This post is sponsored by Almond Breeze. All opinions are my own.
It’s funny when I look back at college the random learning that stands out. I recall a professor (whose name I’ve forgotten) in a lower division Psych class who stated her goal to know each student by first name before the end of the term; there were 400 students in the class (and she did it). She also would hand out bubble gum to the entire class before a test stating studies that indicate people perform better on tests when chewing gum. I don’t think I’ve taken a test since without gum.
There were also a number of food lessons. An experienced Junior in my dorm kindly clued me in as we went to the dining hall for our first meal that anything labeled a ‘bake’, ‘medley’ or ‘surprise’ should be avoided at all costs. When everyone in my dorm group had packed on their ‘Freshman 5’ (or was it ‘15’?) and decided to diet, I marveled at a girl who came back to the table with two servings of jello and something else equally nutritionally vacant, and certainly not a weight loss solution.
I endeavored phases of dietary hip with vegetarianism, exploring putrid mixtures of brewer’s yeast and niacin that would make me flush like the worst sunburn imaginable. I had a roommate that was wildly into fasting (which candidly in retrospect I think was a thinly veiled eating disorder) who coaxed me into lengthy juice fasts; the longest of which (11 days) I broke at a Drive-In theatre consuming Screwdrivers with a non-health conscious friend, rationalizing they had orange juice in them. Insert eye roll here.
This was also my introduction to the Smoothie. Long before smoothie parlors abounded, everyone I knew made them. It was a chance to illustrate health-conscious prowess without requiring any culinary skill, playing with flavors at will to concoct the most delicious or outrageous drink possible.
Candidly smoothies had never been my thing. I like the experience of eating food; the visual appeal of a plate of food, the smell, the bite and the process of eating food. Somehow in sucking a meal through a straw, I felt shortchanged. I did not like ice cubes in smoothies to thicken them leaving gritty crystals interloping with my fruit mixture. And adding ice cream felt like cheating.
Somehow, somewhere in this morass of smoothie technique I discovered the Holy Grail that changed smoothies forever for me. It was simple and perhaps even trite; frozen bananas. Freezing a banana should occur just after it’s begun to over ripen, the dark spots have begun but not overtaken the fruit at which point it should be peeled and put in a plastic zipper bag in the freezer. When adding it to a smoothie, the smoothie becomes a creamy, faux-milkshake. It is sweet requiring no additional sweetener, and still only fruit (vs. ice cream) so the calorie count stays low, and the nutrition high. Life-changing.
As summer rolls in with high heat making food with substance feel like ‘too much’, smoothie season begins in my household. Between the abundance of fresh fruit, frozen organic fruit picked in a prior season and the heat, my kitchen becomes a culinary laboratory with no disappointments. The possibilities are endless with opportunity to steer toward more healthy green smoothies, fruit-based smoothies or those verging on dessert-in-a-glass; anything goes. Any milk may be used to fit your taste; cow, soy, almond, rice, hemp.
To kick off your summer I wanted to share a delicious recipe from our kitchen for a Banana-Peach Almond Smoothie, and an abundance of other inspired smoothie recipe from the internet and bloggers whose work I respect and adore. After reading the recipes I’m sure you’ll feel the same!
Try these Smoothie Recipes too!
Recipe
Banana-Peach Almond Smoothie
Ingredients
- 1 large frozen banana
- 1 large White Peach , ripe* (a yellow peach may be substituted)
- 4 large Strawberries , sliced (approximately ½ cup)
- 1 ½ cups Almond Breeze Unsweetened Almondmilk
- 1 tablespoon (total) Chia seeds and/or hulled Hemp seeds
Instructions
- Place all ingredients into a blender.
- Blend until smooth.
Notes
Nutrition
50+ Smoothie Recipes You are Sure to Love:
4 Best Smoothie Recipes of All Time {Organic Gardening}
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Strawberries and Cream Smoothie {Avery Cooks} also check out Avery’s other fantastic smoothie recipes (they are unending!)
Avocado Smoothie {Dine and Dish}
Raw Chocolate Smoothie {Simple Savory}
Fresh Berry and Ginger Acai Breakfast Smoothie {What Katie Ate}
Berry Ginger Chia Smoothie {The Lemon Bowl}
Tropical Smoothie { E.A. Stewart/the Spicy RD }
Susan says
Tried this smoothie for breakfast this morning, and the flavor was wonderful. All my fruit was frozen, so I had to add a little more almond milk. This one will be a regular whenever I can get good peaches.
addie | culicurious says
Oh that smoothie looks so delicious and refreshing! Thanks for the tip on freezing the bananas. I didn’t know that and will have to try it out 🙂
Lea Ann (Cooking On The Ranch) says
I used to make smoothies all the time and I need to get back in the habit. Great post Toni. G+ing, pinning and printing to put smack dab in the middle of my fridge. I think they make great lunches.
Kelli @ The Corner Kitchen says
Great call on frozen bananas! They are always one of my go to smoothie ingredients 🙂
Happy Valley Chow says
Delicious recipe that I definitely want to try!
Happy Blogging!
Toni Dash says
Hope you’ll like it! A great ‘taste of summer’ to beat the heat!
Laura @ Transylvanian Kitchen says
I am definitely a smoothie drinker, but I also prefer to eat my meals. About the bubble gum I don’t know if your professor was right…all that aspartame and vinyl acetate 😛
Toni Dash says
The gum trick pre-dated synthetic, sugar-free gum Laura; it was pure, full sugar Bubble Gum!
Debra says
Yes, good advice–avoid bakes, medleys,and surprises, but love smoothies.
Toni Dash says
And I also don’t recommend breaking any juice fasts at Drive In theatres with cocktails!
Becky LeJeune says
I am with you – I definitely prefer eating my meals. I’ve tried the frozen banana trick and you’re right, it makes the perfect smoothie texture (I like to add yogurt to mine as well for a little creaminess).
EA-The Spicy RD says
Great smoothie, and I just had my first peach of the season, so I am all over peaches right now & can’t wait to make this one! Thanks so much for sharing my Tropical Smoothie recipe too! Loved the story about your random lessons learned in college, especially how you broke your fast with screwdrivers :-).
Toni Dash says
Thank you for always being a healthy, thoughtful source of recipes to count on!
I actually thought of you when I shared my fasting experence knowing your smoothie would be part of the post, thinking what would an RD think of this fast-breaking! The entire thing, start to finish, was unhealthy.
Averie @ Averie Cooks says
Thanks for linking to my smoothie – and to the part about my never-ending recipes. Yes, I have one or two 🙂 Thanks for noticing. Lol
Your smoothie looks so creamy & wonderful. And I love that green backdrop surface. I have something like that in a little darker color!
Toni Dash says
When I was looking for good smoothie recipes Averie your blog was a first stop! I had a feeling I would hit the smoothie motherlode there…and I was right. You can always be counted on for interesting, delicious food.
I too love this background. It’s a bit too busy for this smoothie candidly but feels like the season to me!