The Green Smoothie that isn't

One of the changes I've made in my life recently has been the inclusion of green smoothie's for breakfast. If you google the term "green smoothie" you'll find tons of recipes, however most of the green smoothie recipes incorporate the use of raw leafy greens, cups and cups of them, but mine uses frozen steamed greens instead.

Remember when we made kale baby food for my little guy? This is the same process. I make a batch of steamed, pureed leafy greens (mostly kale, sometimes collards or spinach or chard or a mix of several of these - choose organic when you can) using three to four bunches of greens every two to three weeks, freeze them in ice cube trays and then use three to four frozen green cubes with each smoothie (or serving of smoothie if I'm making it for my husband as well). It doesn't take much time and I always have a ton of nutrient available in each little cube.

Why am I going to the trouble of steaming the kale or other leafy greens before adding them to my smoothie? According to Nourishing Traditions,

"Kale is one of several dark green leafy vegetables of the cabbage family, related to collards and mustard greens. All of these greens provide calcium, iron and carotenoids in abundance, as well as many anticancer factors. Kale and related greens should always be eaten cooked - but not overcooked - so that the oxalic acid they contain is neutralized."

"Oxalic acid . . . may irritate the mouth and intestinal tract. These are neutralized during cooking."

"Raw cabbage [and members of it's family, including kale, etc.] has more vitamin C than cooked but cannot be recommended on a daily basis because of the presence of goitrogens, substances that block the formation of thyroid hormone. This in turn makes it difficult for the liver to convert the plant form of vitamin A (carotene or carotenoids) into the animal form which it needs for thousands of biochemical processes."

So, in a nutshell, always steam or cook (but don't overcook!) your greens! Not only does it elimate the oxalic acid, but it allows the nutrients in it to be more easily digestable and usable by the body.

In my (continuing) journey to lose weight I've found that I do better with fewer carbs. Many smoothie recipes seem to be carb-a-rific, and I've made them and gained weight rather than losing it, but this one is low in carbs and I feel great eating/drinking them because not only am I getting two or three servings of vegetables, plus a serving of yogurt and berries, and some coconut oil, I find that I literally lose a few ounces to a pound nearly every day that I make them (and eat well the rest of the day)! Seriously!

Below please find my favorite recipe, but feel free to add and delete as your tastes may differ.

Green Smoothie

makes one serving (intended to be a full meal's worth, not an addition or drink in addition to a full breakfast)

Layer your blender from the bottom up with:

Approximately 1/2-2/3 cup of organic, plain, whole yogurt

1 Tablespoon of coconut oil

1 -2 egg yolks, optional

1/2 cup or so of frozen, organic mixed berries

3-4 leafy green cubes

2 pieces of pineapple (by the way, did you know that you can freeze fresh pineapple? When it's on sale, I buy several, quarter them lengthwise and then slice each quarter lengthwise into small triangles before freezing. It works for me!)

juice or water if need be for blending purposes. I recommend pineapple or a citrus blend.

Blend!

Since nearly all of your additions are frozen, you may need to add some of that juice or water to get your blender going and your smoothie will be quite thick. Be careful when pouring. Please note, it is important to layer with more liquidy items first as it will begin the blending process more effectively than with the frozen items. Don't ask me how it works, it must be something centrifugal, but it does.

The use of berries really affects both the color and flavor of the smoothie and masks the green flavor nearly completely. Other good additions to the smoothie include flax seed oil, ground nuts (especially pepitas), whey or whey protein, other seasonal fruits (a lot of people like bananas. I don't like drinking bananas, it is one of those wierd preferences, and it adds a lot of carbs, but add them if you like them!) and more. And sometimes a teaspoon of honey, if you feel it needs it. The above recipe, though, is my favorite. With it you'll get all the benefits of yogurt, coconut oil and two to three servings of fruits and vegetables each!

Enjoy!