Kiwi spinach smoothie.

The day I was waiting for finally arrived, and I had a copy of Go Set a Watchman in my hands. I would have liked to shut off the world and read, but life intruded as always. The kids needed to be fed, and I was in no mood to rustle up anything time consuming. A quick survey of the fridge yielded the ingredients to make this lovely green smoothie.

(Makes 3 glasses)

2 kiwi fruits

1 bunch spinach leaves

2 cups water

Method:

Wash the spinach leaves well, chop roughly. 

Peel the kiwi fruits, and cut into eighths. 

Blend the spinach and kiwi fruit with sufficient water till you get a really smooth consistency. 

Strain and serve (I did not strain because I didn't want to lose the fiber). 

Kiwi Smoothie

Back to my love affair with smoothies.

1 kiwi fruit

1 glass milk

2-3 leaves mint

Sugar to taste- I omitted 

Method:

Peel the kiwi fruit and cut it into chunks. Blend with milk, and sugar till you get a smooth consistency. 

Muddle the mint leaves in a glass with a tablespoon of the mix. Add rest of the mix, and serve. 

Chikoo milkshake

Sapota, is what my grandmother used to call chikoo. And maybe because I associate the fruit with her, it has always been one of my underrated favourites. So when I saw these globs of juicy brownness sitting next to the mangos I was buying, I had to pick up have a dozen.

Not sure if my kids liked it or not, I thought the best way to introduce it to them was through a milkshake. A little bit of peeling, chopping and whirling later, I was done. They loved it, and they liked the fruit just as much!

4 chikoos/ sapota

1 1/2 cups milk

Sugar to taste, though you can do without

Method:

Cut the chikoo into quarters, peel, and chop into small pieces

Blend the chikoo in a mixie till you get a smooth consistency 

Add the milk, and sugar if required. Blend till well mixed

Serve immediately.*

* chikoo spoils if cut and kept exposed, so serve right after making

Watermelon smoothie

During a weekend trip, we stopped at a stall where they were selling watermelons straight from the field. Not only did the look amazing, they cost a fraction of what they do in the city, and I just couldn't resist picking up a couple. Since there is only so much watermelon that you can eat, I decided to experiment with a smoothie, and it tasted amazing.

Blend 1 cup watermelon chunks (remove the seeds), 6-8 leaves of mint (mine were freshly plucked), and rock salt to taste, till nice and frothy. Slurp!

Chocolate Banana Smoothie

Smoothies in any form or kind are my favourite post-workout snack. This is one I reserve for long runs, because I have been told that chocolate is one of the best drinks you can have post run. Sometimes I wonder if I don't run as much as I do, only so I can indulge!!!!

Blend 1 cup milk, 1 banana and 1 tbsp cocoa powder till smooth. Yummy.

Carrot-apple smoothie

In my quest for post-run proteins, I end up making a whole bunch of smoothies. This I adapted from a recipe for juice, and liked it so much, I've made it three times already these last two weeks.

Blend 1 apple (peeled, and chopped into small pieces after removing the core), 1 medium carrot (the maroon one, peeled and diced), an inch piece of ginger grated, and 1/2 cup milk, till smooth.
Vitamin A, calcium and proteins in a cup.

Cold Cucumber Soup

This calls itself a cold soup, but sounds exactly like a smoothie to me (and all the photographs even had it in glass not a soup bowl). What's in a name, as long as it tastes great? And it did. Recipe adapted for several similar.

Cut 1 large cucumber into small pieces. Peel 4-5 cloves of ginger. Blend the cucumber and garlic with 1/2 cup low fat yogurt, salt and freshly ground pepper till smooth. Add water to dilute, if desired (I didn't).
Garnish with small pieces of radish. Serve chilled.

Strawberry-banana smoothie

This strawberry-banana smoothie is a perfect post-workout drink, and it works really well as a complete mid-day meal too.

Blend 1 banana, 6 strawberries, 1 cup milk till smooth. Slurp.