- On the go? Looking to fuel muscles pre/post workout & for something filling?
- Looking to replace your Starbucks Frappuccino?
- Don’t have the time to chew your veggies and fruit, and don’t like the bitter taste of vegetable juices?
- High in protein & packed with antioxidants
- 100% Natural
- Takes less than 10 minutes to make!
Introducing… 100% Natural Glowing Protein Smoothie (Serves 2)
(1) 1 Apple (Sliced)
(2) 5-6 Romaine Leaves
(3) 200 grams of Mesclun Greens
(4) 1 Avocado (Peeled and pitted)
(5) 1 Fresh or Frozen Mango (Peeled and pitted)
(6) 1 tablespoon of Organic Freeze-dried Acai Powder
(7) 50-100 grams of frozen blueberries
(8) 1/2 Frozen Banana
(9) 4-5 ice cubes
Preparation (Takes less than 10 minutes to make!):
Put (1) – (3) into juicer. Juice for 2-3 minutes. Set juice aside.
Put (3) – (9) into blender and add juice from (1) – (3). Blend all ingredients until smooth.
Enjoy!
Why Juice Romaine, Mesclun Greens & Apples?
Most of you who are just beginning to juice may find the taste of vegetables too bitter. This is why I’ve used a juicer to juice the vegetables first. I’ve added the apple for extra vitamin C content. You’ll be getting plenty of fiber from the whole fruits blended.
Why Avocado?
Avocado is relatively low-carb , with c. 19% of its calories from carbs. It’s also low in sugar and falls very low on the glycemic index (some may even assign zero GI value to this super fruit). At the same time, 1 cup of avocado provides about 7-8 grams of dietary fiber, allowing the fruit to promote blood sugar regulation
Avocado contains all 18 essential amino acids and is high in protein!
Avocado also contains lots of good fat, most of which are phytosterols, which support our inflammatory system and keeps inflammation under control. Avocado contains polyhydroxylated fatty alcohols (PFAs) that is anti-inflammatory. Avocado also contains an unusually high amount of a fatty acid called oleic acid, which helps our digestive tract form transport molecules for fat that can increase our absorption of fat-soluble nutrients like carotenoids.
Avocado also contains vitamins C and E, and the minerals manganese, selenium, and zinc, which are all benefit to healthy skin, bones, hair and nail.
Furthermore, avocado contains plenty of carotenoid antioxidants, boosting eye health and fighting free radicals.
I’ve paired avocado with mango because the oleic acid, a monounsaturated fatty acid makes it easier for the optimal absorption of these fat-soluble beta-carotene, which are plentiful in mangoes.
Why Açaí Powder?
Açaí is super high in antioxidant. Açaí’s ORAC level (Oxygen Radical Absorbance Capacity) is 102,700 ? mol TE/100g, which is 55x more antioxidants than red grapes (ORAC 1,837 ? mol TE/100g), your apples, bananas and even blueberries!
Acai also contains phytosterols which promotes cardiovascular and digestive health.
Açaí has high in vitamin B, K, potassium and manganese content, promoting muscle health.
The fatty acid content in açaí resembles that of olive oil, and is rich in oleic and linoleic acids – essential omega fatty acids – crucial for healthy skin and hair.
Acai also contains almost perfect essential amino acid complex in conjunction with valuable trace minerals, vital to proper muscle contraction and regeneration.
Why Blueberries?
Blueberries contain powerful anthocyanins, a form of antioxidants, which protects against high blood pressure. Blueberries also promote eye and brain health. Given berries’ low GI index, they help regulate blood sugar and provides carbohydrates that sustain you and can boost your mood. New studies make it clear that we can freeze blueberries without doing damage to their delicate anthocyanin antioxidants which makes it easier to store these perishable fruits.
I’ve added mango and banana to the smoothie to sweeten the drink up so you don’t need to add other sweeteners. Bananas can replenish your stores of potassium, one of the most important electrolytes, which helps regulate heart function, fluid balance and muscle regeneration post-workout. Mango contains high amount of Vitamin A and C, fighting free radicals and boosts eye health.
This smoothie isn’t a weight-loss fix. As a matter of fact, I’d suggest consuming this smoothie in the morning, before or after your workout for extra energy boost and muscle regeneration. For an extra oomph of energy (and caffeine) , you can add 1 teaspoon of organic instant coffee in the smoothie. This smoothie can help you increase your intake of dietary fiber, especially if you don’t enjoy eating fruits and vegetables, though I’d still suggest incorporating solid vegetables and fruit in your diet (along with the smoothie), especially if you exercise quite a bit.
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How do you like the protein smoothie?
Please leave a comment or question below!
Thank you for reading and contributing here.
January 19, 2014 at 7:31 am
Dan, thank you for your comment and I’m glad you find our recipes useful. For freeze-dried Acai powder, please go to http://www.iherb.com/Sambazon-Organic-Freeze-Dried-Acai-Powder-90-g/5989. If you are a first time user, feel free to use QTG653 as your coupon code upon checkout. Thanks again for posting and we are grateful to have you in our community!
3 Comments
I made this today and it was DELICIOUS! Hard to believe its so healthy too. i did have trouble finding the organic acai powder at two of my local supermarkets (i suppose i need to go to a specialty grocer) so i just used organic acai juice (which i know adds some other stuff to it), but hopefully that was an okay substitute. It tasted great! And it took only a few minutes to make just like the website said it would! Going to check out more recipes now.
Dan, thanks for your kind message! Try iherb.com for acai powder – I used http://www.iherb.com/Sambazon-Organic-Freeze-Dried-Acai-Powder-90-g/5989. For first time users, feel free to use QTG653 as a discount code. I am glad you find our recipes useful and come back for more!