So I went to see my dietician yesterday. I visit her once a month these days to help keep me on track and on top of new research and such and she reminds me that it’s recommended that within the 7-8 servings of fruits and veggies recommended daily (8-10 servings for males 19-50) that at least one of those should be an orange veggie and one should be a green veggie. So I got to experimenting last night and found a great way to get 4 servings in one glass.

Ingredients:

2 cups of chopped spinach (frozen works as well as fresh, but cut amount in half or the flavor is overwhelming)
1 cup of chopped carrots (Pureed in a food processor first works too but measure them chopped and then puree)
1 1/2 cups of 100% apple juice
4 ice cubes (omit if using frozen spinach and use a couple tablespoons of water as needed for consistency)

Directions:

Pour the apple juice into a blender, add the chopped spinach whirl until smooth.
Add the chopped carrots and blend well.
Add the ice cubes and more juice if necessary.
Blend on high until smooth.
Surprisingly good!

This green smoothie is incredibly high in antioxidants and iron as well as providing 2.5 servings of water for your diet.

One half small seeded watermelon, peel and all
A pint of strawberries hulled
2 c. raw spinach rinsed
1 cup water (or as needed to be smooth)

Scrub the watermelon well under cold water to be sure it’s clean. Cut out any lesions or dark spots. Quarter the half.
Spin the watermelon for 10 seconds until slightly chunky.
Add remainder of ingredients and spin until smooth.

(You can add ice if you prefer them frozen. 6 ice cubes replace 1/3 c. water)

Ingredients:

1 medium carrot, peeled and chopped
5 broccoli florets
2 c fresh spinach
1 medium apple, diced
2 oranges (peeled and quartered)
Orange Juice to dilute
(Water can be substituted for juice)

Directions:

Blend until smooth.

Cucumbers are an excellent source of vitamin C and it takes more calories to chew and digest them than they have so it’s a negative calorie food! Pears also add vitamins C and K and Spinach is one of the best sources of iron. This recipe provides nearly all your daily requirements of iron, vitamin C, Vitamin A and potassium. It’s also got around 5 grams of protein.

Ingredients:

1 medium cucumber
2 medium soft green or yellow pears (unpeeled will provide some texture and fiber, but peeled works fine too)
2 c fresh baby spinach
1/2 cup of water

Directions:

Blend on med. speed until smooth.

Spinach is one of nature’s perfect foods.

This is a very nutrient-dense food. It’s low in calories yet very high in vitamins, and minerals.

Spinach is an excellent source of vitamin K, vitamin A, magnesium, folate, manganese, iron, calcium, vitamin C, vitamin B2, potassium, and vitamin B6. It’s a very good source of protein, phosphorus, vitamin E, zinc, dietary fiber, and copper.

1 blender container loosely filled with fresh spinach
1/2 banana
3/4 to 1 cup milk
1/4 of a 12 ounces can frozen dole pineapple juice concentrate
Ice (optional)
Blend until smooth. Note: apple juice concentrate can be used in place of pineapple juice.

Per 16oz Glass

Calories: 345  Carbs: 24g  Fat: 0.7g  Protein: 9.0g