Browsing Tag:

mango

Drinks/ Featured/ RECIPES

Creamy Banana Mango Smoothie

IMG_2693

Come January I am usually trying to cut out processed sugar after the holidays, & this Creamy Banana Mango Smoothie has been just the thing to help me in that process!

A Natural, Healthy Sweet

Whenever I am craving something sweet, a fruit smoothie really helps satisfy the craving. I love a green smoothie, and I love berry smoothies, but this smoothie with banana and mango is a great break from my typical green smoothies.  My youngest girl, Avery, loves this one because there are no seeds in it from berries, and because it is extra creamy!

Health Benefits of This Smoothie

Banana gives great potassium, mango is full of vitamin C, & the yogurt gives great probiotic’s that help keep the gut healthy and happy. Yogurt is also a great source of protein.  I love when a smoothie recipe has natural protein in it, whether it is from yogurt or soaked nuts.

Storing Your Smoothie

We like storing smoothies in these fun little glass milk bottles, and I usually double my smoothie recipe just so I can have extra to store in the refrigerator, ready to grab and go.   I ordered these glass milk bottles off of Amazon and you can too, using this link. They are a great size, especially for a snack or for kids. They look so sweet all lined up in my refrigerator! We always drink our smoothies with a straw. I’ve been drooling over these extra-large stainless steel straws for smoothies, and want to order some soon.  I have the regular size stainless, but extra large would be great for thick smoothies!

……………….
What are your favorite smoothie recipes?

Do you ever make extra and store it?

………………..

CREAMY-BANANA-MANGO-SMOOTHIE

Creamy Banana Mango Smoothie

3/4 cup organic yogurt

2 cups frozen cubed mango

1 frozen banana*

honey to taste (optional-usually not needed-depends on the sweetness of your fruit)

 

Blend yogurt, frozen mango & frozen banana on high until smooth. Add water if needed to thin enough to create a nice vortex, but not so much that you lose the creamyness! Taste. Add some honey if it is too tangy & blend some more until incorporated.

………………..

Tip:

*to easily peel a frozen banana, I fill the blender up with warm water & place the frozen banana in it for a few minutes.  I use the blender container because it is tall enough to submerge the entire banana & I will be using it anyway. Once it has soaked enough for the outside of the banana to feel soft, (you don’t want it completely thawed) slice off one end of peel, (I just use my fingers), empty the water,  & help the banana slip & slide right out into the blender.  If it does not slide easily, you need to let it thaw a bit more, but don’t soak so long that the banana thaws completely.  It only takes a minute or two.

Drinks/ RECIPES

Clementine Mango Green Smoothie

A new favorite green smoothie recipe!  Clementine Mango Green Smoothie is super sweet and fresh. Kids and those new to green smoothies will love this one!

My Avery and I had it for breakfast this morning and it was delicious.  The banana I used was really ripe which adds great sweetness and creaminess to the smoothie.

Frozen mango added frostiness, and clementines added a nice citrus sweetness.  Say that 10 times…citrus sweetness, citrus sweetness…

{her smoothie was on the side table just out of sight of the camera}

My little one slurped away on her green smoothie while reading.  She commented between slurps that she liked being able to eat breakfast while reading at the same time.

When she finished she asked how many fruits and vegetables she just ingested.  I thought that was a great question.

I told her what she just drank was like eating a big spinach salad for breakfast.  I told her to picture a big handful of fresh leafy spinach on a plate, topped with 1/2 cup of mango chunks, one clementine, and 1/2 a banana.

We split the smoothie so this was 1/2 of the blender contents.

I told her if she ate some carrots with her dinner and berries for snack, she would have eaten all her servings of fruits and veggies for the day.

She grinned and said.. “yep, I’m eating the rainbow!”

I love that she thinks about the importance of getting all the colors in.  She is starting to get the importance of eating her fruits and vegetables.  Yes! #momwin

Clementine Mango Green Smoothie

2 large handfuls of spinach (about 2 cups)
2 clementines, peeled
1 cup frozen mango (fresh is ok but if fresh use a frozen banana)
1 ripe banana (can be frozen)
2 cups water


If you have a high-speed blender, go ahead and throw all in and blend away.

If not, start with spinach and one cup of water.  Blend well until spinach is in teeny tiny bits.

Add the rest of the ingredients and blend away.  

The key to good consistency is seeing a vortex in the middle.  Keep adding water until you see this.

Drinks/ GF, Vegan & Raw/ RECIPES

Blended Mango Spinach Salad

PicMonkey-Collage-SPINACH-MANGO

One of my New Year’s Resolutions was to eat some form of greens everyday.  The more I read on the health benefits of greens, the more I realize how important it is to consume them daily and in large amounts. I am devouring the book Eat To Live Eat To Live  by Dr. Fuhrman. It is by far one of my most favorite books on nutrition, second only to The China Study. This recipe is taken from that book.

Dr. Fuhrman

Here is what he says about greens:

“Dark green leafy vegetables –kale, spinach, arugula, swiss chard, romaine, mustard greens, collard greens & watercress–get the very highest score in highest nutrient density foods. They contain the very most phytochemicals, antioxidants, vitamins and minerals of all foods. They are rich in all necessary amino acids.  They are packed with cancer-fighting phytonutrients that protect us from a variety of threatening illnesses.”

Spinach leaves

Greens rock!

I love a good salad, and it is a good thing since I eat them most days for lunch AND as a side to dinner.  I also love green smoothies.  But sometimes, I just want to get my greens in quick and not have to think about it the rest of the day.

Drink your greens

This Blended Mango Spinach Salad is an awesome way to do just that.  It only makes about 4 1/2 ounces, so to gulp it down takes just minutes.  Most of my green smoothie recipes make 2 cups of smoothie which takes a chunk of time to finish.  This blended salad recipe is the same idea of a smoothie, and uses the same amount of greens as a green smoothie (3 cups!) but it is more concentrated.

The mango adds a nice creaminess and sweetness.  It tastes very fresh and quite green.  I like it, quite a lot, but I’m also used to the taste of green smoothies and greens.  I could not drink 2 cups of it at once, but as a quick “shot” of nutrition, it is perfect.  I will be making it often.

Baby Spinach
Beautiful greens!
spinach and mangos
Only 3 simple, super healthy ingredients.
cutting a mango how to

Cut your mango and do your best not to eat it just like this!

mango art

Mango art!

Mango skin
Slice mango chunks off of skin right into blender.
Blending mango and spinach
Blend mango & spinach.
Green smoothie

Check out that beautiful color!

Kale and spinach

Add greens and milk.

Green smoothie in blender
Blend again, and you are done!
Green smoothie in mason jar
Now chug it, slurp it, drink it up!  Your body will thank you for this extra shot of energy and goodness!
…………………

Blended Mango Spinach Salad 
2 cups spinach
1/2-1 cup romaine or other greens (I used a mix of baby chard, kale & watercress)
1 cup fresh mango
1/8 cup almond milk (or milk of your choice)

Peel and chop the mango and place in a food processor or high powered blender.  Add the spinach.  Blend until combined.  Add the greens and milk.  Blend until creamy.

………………..
 
Check out the nutrition facts in that green shot of goodness!
 
759 g potassium
5 g fiber
3.4 g protein
Almost 200% of your Vitamin A
Over 100% of your Vitamin C
Great source of iron, magnesium & calcium!

 

Nutrition Facts
User Entered Recipe
  1 Serving

 

 

Amount Per Serving
  Calories 128.0
  Total Fat 0.8 g
  Saturated Fat 0.2 g
  Polyunsaturated Fat 0.2 g
  Monounsaturated Fat 0.2 g
  Cholesterol 0.0 mg
  Sodium 74.4 mg
  Potassium 759.6 mg
  Total Carbohydrate 31.3 g
  Dietary Fiber 5.0 g
  Sugars 24.8 g
  Protein 3.4 g
  Vitamin A 194.0 %
  Vitamin B-12 0.0 %
  Vitamin B-6 19.8 %
  Vitamin C 118.3 %
  Vitamin D 0.0 %
  Vitamin E 17.7 %
  Calcium 10.6 %
  Copper 14.9 %
  Folate 49.4 %
  Iron 14.7 %
  Magnesium 21.5 %
  Manganese 42.6 %
  Niacin 8.1 %
  Pantothenic Acid     3.2 %
  Phosphorus     6.2 %
  Riboflavin 15.5 %
  Selenium 2.7 %
  Thiamin 11.1 %
  Zinc 3.6 %

…………………

What do you think?
Do you think you could handle a nice, sweet, fresh shot of greens?
Let me know if you try it and what you think.

Amy Bowman signature
Drinks/ HOME/ RECIPES

What I Buy & Why-Acai Mango Celestial Seasonings Tea

Acai Mango Celestial Seasonings Tea…I love this stuff!  I’ve been drinking it like crazy.  It tastes like a mildly sweet fruit juice, thanks to the natural stevia that is in it. I think it is great that you don’t have to take the extra step to sweeten the tea, and that it does not contain artificial sugar!  It has zero calories and is caffeine free.

I use this simple cold brew method, but if I forget to set it up the night before to brew, then I usually just:
~Fill the teapot with water.
~Put it on to boil
~Put 4 bags of tea in a mason jar (I love that they are heat resistant)
~Pour the water into the jar to the 2 cup line
~Let steep for 4-6 minutes
~Fill another mason jar with ice
~Pour tea over ice, (this will only take 1/3 of the prepared tea, store what is left in refrigerator)
~Stir and enjoy!

*If you click on the above Acai Mango Celestial Seasonings Tea link, it will take you to Amazon where you can purchase it for an extremely reasonable price. (lower than what I purchases it for at the store.)  If you use that link, I will receive a small percentage of anything you buy, but it will not cost you anything more.  If you use this option, THANK YOU!
This post is linked to:
Frou Frou Friday @ Frou Frou Decor

Top