Drink Your Veggies!

I love spinach.

I love smoothies.

I love spinach in my smoothies.

Hey now, before you roll your eyes in disgust... hear me out. I started reading about spinach smoothies, aka "Green Monster Smoothies," about a year ago while reading one of my fave healthy living blogs Oh She Glows. I think Angela actually started the whole ""Green Monster Movement". I guarantee if you give one of these smoothies a try you will start telling all of your friends, family, etc to throw some spinach in a blender and call it a day. Seriously, try one of these after a hard workout or for a quick lunch on-the-go - it's practically a salad in a blender! Well not entirely, that would be kinda gross... to me at least.

Top 5 Reasons Why You Should Give Spinach Smoothies A Try:
1. Hellllllllo Popeye! Talk about a heaping serving of IRON! Gimme! Gimme! As a girl who rarely eats red meat (unless its included in a recipe that the boyfriend requested) I could use all the iron I can get!
2. You're drinking 2-3 servings of veggies!
3. Extra energy... don't we all need it? Um, yes please!
4. More fruts & veggies = clearer skin, again... yes please!
5. You can't even taste the blasted spinach! I know y'all are all imagining sticking a straw into a bowl of creamed spinach... that's gross, and not true. All of the lovely and sweet fruits that you toss in there totally take over your taste buds. If it weren't for the green color, you would have absolutely NO IDEA that spinach was the "not so secret" ingredient.


Look at all that spinach... mmm!



My blender... working it's magic!



Perfectly blended! Now for the fun stuff!

I don't know if people still drink slim-fast shakes... gross, but green monsters taste waaaaaaay better and they're waaaaaaay better for you! Plus you can tailor the "recipe" to whatever fruits you have lying around the kitchen!

Today's Green Monster... ripe banana, frozen mango, and chia seeds! Oh my!



Here's the finished product! Mmmm! Green is my favorite color... so pretty! :)

 Laurie's Green Monster

1 cup Vanilla Almond Milk (I'm kinda anti-soy right now, I'm sure elaborate more on that in another post)

3 BIG handfuls of FRESH *baby spinach

1 medium ripe banana

1 cup of frozen mango chunks

1 Tb. chia seeds

Lil' drizzle of Agave Nectar

Ice Cubes (not always necessary if you use frozen fruit... you be the judge.

- Pour the milk into the blender first, then stuff as much spinach as you think you can handle... then add a little more ;)

- Blend until you get what looks like bright green milk! The spinach should be completely pureed.

- Add the mango, banana, and chia seeds.

- Blend until smooth! ENJOY a fabulously healthy, and super nutritious smoothie that is chock full of fiber, protein, carbohydrates, and healthy fat from the chia seeds! :)

*If you're feeling adventurous, try kale instead of or in addition to the baby spinach. I love kale, and it's extremely nutritious! High in Vitamin K, fiber, and glucosinolates which have been linked to cancer prevention (specifically colon and breast cancer.) I've heard that the texture isn't as smooth, because the kale leaves are composed of a much more fibrous tissue may give it a bit of chewy texture. However, if you have one of those AWESOME VitaMix Blenders, then this should not be an issue.

I put my Memphis Grizzlies souvenior cup to use. Mr. Teddy doesn't approve of my love for #33 Marc Gasol!