Strawberry Smoothie Bowl

Soooooooo good.

Ok, I must admit I didn't really get smoothie bowls. I really was wondering why people wanted to spoon their smoothies...I mean if you are blending away a smoothie, the purpose is to drink it right? Furthermore, wouldn't it just be a fancy yogurt topped with stuff kind of deal??

So I abolished that stereotyping off smoothie bowls in my mind.

I was in the kitchen, using my handy dandy Ninja, creating a smoothie recipe. I decided to use the remaining Kefir I had in the fridge vs yogurt or milk this day. It turned out a bit thicker than a usual smoothie, which is ok. I thought I will just add some milk... then I thought, hmmm I'm going to give this bowl a shot.

Glad I did...

Rayna enjoyed it too. Caiden, well he drank it like a thick milkshake and didn't complain. But for us girls, we were being trendy.

So anyways, here it is...my first smoothie bowl. Well, if you are not into bowls just x-nay the toppings and drink, it's a darn good smoothie too.

Ingredients:

1 cup Kefir (strawberry or plain)
4 to 5 fresh strawberries
1 banana
1/4 cup chopped mangoes
1 tbsp natural peanut butter
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 tsp flaxseed or hemp hearts
1 tsp chia seeds (topping)
1 tbsp granola (topping)
chopped fruit (topping)

What To Do:

Blend all ingredients well, except for toppings.

Place in a bowl and sprinkle toppings lovingly.

Take a picture and showcase you are not a smoothie bowl snob.

Enjoy!

Cherry Banana Blast Smoothie

I know I post a lot of smoothies. However there are always new creations that I try, fall in love with and die to share! Plus, I really think it is a great way to pack in a lot of nutrition, can be extremely healthy and often filling. Furthermore, most of the time it is stuff I enjoy with the kids and find they drink it up.  So why not?

Given it is summer, aka cherry season, we have tonnes of cherries around. I wanted to make a cherry pop but ended up playing around and created this fun and yummy smoothie. Both Rayna and Caiden loved it!

I also had a packet of Seedibles, CinnaWow flavour, that I wanted to explore. Seedibles is a Vancouver based company, by two moms, that sought to create a food product that is packed with essential nutrients to be added to meals so that even picky eaters get much needed fibre and protein, etc.  This CinnaWow blend, looks and tastes like cinnamon, and combines hemp seeds, flax, quinoa, amaranth and cinnamon.  So this product provides a tonne of nutrition being seeds and grains.  It provides 4g of fiber, 2g protein and 3.5g of unsaturated fatty acids per serving...awesome. 

Anyways, here is my cherry banana blast recipe. It is delic.  

1 Large Banana

1 handful of pitted cherries (preferably from the Okanagan)

1 heaping teaspoon of Cinnawow Seedibles

3/4 cup of Milk

2 Tablespoons of low-fat vanilla yogurt (optional)

Blend very well.

To check out Seedibles please go to:  http://www.seedibles.ca/

Cheers!

Peaches N'Oat Smoothie - Better Than It Sounds

This smoothie rocks!

I am a huge fan of healthful, nutritious, smoothies, that offer protein and fibre and essential nutrients. This one is killer in those areas.  I have always played around with oats in my smoothies, but since I have Caiden helping me make them 90% of the time,  I really consider what his growing needs are too.  Especially since food is "gross" to him these days.

This particular trial combination had me like "whoa".  So I had to share with smoothie lovers.

Just blend together the following, and I mean blend well...

1 scoop of rolled oats
1 handful of frozen strawberries
1 handful of frozen peach slices
1 Tablespoon of chia seeds (or flax seeds)
1 Tablespoon of natural peanut butter (or almond)
1 dash of ground cinnamon
Top with skim milk

Tip: This is quite a thick smoothie, so add milk to your liking.  The more milk the thinner the consistency. I personally add the milk at the end and fill the remaining space with it (so I am not totally sure how much milk I use). 

And enjoy! 

By the way this is perfect for breakfast, if you are trying to lose weight...or not.  For Caiden, I usually have this with him as a post-breakfast/pre-lunch snack.  Gives boost of energy and much needed fibre, as well as essential fatty acids good for the brain and growth.

Delicious Avocado and Fruit Smoothie

I love a good smoothie...who doesn't.

However, my goal with smoothies nowadays is my own taste buds and my son's.  Usually whatever I make, he helps make it or enjoys also.

Avocados are all the rage these days, and though I can just drink blended avocado and milk...my two year old likes a little more taste than that.  Not only that, but as a mom (and nutrition nut) I am always trying to ensure he is getting enough fruits and veggies in his day.  Smoothies are great for that...blend away and you can get at least 2 or more servings right there!

Anyways, on to this awesome smoothie.  I love it...I am sure you will too.

Oh!  And if you are still trying to lose some prego weight, this is a great one! It provides good essential fatty acids from the avocado, which helps remove unwanted fats from the body.  There is also plenty of calcium, fibre, and the strawberries give us vitamin C in this drink. 

Add the following ingredients in a blender and blend away!

-1 full avocado

-1 large banana

-3 to 4 large strawberries

-1 cup unsweetened vanilla almond milk

-a dash of vanilla (optional)

Tip:  you can change the consistency by adding more of less milk (thinner add more).  Also, if you don't like the taste of the avocado in the smoothie at first, try a little less and work your way up to a full avocado.  

I want to mention this is totally kid-tested, and my toddler loved it!  The strawberries gave it enough sweetness to seem too good to be true (that it had no added sugar).

Enjoy!