First Ever Green Monster + Baccalaureate

Well, more like brown monster, but hey, it counts, right?

After my smoothie issues last week I was determined to make a yummy smoothie this afternoon. And guess what?? I solved one of my own problems, which was trying to get the texture of the smoothie right without yogurt. And this smoothie nailed it.

After convincing my mom to get fresh spinach at the store yesterday (the conversation went a bit like this: mom: what are you going to use it for? me: smoothies. mom: what??. Jay: are you serious? me: yup! mom: alllright..... clearly they think i'm crazy!) I was excited to make my first GM this afternoon!

Right when I walked in the door from my run (4 miles) I started making my smoothie, which included:

• 1/2 cup fat free milk
• 1/2 cup fresh blueberries
• 4 fresh strawberries
• about 1 1/2 cups fresh spinach
• 1 frozen banana
• 1 tablespoon of lemon juice
• ~1/2 cup crushed ice

brown monster

slurp! excuse the crazy post-run hair :)

Even though this smoothie is probably one of the most disgusting-looking things I have ever created in my kitchen, it also was one of the best-tasting smoothies I have ever made (and this girl has seen a lot of smoothies!)   The texture and flavor were perfect. And I love squeezing in those extra nutrients!

Yesterday

Yesterday was Jay's baccalaureate ceremony and we took lots of fun pictures! It was pretty scary to see him in his graduation gown (I'm feeling happy for him that he's graduating but sad for me since it means he's leaving soon!) but the ceremony was pretty cool. 

I also got to wear my new dress that my mom spotted for me at Forever 21. It is SO comfy and I know I'm going to wear it lots, plus it was under $20! I love a good bargain.

Have you made a Green Monster? What are your favorite varieties?

Do you have an older sibling?

Smoothie Issues

This morning I decided to make a smoothie for breakfast so it would feel like it's closer to summer... even though we've still got pretty gloomy weather!

Most of the time my smoothies end up being the same "type", I guess you could say. They always include greek yogurt, frozen banana, frozen berries, and some form of fresh fruit. I can't figure out a way to make different flavored smoothies that still pack a nutritional punch and have good texture - I think my main problem is trying to find a substitute for the yogurt.

Although I am in LOVE with greek yogurt, it is very hard to make different kinds of smoothies with it because of its tart flavor. And I don't want to make a smoothie that doesn't have much protein because that's the key to keeping me full. Anyone have any solutions?

I wish I could try protein powder in my smoothies but I can't find any small-sized containers for me to try out - why do companies only sell protein powder packaged larger than the size of my head?? I have yet to figure that out.

Anyway, onto this morning's smoothie!

It included:

• 1/2 cup Fage 0% greek yogurt
• a few chunks of frozen mango
• 1/2 a frozen banana
• 1/2 cup frozen mixed berries (I get mine at Costco)
• 1/2 of a fresh orange
• a handful of fresh blueberries
• 1/4-1/2 cup of milk 

I poured mine into a bowl and topped it with 1/4 c Original All Bran cereal, 1/2 cup of Honey Bunches of Oats with Almonds, and a handful of Kashi Honey Sunshine. 

This bowl was pretty good but it was missing a little something. I think I might freeze some of my fresh strawberries and pineapple to add to smoothies because I know that will have more flavor than packaged frozen fruit. 

What key ingredients do you use in smoothies? Do you use protein powder?