Pineapple Green Smoothie
Ingredients
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup plain Greek yogurt
4 cups spinach leaves, washed
1 cup pineapple chunks, drained
1 medium frozen banana, sliced
Preparation
Place ingredients in a blender in the following order: milk, yogurt, spinach, pineapple and banana, and secure the lid. Blend on high until smooth. Pour into glasses and serve immediately.
Serving Suggestion
For a thicker smoothie, use frozen pineapple chunks as well as the sliced, frozen banana. Make your own frozen fruit for smoothies by cutting up fresh pineapple and bananas and freezing the pieces on a baking sheet; then transfer to a zip-close bag for storage. Drained canned pineapple freezes just as well as fresh.
frozen ROsÉ Grapefruit COcktail
Ingredients
½ cup Brut Rosé
½ cup ruby red grapefruit juice
1 ½ cups ice
Optional: mint and grapefruit slices to garnish
Preparation
Combine ice, Rosé, and ruby red grapefruit juice in blender.
Blend until smooth.
Pour into cocktail glass and garnish with mint leaves or grapefruit slices.
Recipe & photo from pizzazzerie.com
Plum Smoothie
INGREDIENTS
2 large ripe plums
2 cups vanilla yogurt
6 tablespoons rolled oats
2 tablespoons ground flaxseed
PREPARATION
Combine all the ingredients in the blender and process. Serve immediately.
Recipe and photo courtesy of http://strongertogether.coop/
Gingery White Wine Cider
INGREDIENTS
1 cup apple cider
2 slices fresh ginger
3 sticks cinnamon
3/4 cup Pinot Grigio or other dry white wine
2 star anise, for garnish
PREPARATION
In a one-quart pot, combine the cider, ginger slices and one cinnamon stick. Bring to a boil, then turn off the heat and let the mixture stand for 30 minutes to infuse. Chill if desired. Remove the ginger and cinnamon stick, and stir in the white wine. To serve warm, place the mixture over low heat and warm just to desired temperature. Pour into two mugs and garnish with a fresh cinnamon stick and star anise.
Recipe and photo courtesy of http://strongertogether.coop/
Hidden-Spinach Berry Smoothie
Start your day with a big spinach salad? You will enjoy a salad’s worth of healthy spinach in this luscious smoothie, and hardly notice it’s there. Try freezing your own local berries when they are in season to use in smoothies all year long. When bananas start getting soft, just peel them, pop them in a freezer bag, and freeze to use in smoothies. Using frozen berries and bananas will give you a thick, almost ice-cream texture, and you may need to add a little milk to help it blend.
INGREDIENTS
2 cups (8 ounces) frozen or fresh red berries, raspberries, strawberries, or a mix
3 cups (3 ounces) spinach (packed)
1 cup yogurt, kefir, or a non-dairy alternative like almond milk
1 large banana, fresh or frozen
PREPARATION
Put the berries and spinach in the blender first, and add the yogurt and banana. Process, scraping down as needed. Blend until smooth and serve.
TIPS & NOTES
If the smoothie is too thick to blend, add milk or a non-dairy alternative as needed to blend.
Recipe and photo courtesy of http://strongertogether.coop/
Avocado Smoothie
Avocados are not just for guacamole. Their rich, sweet flesh blends right into this green wonder, with a touch of vanilla and the hidden hydration of cucumber. Add some honey to taste, if you want it a little sweeter.
INGREDIENTS
1 large cucumber, peeled
1/2 large avocado
1/2 teaspoon matcha powder* (optional)
1 large frozen banana
1/2 cup vanilla yogurt
1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
Honey to taste, optional
PREPARATION
Combine the ingredients in the blender and puree. Take a little taste and add honey if necessary to sweeten it. Serve immediately.
TIPS & NOTES
Matcha powder is a potent from of green tea, which contains caffeine and antioxidants in abundance. Look for matcha powder in the tea section of your co-op.
Recipe and photo courtesy of http://strongertogether.coop/
Dark Cherry Smoothie
INGREDIENTS
1 cup frozen sweet cherries, pitted
1 frozen banana, cut in chunks (see Tip)
1 1/2 cups plain yogurt or milk, dairy or other
6 fresh dark cherries, for garnish
PREPARATION
In a blender, combine the cherries and banana, add yogurt and blend to puree. Transfer to two glasses and garnish with three cherries per glass.
TIPS & NOTES
If you’ve got too many ripe bananas, cut or break them into chunks, seal in a plastic bag, and pop into the freezer to add to future smoothies.
Recipe and photo courtesy of http://strongertogether.coop/
Red Sangria with Strawberries
To serve this to a group, mix 6 times the juice and fruit and a whole bottle of red wine. When shopping for wine, look for a Spanish wine, like Rioja. If you want to substitute a medium-bodied red, like Pinot Noir, that would be delicious, too.
INGREDIENTS
1/4 cup orange juice
1/2 cup apple juice
1/2 cup red wine
1 slice orange
1 strawberry, sliced
1 cinnamon stick and 1 mint sprig, for garnish
PREPARATION
In a 12- 16-ounce juice glass, combine the orange juice, apple juice, red wine, orange and strawberry. Stir with a cinnamon stick and garnish with mint sprigs. Serve cold.
Recipe and photo courtesy of http://strongertogether.coop/
Watermelon Strawberry Lime Cooler
INGREDIENTS
1 cup frozen strawberries
4 cups cubed watermelon, seeds removed
2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
mint sprigs
PREPARATION
In a blender, combine the watermelon and strawberries. Add the lime juice and puree. Serve immediately with mint sprigs for garnish.
Recipe and photo courtesy of http://strongertogether.coop/
Watermelon Basil Agua Fresca
Watermelon Basil Agua Fresca
Yield: 12 servings
INGREDIENTS:
* 1 watermelon (large, about 10-15 pounds) removed from rind and cut into 1-inch cubes
* 1/2 to 1 cup basil, washed with small leaves reserved for garnish
* 1/2 teaspoon salt
* 1/2 teaspoon rice wine vinegar
DIRECTIONS:
WITH A JUICER:
1.) Remove fruit from the rhine and juice watermelon into a large pitcher with the help of a standard juicer. Add basil leaves to juicer and process into same pitcher. Add salt and rice wine vinegar, mix to combine. Chill and serve with basil leaves to garnish.
ALTERNATIVE:
1.) If you don’t have a juicer, take an oversized bowl and place a strainer inside the bowl. Put fruit in strainer and using a plate, press down onto the watermelon until it reaches its “juicy submission” (i.e., all of the watermelon’s juice will be pressed into the bowl and just the red pulp will remain in the strainer). Discard pulp and continue.
2.) Add the basil: this step is a little trickier as you’ll have to process the basil somehow. I suggest a food processor or a blender just to get the basil into a paste, but you’ll want to go light on the basil since you’re using both the leaves of the basil as well as its juice. Process and add to bowl with salt and vinegar. Mix to combine and serve chilled with basil leaves to garnish.