Adam's Tropical Mango-Spinach Smoothie
Wednesday, July 6, 2011
Summertime is smoothie time in our house and we love experimenting with new blends of flavors. This tropical smoothie is one my 8-year-old son and I have been working on for months and I do say that it is finally perfect-o! The coconut oil was the final ingredient that made it into what we were looking for and although it is good without it, if you like coconut at all I highly recommend finding some at your store. With or without the coconut oil though, the tropical flavor is fabulous and the health level is high! Enjoy!
Tropical Mango-Spinach Smoothie
by Lara at the Recipe Shoebox.
The ingredients:
4 cups frozen mango chunks (slightly thawed)
1 can (8-ounces) pineapple, undrained (it doesn't matter how the pineapple is cut, since it'll be blended anyway)
1 cup (6-ounces) low-fat yogurt (I prefer vanilla or strawberry, but any flavor would do)
2 Tbs. fresh lemon juice
2 Tbs. coconut oil (optional)
1-1/3 cups orange juice
up to 2 cups of washed spinach leaves (optional)
Directions: In the order listed, add mango chunks, pineapple, yogurt, lemon juice, coconut oil (if using), and orange juice to a blender jar. Blend until smooth, stirring if necessary. When smoothie is completely blended, add the washed spinach leaves** (if using) and blend until the spinach is barely incorporated (you don't want to see chunks of spinach, but you don't want to over-blend it either). Serve immediately. Serves 5-6. Enjoy!
*NOTE: Coconut oil can be easily found in many larger grocery stores or for sure in a health food store (I got mine at Whole Foods). I recommend buying an organic brand, to maximize the numerous health benefits coconut oil is purported to have. I'm not really sure if all the hype about coconut oil is all that it's cracked up to be, but health benefits or not, the coconut oil adds an awesome coconut flavor to this smoothie
**NOTE: I have found that adding the spinach after the rest of the smoothie has been thoroughly blended, makes the green color the spinach adds slightly less offensive to my kids and it also seems to disguise the spinach flavor more.
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Tropical Mango-Spinach Smoothie
by Lara at the Recipe Shoebox.
The ingredients:
4 cups frozen mango chunks (slightly thawed)
1 can (8-ounces) pineapple, undrained (it doesn't matter how the pineapple is cut, since it'll be blended anyway)
1 cup (6-ounces) low-fat yogurt (I prefer vanilla or strawberry, but any flavor would do)
2 Tbs. fresh lemon juice
2 Tbs. coconut oil (optional)
1-1/3 cups orange juice
up to 2 cups of washed spinach leaves (optional)
Directions: In the order listed, add mango chunks, pineapple, yogurt, lemon juice, coconut oil (if using), and orange juice to a blender jar. Blend until smooth, stirring if necessary. When smoothie is completely blended, add the washed spinach leaves** (if using) and blend until the spinach is barely incorporated (you don't want to see chunks of spinach, but you don't want to over-blend it either). Serve immediately. Serves 5-6. Enjoy!
*NOTE: Coconut oil can be easily found in many larger grocery stores or for sure in a health food store (I got mine at Whole Foods). I recommend buying an organic brand, to maximize the numerous health benefits coconut oil is purported to have. I'm not really sure if all the hype about coconut oil is all that it's cracked up to be, but health benefits or not, the coconut oil adds an awesome coconut flavor to this smoothie
**NOTE: I have found that adding the spinach after the rest of the smoothie has been thoroughly blended, makes the green color the spinach adds slightly less offensive to my kids and it also seems to disguise the spinach flavor more.
Don't miss a single recipe at Recipe Shoebox, sign up for free email updates.
***************
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4 comments:
This looks so good!!! I am a new follower...
Sounds great. We love green smoothies here. Thanks.
Yes, coconut oil is definitely all it's cracked up to be--it's amazing stuff! Rich in lauric acid (found also in breastmilk), it's a fabulous antiviral/antibacterial/antifungal substance. It's also a very healthy fat. Not only do we add it to smoothies, I also use it as a diaper rash ointment (works every time!), a moisturizer and lip balm, and occasionally as a sunscreen.
I have blender envy! I'm secretly planning a blendtec purchase sometime this year. My husband said, "go ahead and get one, even if they are expensive. What are they, about $100 or something?" If only.
We love spinach smoothies, too, but I've never tried adding the spinach at the end--I'll do that tomorrow. And you're ahead of me with the coconut oil. I've been wanting to try it, but haven't found a reasonable source yet. You've inspired me to look again!
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