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Sorry to be a board hog tonight .. I feel like I'm way-overposting and probably about to drive everyone bonkers!
I recently read something on the fly about "green smoothies" .. apparently they're claim to fame is being a nutritional powerhouse in a glass, so I'm a little intrigued .. so a few questions ..
I loathe spinach .. but that or kale seems to be the go-to "green" element of a green smoothie .. just sounds odd .. some sort of fruit, ice/water and spinach? Sounds a little"off" .. but is it really unnoticeable as i've heard a few people say as much?
Also hearing aside from the nutritional benefits .. that they're pretty good at stopping crappy food cravings, something that I'm definitely trying to overcome right now that's really tripping me up nutritionally. Any truth to that claim?
Any fans of green smoothies that have some simple but tasty or at least tolerable recipes in case I get the cajones to test drive one of these bad boys?
I've made fruit protein shakes and tossed in vegetables. Broccoli isn't too bad, haven't tried leafy greens in shakes but I've had greens in a juice as part of a veg juice and they're not bad. Some can have a strong flavor, so I'd start light and have mostly something stronger flavored like berries and add some green veg.
I don't know that I'd just whip it up without the protein powder - might not be enough body.
Don't worry, you're much better looking than Ben. Look how long he's been around.
That said, I don't know how anyone can put spinach in a shake. That's as bad as a Bass-O-Matic.
Yeah .. that's what I'm thinking (not about being better looking then Ben ) .. I can barely force myself to EAT spinach because of the after-taste .. sure, when I was a kid I inhaled it .. but I grew up watching Popeye and thought if I ate it i'd be super-strong (FAIL!) .. So I can't fathom the idea of *drinking* spinach!! The few things I've found online and on other forums though .. these people swear if you throw in fruit, you can't taste it. So ... should I be the guinea pig? If anyone has a basic recipe for one .. I'll take this whole green smoothie thing for a test drive and report back.
I love spinach.
Still wouldn't put it in a shake.
I've got some Greens and Greens+ and can't even stomach that in a shake. Even the berry flavour.
see .. and I loathe spinach (unless it's raw and really well disguised in a salad) .. and this is a girl who grew up on that, collard greens, turnip greens etc (my mom grew up in the south) .. I boycotted all of those along with my other favorite (NOT) brussel sprouts .. those to me .. are just satan spawn! (go figure though, I love Cabbage!)
I might try it if for no other reason that to see if it's worth all the positive raves I've read so far. I figure at this point .. anything that isn't peanut butter is probably a solid addition to my daily intake
GAWD, I'm pretty sure the only thing in the WORLD worse than brussel sprouts is liver.
But, eh, maybe it'll totally work for you. There's other things I totally wouldn't normally eat that I could in certain situations… so maybe spinach is one of those for you.
GAWD, I'm pretty sure the only thing in the WORLD worse than brussel sprouts is liver.
Sheltered. About the only thing I won't eat are several parts of a pig (hot dogs notwithstanding). Brussels sprouts (steamed) + butter = nom. Battered/Fried chicken livers = nom. That reminds me that I really need to get over to Bob's Pile 'Em Up soon (Charlotte peeps may know it).
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I might try it if for no other reason that to see if it's worth all the positive raves I've read so far.
You realize that the addition of spinach to shakes was just a test by the fitness industry to see how gullible consumers really are (along with Greens+) and those who rave about it are insane.
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GAWD, I'm pretty sure the only thing in the WORLD worse than brussel sprouts is liver.
Ahhh .. but at least you've TRIED liver .. I won't even be in the same room with it! And don't even get me started on "tongue" .. *gags*, do people actually eat that?!?!? Let's get someone to try tossing one of those in a blender .. B-E-N!!
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Originally Posted by Phaedrus49er
I'll chow down a good Chicago hot dog with ya anyday .. you can keep your sprouts and fried livers ALL to yourself tough guy!!
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Originally Posted by OldGuy
Hey .. if it'll help me stomach spinach .. I'll give it a whirl. Gullible .. yeah, that's me. it's also the reason I have a crapload of workout shoes and just ask MAC cosmetics or Sephora if they know who I am .. good marketing sucks me in like a vacuum every freaking time. What can I say .. I'm hopeless
I've tried both spinach and frozen broccoli -- the frozen broccoli by far is more palatable.
In fact, if you can get over the fact that you're eating raw broccoli for breakfast, it's really, really good. Had it this morning in fact -- just use the frozen-iness of the broc to replace most or all of the ice cubes. My shake this morning:
I've tried both spinach and frozen broccoli -- the frozen broccoli by far is more palatable.
In fact, if you can get over the fact that you're eating raw broccoli for breakfast, it's really, really good. Had it this morning in fact -- just use the frozen-iness of the broc to replace most or all of the ice cubes. My shake this morning:
blend until smooth -- a great way to get the green stuff in, and I'll bet it's a heck of a lot cheaper than buying a greens supplement.
dang .. isn't it risky to eat raw egg whites? not sure I could bring myself to do that .
Lisa S .. You put tuna in a shake? I love tuna ... but I can't imagine what it would taste like to drink it .. but I like the idea of having lots of protein in there without having to plunk down the $$ on a whey protein powder. Can you taste the fishy-ness in it?
Re: raw eggs. IMO, salmonella risk is overrated for the most part if you have normal adult (non-pregnant) immune system. Or know where you get your eggs. You can also get pasteurized eggs if that's really a concern. And I'm pretty sure if you get those whites-in-a-jar that they are pasteurized (though not 100% certain - haven't read the label).
As far as raw egg white goes - you're thinking of avidin tying up biotin. It happens, but one or two raw eggs a day is probably not going to trigger a biotin deficiency - as if raw eggs were your only biotin source.
Wow .. and it works on ALL "aquatic creatures" .. Dude .. next time post a warning with that sucker .. I just ate dinner, and almost hurled!! There goes dessert!! Lol ...
I love green smoothies--I use stevia to keep the fruit content minimal (since I'm lowering calories, fruit has got to be lowered). Now--baby spinach, berries, stevia, lemon/lime juice (cuts the bitterness of greens a lot). I don't feel right without a good amount of greens--they are as critical as fat and protein for me.
I love green smoothies--I use stevia to keep the fruit content minimal (since I'm lowering calories, fruit has got to be lowered). Now--baby spinach, berries, stevia, lemon/lime juice (cuts the bitterness of greens a lot). I don't feel right without a good amount of greens--they are as critical as fat and protein for me.
What kind of berries do you use with the lemon/lime juice? I really want to try a green smoothie .. but I don't really know what would cut the taste of the spinach. Do add water as well .. or just the lemon or lime juice?
- I am used to the taste of green smoothies--when I started out, I needed bananas and dates PLUS berries, or it wasn't sweet enough. Now I don't need those.
- What type of berries? I usually do frozen (so convenient, I buy a bunch when they are on sale). I do mixes usually (blackberry, blueberry, strawberry), or any one of those.
-I have used water, protein powder, almond milk, or any combo of the above. Some people really do not like them without some kind of creaminess, but I don't care. Am vegan so don't do cow's milk ever.
-Lemon juice is like a condiment, not the main liquid. Many people don't use it at all. How much lemon/lime juice depends on how big the smoothie is. I don't measure...I have a killer blender and will make huge smoothies since they are low in calories (unless you load up on fruit--especially dates).
-I also will sometimes add flax seed, hemp seed or chia seed. It thickens and adds omega-3 fatty acids.
I would start with a fruit smoothie you already like, and add a small amount of greens (a few ounces). Go from there, there is a lot of experimentation you can do. Increase greens slowly and add more fruit if it gets too bitter. (Don't do what I did the first time: loads of veggies, including the very spicy arugula :p).
I just started green smoothies and I looove them! I know you don't like SPinach but you can't taste the veggies at all, I like a handful of spinach, half a banana, 1/4 cup almond milk and organic plain yogurt and some vanilla protein powder, it's my pre-workout shake!
I'm a newbie on this forum, I was browsing forums on Green Smoothies and found you. I hope you don't mind if I share my story.
I am HIV positive (since 1989), and am experiencing that dreaded lypodystrophy/lypoatrophy side effect from the meds. My girlfriend has Townes-Brocks syndrome and has thyroid problems.
My GF and I have been doing green smoothies for a couple of weeks. We spent our combined stimulus refund on a Waring MX1200XTP 3.5 HP blender, then we ordered the Vitamix wet blade 64oz container which is due to arrive today.
She likes greens so this was an easy decision for her, I am not so fond of greens, so we had to step-up the greens to our fruit smoothies that we were making in our previous blender.
Our morning smoothie consists of: one scoop of protein poweder, two scoops of flax meal, 2 spoons of nonfat plain yogurt, 2 bananas, one apple, one orange, a handful of kale, a handful of spinach, some cherries, blueberries, and strawberries.
We eat "dinner" around 3pm, so we have an evening smoothie around 6pm. We leave out the yogurt, flax meal and protein powder, and add two carrots, and more greens, alternating celery or parsley, maybe some romaine. Not being fond of greens (although I like creamy spinach soup), it really is not only palatable, but the more we imbibe, the more my tastebuds are acclimating to something that is far better for my system than the chips and dip that I binged on last evening (causing serious acid reflux at midnite); wish I had done the smoothie, but we were out of greens.
Anyway, my GF's daughter is spending a couple of weeks with her dad, and we are going to try a two week raw food, green smoothie event. I'll keep you posted.
I have a green smoothie almost every day, this is what I had this morning...
Frozen Strawberries - 192g
Vanilla Protein (ON) - 51g
Flax Oil - 11g
Baby Spinach (raw) - 153g
Banana - 108g
PB2 - 12
Coco Powder - 4g
Oats (raw) - 22g
water as needed (I like it thick)
Mmmmmm Good...
Give them a try, if you can get past the look you might not even taste the spinach.
But I like the taste of greens so don't hate me if you can't get it down
I have a green smoothie almost every day, this is what I had this morning...
Frozen Strawberries - 192g
Vanilla Protein (ON) - 51g
Flax Oil - 11g
Baby Spinach (raw) - 153g
Banana - 108g
PB2 - 12
Coco Powder - 4g
Oats (raw) - 22g
water as needed (I like it thick)
Mmmmmm Good...
Give them a try, if you can get past the look you might not even taste the spinach.
But I like the taste of greens so don't hate me if you can't get it down
I kept debatting on if putting in raw oatmeal would taste ok? How much water do you typically throw in there?
I can handle the banana .. the spinach if it's well disguised (might need a blindfold the first few times i throw one back) .. got the Pb2 covered .. but not sure I'm down with the flax oil .. the few times I tried it ..well .. I won't get into details, I'm trying to avoid protein powder until I feel it's absolutely necessary .. right now I'm trying to re-structure my eating to increase protein/decrease crappy carbs .. so i'm shooting for whole foods .. but I may end up picking up some whey protein, since I'm not a huge milk/dairy person, and not overly fond of soymilk, rice milk, etc.
Purple Kale, you're the 2nd person I've heard mention chia seeds .. and I feel like an idiot, because I've never heard of them .. do give me the low down please ..
Don .. Keep me posted on your experiment! I really want to start incorporating green smoothies .. I just need to find a couple recipes I can whip up with stuff I usually have on hand, which is almost always apples, strawberries, watermelon, blueberries .. and of course, water and ice cubes Just bought spinach and celery .. not sure what other "greens" do well in a green smoothie?
Green Smoothies? What's the deal on these?? +++
) .. I can barely force myself to EAT spinach because of the after-taste .. sure, when I was a kid I inhaled it .. but I grew up watching Popeye and thought if I ate it i'd be super-strong (FAIL!) .. So I can't fathom the idea of *drinking* spinach!! 
I love tuna ... but I can't imagine what it would taste like to drink it .. but I like the idea of having lots of protein in there without having to plunk down the $$ on a whey protein powder. Can you taste the fishy-ness in it?
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