My Favourite Smoothie

There are so many different and wonderful smoothie recipes out there.

And sometimes if you (meaning me!) make a smoothie by just throwing it all in together it’s hit and miss whether the combination works.

This is my go to smoothie.

As long as I use all the ingredients, it generally doesn’t matter the quantities and it never fails. The only time this has failed was when I forgot the bananas. Ok, that has actually happened a couple of times. And a couple of other times I have poured the smoothie into the glasses and then tipped it straight back into the blender to add the banana. Better late than never to remember! The banana is a crucial ingredient to this as it balances the smoothie with a gentle sweetness. I don’t have a sweet tooth but it is needed.

The avocado, banana and coconut oil give a lovely creaminess to the smoothie. Besides adding to the creaminess of the smoothie, coconut oil helps increase your energy which may be why it’s linked to helping to lose weight. The mint and lime juice add a delicious zing and zestiness. The coconut water and cucumber are extremely hydrating. The kale high in fibre. There are so many vitamins and minerals going on in this smoothie, have this for breakfast or lunch and you won’t need anything else to eat until the next meal. If possible, buy organic cucumber as cucumbers contain systemic pesticides - these pesticides cannot be washed away and are absorbed by the plant.

The great thing about this recipe is you can use it as a base and then add anything else you like to it, depending on your mood or what you have in the fridge.

It’s delicious as it is but you could add other fruit or vegetables. You could also add your favourite protein powder. I personally don’t use protein powders as I have never found one I like the taste or texture of.  Jimmy Blacks organic black bean powder is my favourite “protein” powder as it’s completely natural with nothing else added, it’s high in protein and complex carbohydrates and it surprisingly adds a little sweetness. This is just my personal preference, though. There are also plenty of wonderful fruit and vegetable powders available - as long as you check the ingredients to make sure there are no additives. These powders should just be the fruit or vegetable, are usually organic and there is no need for there to be anything added to the powder.

Recipe

• 1 cup coconut water - I use Natural Raw C coconut water
• ¾ cup chopped kale
• ½ frozen banana
• ½ avocado
• ½ lime - juice and skin. If you don’t have lime, lemon works well also
• ⅓ cucumber
• 1 tbsp coconut oil
• Handful of fresh mint (to taste) 
• Pinch of Celtic salt

Method

Blend everything together until smooth and gloriously thick
Additions or Variations

• Purple carrot or fresh beetroot will change the green smoothie to a lovely purple
• Blueberries or any berries
• Hemp seeds are something I add on a regular basis
• Chia seeds for a protein kick
• Any of the fruit or vegetable powders such as maqui, dragonfruit powder, beetroot powder, wheatgrass, acai - these are the ones I usually keep in my pantry although there are many others on the market.
• Jimmy Blacks black bean powder

Enjoy!