My Favourite Green Smoothie
Green Smoothies! Green Smoothies! Who else is sick of Green Smoothies!?
I laugh at myself here a bit because I am actually NOT sick of them. I love them. I just wish they were treated with a bit more reverence. Yes, Green Smoothies and Green Smoothie Bowls are everywhere and they are here to stay. Some I wouldn't touch with a ten foot pole but my particular Green Smoothie saves me on many a morning!
Firstly, I don't think we need to go crazy with the green smoothies. But, sprinkled throughout our week as an easy and quick meal or snack, they are excellent. We can get a lot of nutrients in quickly while retaining the fibre of the foods we include and we can pop them in some sort of container and have on the run if need be. (I see you all nodding at me here).
But! I don't think we should be going overboard with the amount of certain uncooked greens going through our body. They can be harsh on the digestive system and they can cause thyroid issues. Cruciferous Vegetables which include Kale, Broccoli, Cabbage, Brussel Sprout and Turnips contain a compound called isothiocyanates, which block a particular enzyme in the thyroid. This enzyme, TPO, is responsible for attaching iodine to the thyroid hormones to make them active.
So, by all means eat these veggies every day but cook some of them please! Cooking will remove the issue of this compound interfering with your thyroid. Lightly steamed, sauteed and even baked into a frittata will still have you getting that greeny goodness without needing so much energy to digest them as well.
So yeah, I never put kale in my smoothies, I fry it up with my bacon and eggs instead!
But back to my Favourite (Kale-Less) Green Smoothie!
Ingredients (serves 2)
1/2 frozen banana
1/2 green apple
2 stalks of celery (add the leaf if you wish or save and toss through a salad like I do)
1 small lebanese cucumber or 1/2 a larger cucumber
1-2 handfuls of baby spinach
1 tblspn of chia seeds
1-2 tblpns of coconut oil
2-2.5 cups of coconut water
a sprig of fresh mint a few ice cubes
Blend in your thermie, vitamix or high powered blender and either:
- Pour in mason jar, add straw and rush out the door OR
- Drink mindfully....after you've decorated it with more chia seeds and goji berries, or perhaps some angel hair and gold glitter and instagrammed it with some of the following hashtags:
#greensmoothie #drinkinggreensmoothieinmyactivewear
#icantlivewithoutmygreensmoothie or
#lookatmedrinkingmygreensmoothie
(I hope I'm getting a giggle and not infuriating the green smoothie army here?)
Tip: You could also add your smoothie to a bowl and make one of the very popular Smoothie Bowls! So much more room for decoration! We can add even more stuff for our green smoothie pictures!
Seriously though, if you want to sit down to a bowl of smoothie because you miss cereal or perhaps soup? I suggest berries and coconut flakes :)
Yours In Health,
Alisha x
My Favourite Green Smoothie
Green Smoothies! Green Smoothies! Who else is sick of Green Smoothies!?
I laugh at myself here a bit because I am actually NOT sick of them. I love them. I just wish they were treated with a bit more reverence. Yes, Green Smoothies and Green Smoothie Bowls are everywhere and they are here to stay. Some I wouldn't touch with a ten foot pole but my particular Green Smoothie saves me on many a morning!
Firstly, I don't think we need to go crazy with the green smoothies. But, sprinkled throughout our week as an easy and quick meal or snack, they are excellent. We can get a lot of nutrients in quickly while retaining the fibre of the foods we include and we can pop them in some sort of container and have on the run if need be. (I see you all nodding at me here).
But! I don't think we should be going overboard with the amount of certain uncooked greens going through our body. They can be harsh on the digestive system and they can cause thyroid issues. Cruciferous Vegetables which include Kale, Broccoli, Cabbage, Brussel Sprout and Turnips contain a compound called isothiocyanates, which block a particular enzyme in the thyroid. This enzyme, TPO, is responsible for attaching iodine to the thyroid hormones to make them active.
So, by all means eat these veggies every day but cook some of them please! Cooking will remove the issue of this compound interfering with your thyroid. Lightly steamed, sauteed and even baked into a frittata will still have you getting that greeny goodness without needing so much energy to digest them as well.
So yeah, I never put kale in my smoothies, I fry it up with my bacon and eggs instead!
But back to my Favourite (Kale-Less) Green Smoothie!
Ingredients (serves 2)
1/2 frozen banana
1/2 green apple
2 stalks of celery (add the leaf if you wish or save and toss through a salad like I do)
1 small lebanese cucumber or 1/2 a larger cucumber
1-2 handfuls of baby spinach
1 tblspn of chia seeds
1-2 tblpns of coconut oil
2-2.5 cups of coconut water
a sprig of fresh mint a few ice cubes
Blend in your thermie, vitamix or high powered blender and either:
- Pour in mason jar, add straw and rush out the door OR
- Drink mindfully....after you've decorated it with more chia seeds and goji berries, or perhaps some angel hair and gold glitter and instagrammed it with some of the following hashtags:
#greensmoothie #drinkinggreensmoothieinmyactivewear
#icantlivewithoutmygreensmoothie or
#lookatmedrinkingmygreensmoothie
(I hope I'm getting a giggle and not infuriating the green smoothie army here?)
Tip: You could also add your smoothie to a bowl and make one of the very popular Smoothie Bowls! So much more room for decoration! We can add even more stuff for our green smoothie pictures!
Seriously though, if you want to sit down to a bowl of smoothie because you miss cereal or perhaps soup? I suggest berries and coconut flakes :)
