightly better deal.

Ground flax; Brand is Forti-Flax. I buy at Cambridge Naturals. It’s about $9 per container. Supposed to be good for me so I add it.

Greek Yogurt. I buy Cabbot Creek from Cabbot, but any brand will do… Fage, store brand, whatever. Just don’t use “regular” yogurt. “Regular” yogurt has a lot more sugar and less protein than greek yogurt. For me, less sugar and more protein means that I won’t be hungry until lunchtime.

Raw almonds. I buy them at Target. Big container costs $12 or $13. You can also find raw almonds at your grocery store… but make sure to buy raw almonds… they’re better for you.

I buy frozen blueberries and frozen strawberries. (the frozen fruit at Market Basket is very reasonably priced).

One trick. I prepare and freeze the avocados and bananas in advance. I normally buy 5 avocados at a time, along with 1 bunch of bananas (say, 5). I peel and halve the avocados, place the halves in freezer bags then freeze. I do the same with the bananas… peel, halve, freeze. 5 avocados + 5 bananas = 10 smoothies ! It takes me 5-10 minutes 3x per month to prep/freeze the avocados and bananas.

Frozen ingredients recap; blueberries, strawberries, avocados, bananas. One of the benefits of having so many frozen ingredients is that the smoothie is guaranteed to be cold without having to add ice.

Protein powder. I buy Optimum on Amazon. It’s supposed to be a better quality than what you might find at Target. I prefer the chocolate flavor. I’ve also tried the vanilla… not a fan. IMO, the chocolate is more flavorful than the vanilla.

Water… tap water.

Steps.

Step 1. Add kale first… why ? Too much big frozen stuff at the bottom of the blender can block the blades from spinning. Blender should be filled halfway with kale.

Step 2. Add the rest of the ingredients on top of the kale. I usually make 2 trips to the fridge; trip 1 for the kale, yogurt and flax, then trip 2 to the freezer for berries, avocado and bananas. Then, I toss in the almonds. Then add protein powder.

Step 3. Add water last. Fill the blender until the water is between the 50 and 60 percent mark of the blender.

Step 4. Blend. Takes about 20 seconds with the Vitamix.

Step 5. Serve. I drink half in the morning, then the rest either that evening, or the following morning.

Step 6. Once you’ve emptied the blender, make sure to clean the blender immediately. Otherwise, you will have to soak the blender. Leftover smoothie pretty much turns to glue.

Enjoy !!!