Category: Smoothies and Shakes

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Smoothies make the perfect breakfast food: they are not only easy to assemble, but they’re easily portable and loaded with nutrient-dense foods. While I have several go-to smoothie recipes, this is my “greenest” one. The baby spinach delivers iron and tons of phytonutrients, but it has a mild flavor perfect for a morning smoothie.

Let’s take a look at the powerhouses in this smoothie:

Collagen

Collagen is a protein that is found in your skin, bones, cartilage, and tendons. It’s what gives your skin strength, and unfortunately, as you age, your collage production slows down too. Collagen is part of your extracellular matrix. In other words, the glue that holds your body together. In fact, the word “collagen” is derived from the Greek word for “glue.”

The nice thing about collagen powder is that it is flavorless and dissolves easily into your coffee, smoothies, soups, and more. Vital Proteins Collagen Peptides contains 20grams of collagen per serving.

Spinach

“Eat dark leafy greens” is listed on numerous websites to help prevent and manage various health conditions. Eating dark leafy greens — a category of vegetables that includes spinach, kale, chard — can:

• Supply your body with antioxidants
• Serve up fiber, folate, and carotenoids
• Help keep your digestive system regular
• Reduce your risk of obesity, heart disease, high blood pressure (hypertension), and cognitive decline [you can read the study here]

Spinach also contains 0.8 mg of iron per one cup serving.

Berries

Berries — blackberries, raspberries, strawberries, and blueberries — are great sources of vitamin C and antioxidants. Antioxidants help neutralize free radicals inside your body.

We usually always have several bags of mixed berries in our freezer for this purpose.

Banana

Choose your banana wisely! A freckled banana (my personal favorite) isn’t as nutritious as a less ripe banana.

Here’s why:

The carbs in green, unripe bananas are mostly in the form of starch and resistant starch — a type of indigestible fiber we’ll get to shortly. As the fruit ripens, its flavor becomes sweeter while its fiber content drops 

Source: 11 Evidence-Based Health Benefits of Bananas

Bananas also contain gut-healthy fiber as well as plenty of potassium, a key mineral that helps prevent muscle cramps.

You can freeze your bananas (peel them before storing in freezer in a gallon-size Ziploc bag). A frozen banana adds a cold creaminess to your smoothie without the need for ice.

Now that we’ve covered some of the nutrients you’ll get in this smoothie, let’s dive into the recipe.