Recipe: A Healthier Smoothie for Breakfast

Cary, NC – We are one month into the new year and many of those New Year’s Resolutions have gone right out the window haven’t they? You were going to get organized, be more focused and maybe drop a few pounds, right? How about a simple goal? One that we adopted this year: to eat more healthfully.

Not changing everything, but just be more mindful when we make a meal, and actually vowed to eat home more often, because, let’s face it, when you eat home, the portions are human-sized and you know all the ingredients and can keep a lid on the calorie count.

To that end, we have been posting photos on our social media accounts (Facebook and Instagram) about what we’ve been making for breakfast and dinner – the two meals we are most often home for.

The drink itself. Note the metal straw. But that’s another blog post!

Today, I made an awesome smoothie which took all of five minutes to make and even less to drink! Everyone has time to make this and with the added protein, it will keep you full until lunch, when most folks eat out and are tempted to go off the healthy plan, especially if you eat with your co-workers. But that’s another conversation.

I have been reading a lot about how most smoothies are loaded with calories and fruit purées and can pack a walloping 600 calories or more! Frankly, not healthy. The current trend is to include some grains to add some roughage or protein to add bulk to the drink, which will keep you full longer. That way, you don’t feel like you need a sandwich two hours later.

Here’s what I made this morning: a Blackberry Mango Smoothie with greek yogurt and granola. Delish!

All the ingredients assembled. You’ll need a blender, crushed ice, granola, greek yogurt, a fruit base -we used mango and blackberries and a splash of juice.

Ingredients

To make a filling and tasty smoothie, here’s what you need:

  • A Blender – nothing fancy, just has to be able to crush some ice
  • Fresh Fruit – we chose a mango and some blackberries; mangoes are a great thickener and blackberries for tartness and color
  • 1/4 Cup Orange Juice (can substitute water)
  • Two Tablespoons of Granola – Trader Joe’s has a variety that actually has protein, good choice.
  • 1/2 Cup Greek Yogurt – again, I am partial to Trader Joe’s 2 percent fat variety. Low calorie and creamy without the chalky taste of many other low-fat brands
  • 1/2 Cup Crushed Ice

Slicing the mango

Blend it up – making sure ice is at the bottom, yogurt, granola and fruit in the middle, topped with juice last.

To Make:

  1. Fill the bottom of the blender with the crushed ice.
  2. Slice the mango. There is a best practice here: Stand the mango on end and with a small very sharp knife, slice down the length of the mango adjacent to the pit, on both sides. Then slice off the sides.  I then eat anything left on the pit – YUM! Next, take the mango halves and score them lengthwise and crosswise with the knife. Fold back the mango so the little cubes of mango stand away from the skin. With the knife simply cut off the cubes into your blender.
  3. Add half of the mango to the blender and save the rest for later
  4. Wash then add about five to six blackberries to the blender
  5. Add 1/2 cup of low-fat Plain Greek Yogurt
  6. Add 1/4 Cup Orange Juice
  7. Blend on high until everything is blended through. You don’t want any lumps!

This makes one 12 ounce smoothie. Voila! Healthy breakfast (or lunch)

Blend it up for a minute to eliminate lumps of fruit or granola and so the the ice smoothes out.

Without an actual way to measure these calories, I estimate that the total is about 300-400 calories based on measurements given on the yogurt and granola packaging.

Great variations include bananas swapped for the mango, strawberries for the blackberries. Flavored yogurts, chia seeds or other grains that you like.


Story and photos by Lindsey Chester.

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