This is my favorite time of year for breakfast smoothies when the garden is brimming with nutrient-rich greens! There is nothing more gratifying or flavorful (or easier!) than walking outside and picking a handful of fresh garden greens and blending them up into a power-packed breakfast drink.
I simply start with any combination of dark, leafy greens. Earlier in the spring is best for spinach where now, in August, it has gotten too hot and the spinach has already gone to seed. Currently I am using a combination of kale, rainbow chard, and beet greens. I start with about 2 cups of greens, placing them in the blender. Then I add a frozen banana (the trick to good frozen bananas is to peel them first before freezing – that way they don’t turn to goo like they do if you leave them in the peel), a teaspoon of flaxseed oil, a teaspoon of chia seeds, 3 or 4 ice cubes, and then I alternate between using a cup of almond milk, coconut milk, and occasionally soy milk (organic, non-GMO). Blend until smooth. This drink is truly delicious and packed with vitamins, minerals, and protein. It’s a great way to get some dark green leafy vegetables into your day. Later, when the carrots are ready, I’ll start throwing one of them in there too.
I also like to add different wild greens like lambs quarters, dandelion greens and curly dock earlier in the spring before they go to seed and get bitter. Watercress is a real treat anytime I can find it growing in a mountain stream or spring.
If you don’t have a garden, I would encourage you to start one. If you don’t have room for one, consider having a few planters on a patio or porch to grow a variety of greens. If you have a sunny spot big enough for a bag of topsoil, you can throw the bag on the ground and plant your seeds right in the bag! I’ve done this and it worked great. It just doesn’t get any easier than that!
I typically grow beets and pinch off some of the greens right up until the beet is plucked for eating. The beets usually don’t mature all at once so it takes a while to use them all up. I also grow kale, rainbow chard, collard greens, mustard greens, spinach, and spinach mustard, which are all super easy to grow. Anyone can grow them in a pot with drainage and decent soil. Consider taking a field trip around your yard and neighborhood, including parks, to see how many wild edible plants you can identify and forage. You would probably be amazed at how many common “weeds” there are out there that would make wonderful nutritious smoothie additions! Make sure you take along a reliable source of identification if you aren’t sure as some weeds are not good eating.
These smoothies as I make them are a great source of magnesium, calcium, potassium, B vitamins, vitamin C, E, and A, protein, fiber, and omega 3’s!
The greens pictured look so fresh and healthy!
After a morning cup of green tea, I crank up the NutriBullet, pick 1-2 collard greens from the garden, add some pumpkin seeds, frozen organic berries and a frozen banana that I grew and stored (easy in Fla.), add some Turmeric/Curcumin and whatever other seasonal veggies I have, top it off with a little filtered water and I’m ready to go! Keeping a ginger root in the freezer is also handy and can be finely grated into the smoothie too.
Sometimes I make a drink in the morning, put a lid on it and put the container in the fridge for an afternoon pick-me-up. Just need to swirl it around a little to blend the ingredients. I like to drink mine with a straw. Yum!
That sounds awesome, Dena! I am beginning to experiment with different blenders. I only have an ancient “Osterizer” which I think might be the predecessor to the “Oster” and that one goes back a ways! So, it’s been a little workhorse, but really isn’t intended to chop all these veggies and frozen things. I just got a Ninja and have only used it once but was very disappointed in the smoothie it made. Very flat and not at all creamy as my old blender makes them. I’m going to try it once more this morning and may end up trading it for something else. I have friends who really love their Bullet! Glad you are using it to make healthy food!