How-to: Make a Power Juice Smoothie – Green Goodness!

Smoothies are a quick and delicious way to enjoy fruits and vegetables.  Some are better suited to blending and some are perfect for juicing.  Here is a guide to popular ingredients for a great green smoothie!

Even if you don’t have a juicer, you can use many of the ingredients below in a blender.  If there is too much pulp, you can always filter the juice before drinking it.

Here is my current favorite recipe base, depending on what I have on hand.  I use my juicer first, on everything except bananas, tofu/ice cream and frozen fruits, then use the blender to finish it off and mix it all together.

Green Goodness Fruit and Vegetable Smoothie

16 oz or more: Juicy fruit base (honeydew, watermelon, grapes, etc)

4 stalks of celery

1 bunch spinach

4-6 apples

4 carrots

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2 bananas

2 oz silken tofu (for protein – optional)

2 oz yogurt or ice cream (to balance the tofu and add sweetness)

4 oz frozen fruit (I like berry mixes or tropical)

honey (as needed for sweetness)

Yield: About 2 L. of smoothie

Fruits

Many juicy fruits are easy to blend and juice; other fruits are better left for the blender.  I have included the nutritional information for each in (), here is a good list for many fruits; since all fruits have flavonoids I have excluded listing them specifically.

Watermelon – I like it both blended and juiced.  It is usually a sweet juice, and paradoxically, a good diuretic (it makes you pee more)! It is a good base juice for adding other, more nutritious, juices. (potassium, manganese, vits. B1, B6, C)

Honeydew & Cantaloupe – More juicy fruits that work well as a base. Honeydew is slightly sweeter. (honeydew: vit C. cantaloupe:  vits. A, C, B-complex, copper, iron, magnesium)

Apple -My personal favorite fruit base to juice.  I love the taste of freshly made apple juice. Green apples are more tart, red are more bland, and my favorite is Gala.  Apples can be blended but since they’re so high in fiber you might want to filter the juice.  (beta-carotene, vits. A, C, B-complex)

Pears – These are better suited to juicing in my opinion, as there is a lot of grittiness (eat them raw for a laxative to help your colon). Try to find juicier ones, as some pear varieties can be quite dry especially when unripe.  Most of the nutrition, like a potato, is right under the skin so don’t peel them if you are hoping to benefit your health. (copper, vits. C, K, B-complex)

Orange/Lemon – The “gold standard” of breakfast juices.  High in citric acid so it adds a strong sour/sweet note in your juice; if combined with anything dairy it will curdle the milk proteins. A very good juice to add with iron-containing juices as the vit. C helps your body absorb the iron.  I like using a citrus juicer rather than peeling and then juicing the pieces; I do not recommend juicing a whole orange. (calcium, copper, potassium, vits. A, C, B-complex)

Berries (raspberry, blueberry, strawberry, etc) – Definitely delicious!  If you can handle the seeds that usually accompany berries, go ahead and blend them; juicing removes most of the seeds.  (usually vits. A, C, minerals)

Peach/Apricot – These are good juices, very strong in flavor, that add a nice touch to any smoothie.  Since the fruit is a bit thicker, expect less juice with a juicer.  (vits. A, C, minerals)

Banana – Bananas are in almost every smoothie you’ll buy – it’s such a popular taste, and bananas add a nice smooth flavor balance to many other fruits that are high in vit. C.  I’m not the biggest fan of straight banana flavor so I usually just add one or two for a whole pitcher of juice.  (vits. B6, C, copper, manganese, magnesium)

Mango- My favorite. Yum. But, it doesn’t do so well in a juicer so best left for the blender. A nice mix between tangy, sweet and almost creamy. (vits. A, C, E, K, B-complex (esp B6), copper)

Papaya – Another tropical flavor, but not everybody’s favorite.  Papaya is a bit raw by itself (the source of a potent meat tenderizer) but it adds a wonderful touch combined with fruits like mango, banana, coconut, pineapple.  Also a better fruit (peeled) for the blender.  (vits, A, C, B-complex)

Pineapple – Pineapple is like papaya (also contains meat tenderizer) but also more potent, very similar to orange juice.  A fruit that does well in a blender, although a bit stringy, and also well in a juicer. (vits. C, B-complex, manganese, copper)

Grapes – A great item for the juicer.  I like to throw a few in as I add the spinach to help the spinach juice make it out of the juicer.  Very juicy, a good base juice, and really sweet.  Not recommended for blending unless you really like the pungency of grape skin/seeds. (vits. C, E, K, copper)

Avocado – I really wouldn’t recommend juicing avocados but it’s certainly possible; blending them is probably the best.  Avocados add much needed fat and protein to green smoothies, and just read the nutrient list! (vits. K, C, E, B6, folate, pantothenic acid, potassium, riboflavin, niacin, lutein, magnesium, monounsaturated fats and protein)

Vegetables

Spinach – A super-powered vegetable that surprisingly juices well!  I don’t particularly like it blended but that’s an option too.  A whole bunch of spinach won’t make much juice but it does turn it green and add lots of  goodness.  The flavor is nice, adds depth to the fruitiness of a normal smoothie.  (folate, vits. A, B, C, E, K, iron, magnesium, copper, calcium, phosphorus, zinc, selenium, potassium, betaine, and more!)

Carrot – The eye veg!  Great for juicing (avoid blending), and adds a nice rich earthy flavor if not used as a majority flavor; very strong taste. (vits. A, B-complex, iron, magnesium, phosphorus, potassium)

Celery -The salty veg.  Celery is really good for mixing with other flavors, as it seems to bring out their flavors more without taking over. (vit. C)

Tomato – Technically a fruit, tomato juice is a common and delicious table vegetable juice.  Since it has such a strong, recognizable flavor, though, I only add it when I strive for that “V8″ flavor. (vits. A, C, E, potassium)

I don’t mention kale, collards, and other leafy greens because I have not a taste for them and highly prefer spinach.  But they can certainly be juiced and provide plenty of nutrition.