Tag Archives: mint

Back to School Smoothies – Tropical Green Smoothie

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green smoothie

Green smoothies are an excellent choice for those back to school mornings as they provide a ton of nutrients to start the day and get the kids energized. A green smoothie though, is not always the most popular with kids. They take one look at the color and won’t even try it no matter what you tell them is in it. (This is one of the reasons why I like making other kinds of smoothies and adding in a little greens. You can literally hide them in there as it doesn’t change the color and they get blended up so they have no idea!)

One of the reasons kids (and some adults too) steer away from green smoothies is because often times they are this ugly dark green and aren’t very tasty or sweet. And even though I like my vegetables, when my smoothie tastes bland and like just a glass of vegetables, that doesn’t appeal even to me – why would a kid like it? That being said I have found a green smoothie that I quite enjoy and has passed the ‘kid test’. It is actually the favorite of my youngest son.

This green smoothie is sweet in taste due to the 3 kinds of tropical fruits, but not overly so, and a bright vibrant green. Stocked with 3 kinds of greens as well this makes for a very good combination. The nice thing is to if you need it a little sweeter you just add a little more fruit.

I have even made this green smoothie in my kids cooking classes (ages 3-12) and most of them liked it. In fact, for some of them it was their favorite smoothie as well!

Why do you want kids to have a green smoothie in the morning?

  • They are an easy way to get in those greens everyday (and right at the start). I don’t know about you but sometimes I find this difficult and get to the end of the day with no greens whatsoever. I feel good when I start my day with some greens.
  • Greens are rich in fiber, high in vitamins like vitamin C, K, E, and minerals and have many disease fighting benefits. And if you’re using a green like spinach, it’s high in iron ( supports brain function, muscle health, curbs fatigue)
  • Greens are high in antioxidants
  • They are high in folate which maintains a healthy heart, is needed for body’s cell division and prevents depression
  • Supports healthy brain function

Tropical Green Smoothie

1 c. spinach

green smoothie3-4 stems of parsley

1 sprig of fresh mint (I love mint so I might add a bit more, add yours to taste)

*1/2 c. papaya

1/2 c. pineapple

1/2 c. mango

**1/2 -3/4 c. apple juice or water

Put all ingredients in Vitamix blender. Start on low moving up to high. Blend on high for 1 minute or until smooth. Enjoy!

*I use orange or yellow papaya as I like it better and find it sweeter; but you can also use red papaya

**vary the amounts of fruit to make it sweeter or less sweet to taste

**I have found over the years that if I add a little more fruit then I can use water instead of juice and it still tastes yummy, sweet and delicious

Serves 1

Give this green smoothie a try this weekend and see how the crew likes it. If it’s a success you can start incorporating it into your back to school smoothie rotation in the mornings and kick off the day with a nice green healthy breakfast.

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A Refreshing Twist on Watermelon – The Watermelon Smoothie

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Watermelon SmoothieThe other day my youngest son said he had an idea to make a watermelon smoothie. We love watermelon especially in the summer! It is such a nice refreshing snack. For us, we usually just slice it and eat it, I had never really thought of doing anything else with it. Sure I had heard of people putting watermelon into salads or other recipes but I had never thought of putting it into a smoothie. It just seemed odd to me.

But really, why not? You can put basically anything into a smoothie and with the right combination, can be absolutely delicious! And we love smoothies at our house and enjoy trying different combinations. In fact, I have been experimenting this year with creating my own smoothie recipes. It’s fun figuring out what goes well together and what might not. When I create a really good one, I get very excited. Like when I created this yummy green smoothie in the spring with grapefruit, orange and dandelion greens- yum!

The other thing I didn’t realize is that watermelon is actually chalk full of vitamins and minerals like Vitamin A, potassium and magnesium to name a few. Plus it has many health benefits benefiting cardiovascular health, anti-flammatory and antioxidant support. Here I thought it was just water and that you didn’t get much else out of it. Even better!

So I set out on a hunt for watermelon smoothie recipes to see what was out there. There are many that are a combination of watermelon and strawberries (which seemed quite popular), some with almond milk, even some with coconut water (which I am going to have to try that one). But the one that I was drawn to the most was this combination with raspberries, fresh lime and mint. All favorite ingredients of mine. I love mint and am really into lime lately. I also liked that it was described as ‘the most refreshing smoothie, ever‘. It quickly made me think of hot summer days when you’re looking for something a little more than just a glass of water. I could see myself, sitting on the deck, smoothie in hand, relaxing and enjoying the hot summer sun…

When I whipped it up this afternoon I was not disappointed! It was fabulous. I could not believe how delicious it was and even though it was not super hot that day, I could see how enjoyable it would be on a hot summer day. Not to mention I love the rich red color and how sweet and fresh it tastes. I can’t wait to make it for the kids who were away for the weekend, especially my son, to not only thank him for the fabulous idea, but to see how much they enjoy it as well.

Watermelon Smoothiewatermelon smoothie

1 c. watermelon

1/2 c. frozen raspberries

fresh lime juice (squeeze 1/4 of a lime) or 1 drop lime essential oil*

2 sprigs of fresh mint

Put all ingredients into blender. Mix until well combined and is smooth. Pour into glass and enjoy!

*note: if you’r using lime essential oil ensure that it is safe to ingest as all brands of essential oils are not created equal and not all are safe to take internally

Serves 1

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Valentine’s Day Martini

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IMG_4677As some of you know, I am really into martinis these days. It started last fall when my love of pumpkin helped me to discover a recipe for a pumpkin martini. I wasn’t a huge fan of martinis at the time as I had found that most of them were kind of sour, or way too strong for my liking. But I had tried a few, my youngest sister being a fan of them, her favorite being the Cosmo.

The pumpkin martini was absolutely divine! It became my new favorite and as a result I decided to venture out and try some other martini combinations. I’ve enjoyed Lavender one, Gingerbread, and a Poison Apple to name a few.

And now every time we approach a holiday, I am on the hunt for a new one to try that fits with theme of that holiday. Valentine’s Day was no exception, so earlier this week I set out searching the internet for a fabulous ‘Valentine’s’ recipe to try. There were so many to choose from, many with a common theme of red and some kind of fruit, either raspberries or strawberries. Many I have earmarked and saved to my Pinterest board for taste testing at a later date.

The Raspberry Chocolate Kiss Martini was the one that caught my eye and won the privilege of being ‘tested’ for this Valentine’s. Originally created by chef Michael Schulson, I had a few adjustments to make but knew it could be done. First off I had to figure out how to make my own simple syrup, which is basically sugar and water. I had thought before that I could probably do this with agave nectar instead of sugar and create the same thing, but had yet to try it. Well now was the time and I am happy to say it worked very well.

One thing I puzzled over though in the original recipe was the chocolate part (or lack of in my opinion). The only thing that presented any chocolate at all was the cookie rim that went on the glass, not really what I would consider enough chocolate to merit chocolate in the title! So I experimented. I tried making the martini and sprinkling cacao nibs on top. Honestly that did not do much. Then I tried chocolate shavings sprinkled on top, that was better.

I experimented a little more, rimming the martini glass in chocolate icing, ahhhh…now we’re talking. I also tried dipping the rim in melted chocolate and then letting it cool and solidify before adding the martini mix. All, I found were very good solutions to the chocolate I felt was truly missing in this drink. Which is the best? That’s hard to say. I think you should perhaps try them out and then let me know which one you think is the best 🙂

This martini in general is fabulous, a very delicious fruity sweet drink. I do advise you to be careful though as the sweet easily masks the vodka in it and it goes down very smoothly!

So serve your sweet something a little different this Valentine’s, or baby just make one for yourself and enjoy!

Raspberry Chocolate Martini

*1/4 c. mint infused syrup

10 raspberries

2 oz. vodka

2 tbsp. cranberry juice

ice cubes

Chocolate options:

rim glass with chocolate icing or

dip rim of martini glass in melted chocolate, let cool or

sprinkle chocolate shavings on top of drink

Place raspberries in a martini shaker and shake till crushed. Add mint infused syrup, shake again. Now add vodka, cranberry juice and ice. Shake well until chilled. Pour into martini glass, sprinkle with chocolate shavings. Enjoy! If rimming glass with icing or melted chocolate do this step before pouring martini into glass


*Mint Infused Syrup

1/4 c. agave nectar

1 c. water

1 bunch mint

Place all ingredients in a small saucepan on stove over medium heat. Stir and heat until agave nectar has dissolved. Take off heat and let cool. Strain through a sieve, syrup is ready to use. May be kept in fridge in an air tight container up to 2 weeks.

And if you don’t have the ingredients to make the mint infused syrup, try adding 1 drop peppermint essential oil with 10-20 drops liquid stevia to sweeten.

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