What do you add to fruit to make your smoothies?

caroline_g
caroline_g Posts: 201 Member
edited October 7 in Food and Nutrition
I really struggle with getting breakfast when I'm at uni or on teaching placement so I've decided to get into having smoothies as I can have them in the car on my hour and a half drive to uni each morning! Blurgh not looking forward to that again tomorrow. Anyway, I'm just wondering what's the best thing to add to the fruit to make it tasty, filling and keep it low calorie? What do you all add to them?

Replies

  • rockerbabyy
    rockerbabyy Posts: 2,258 Member
    for my fruit smoothies i add spinach (you cant taste it!), greek yogurt, whatever frozen fruit i feel like, ice and water or juice to get the right consistency.
    sometimes ill throw in a banana and/or avocado instead of ice
  • caroline_g
    caroline_g Posts: 201 Member
    for my fruit smoothies i add spinach (you cant taste it!), greek yogurt, whatever frozen fruit i feel like, ice and water or juice to get the right consistency.
    sometimes ill throw in a banana and/or avocado instead of ice

    Ewww I'm not sure about the spinach bit, I hate spinach though! I was wondering about yoghurt or juice, couldn't decide which would be best though.
  • I love Fruit Smothies and they are super handy when Traveling. Here is how I make mine.

    3 oz Greek Plain Yogurt 50 Cal
    1/2 cup Milk non fat (fat free or skim) 43 Cal
    Banana (Love the taste, but Optional) 105 Cal
    1/2 c Frozen Blueberries 35 Cal
    1/2 Cup Frozen Strawberries 25 Cal

    Total 258 Calories


    Sometimes I add Peaches, or other Frozen Berries, Kiwi, Grapes. The options are endless. Pears are also really good. Good Luck!

    Katie
  • myukniewicz
    myukniewicz Posts: 906 Member
    1 cup FROZEN fruit
    1 cup Fat-Free Greek Yogurt
    1/2 cup light soy milk
    1 packet of Truvia
    1 Tbsp, Flax Seed

    Blend & Enjoy :)
  • JTThomas
    JTThomas Posts: 69 Member
    This is how I make my smoothie but you can adjust it according to your taste by switching out milk for yogurt or varying the type of fruit. I always use a banana as the sweetener so that I don't have to add any extra sugar or artificial sweetener.

    1 cup fat free milk
    1 cup frozen peaches
    1 cup frozen strawberries
    1 banana
    (optional: 1 cup of raw spinach leaves-- I swear you can't taste it but it does make the color more of a minty green)

    In your blender, process the frozen fruit to make it easier to liquify and then add the banana, milk, and spinach. Yumm!
  • 2/3 Cup Blueberries
    1 1/3 Peach/Pineapple/Mango/Strawberry Mix
    (or you can use whatever fruit you want, just make sure you have 3 2/3 cup portions)
    2/3 Nonfat Yogurt
    2/3 Reduced fat milk
    Vanilla Extract
    Whey Protein (1 scoop) - or you eliminate the vanilla extract by getting vanilla flavored whey protein
    Ice

    It's super yummy and it's good for a meal.
  • Oh and for a good banana shake all you need is

    Banana
    Milk
    Honey
    Ice

    It's really good!
  • maryellen8301
    maryellen8301 Posts: 100 Member
    for my fruit smoothies i add spinach (you cant taste it!), greek yogurt, whatever frozen fruit i feel like, ice and water or juice to get the right consistency.
    sometimes ill throw in a banana and/or avocado instead of ice

    Ewww I'm not sure about the spinach bit, I hate spinach though! I was wondering about yoghurt or juice, couldn't decide which would be best though.

    you honestly can not taste the spinach.. also if you add spinach put in some mango.. they are supposed to compliment each other
  • ttrussel
    ttrussel Posts: 99 Member
    Can't drink milk.... does anyone use Silk?
  • allierae14
    allierae14 Posts: 113 Member
    I love smoothies!

    I use:

    - plain yogurt (whatever brand we have in the house, if I don't have plain, I like vanilla too)
    - frozen strawberries (a big handful)
    - frozen raspberries (a big handful)
    - one banana
    - slash of orange juice

    I don't use ice in mine since I use frozen fruit in the winter, but if it is summer and I use fresh fruit I do add ice.
  • ttrussel
    ttrussel Posts: 99 Member
    for my fruit smoothies i add spinach (you cant taste it!), greek yogurt, whatever frozen fruit i feel like, ice and water or juice to get the right consistency.
    sometimes ill throw in a banana and/or avocado instead of ice

    Ewww I'm not sure about the spinach bit, I hate spinach though! I was wondering about yoghurt or juice, couldn't decide which would be best though.



    Sorry if this is a dumb question, but, Do you mean spinach frozen/drained or leaves? I've never made these...


    you honestly can not taste the spinach.. also if you add spinach put in some mango.. they are supposed to compliment each other
  • sloew
    sloew Posts: 106 Member
    Ok so this is a weird combo but until you try it you don't know what your missing! lol

    1/2 c frozen blue berries
    1/2 c frozen cherries
    1 c silk almond milk or soy milk
    1/3 c dry oatmeal
    1 TBS Peanut butter (or some kind of protien shake powder)
    handful of spinach

    I use this for a meal, it has all food groups. When adding the pb it has a strong pb taste so if you don't like pb flavor use protien powder. I love pb so I love the shake with it. I was also told to eat protien sparingly so I do that every so often, it's like a treat for him
    I also can't have bananas so I had to find something that worked for me. I plan on trying advacado in one next.
    YUMMY! Hope that helps!
  • sloew
    sloew Posts: 106 Member
    for my fruit smoothies i add spinach (you cant taste it!), greek yogurt, whatever frozen fruit i feel like, ice and water or juice to get the right consistency.
    sometimes ill throw in a banana and/or avocado instead of ice

    Ewww I'm not sure about the spinach bit, I hate spinach though! I was wondering about yoghurt or juice, couldn't decide which would be best though.


    I thought the same thing. You really can't taste the spinach! If you can get past the thought then it's a good way to get veggies. :)
  • Bike2BFit
    Bike2BFit Posts: 9 Member
    I drink my breakfast too, on my way to work. My recipe is:

    8 oz water
    1 frozen banana
    Cinnamon to taste
    1 tablespoon of wheat germ
    2 scoops of vanilla protein powder ( I use a shaklee product called Cinch)
    a few ice cubes

    Enjoy!
  • cutie2b
    cutie2b Posts: 194 Member
    for my fruit smoothies i add spinach (you cant taste it!), greek yogurt, whatever frozen fruit i feel like, ice and water or juice to get the right consistency.
    sometimes ill throw in a banana and/or avocado instead of ice

    Ewww I'm not sure about the spinach bit, I hate spinach though! I was wondering about yoghurt or juice, couldn't decide which would be best though.



    Sorry if this is a dumb question, but, Do you mean spinach frozen/drained or leaves? I've never made these...


    you honestly can not taste the spinach.. also if you add spinach put in some mango.. they are supposed to compliment each other

    I use fresh baby spinach leaves (not frozen - never tried frozen). And you really, truly can't taste the spinach at all. It does turn your shake green though.
  • MsMarketeer
    MsMarketeer Posts: 24 Member
    You really cant taste spinach and if you put it in one of those tall cups with lids and straws (mine is clear green, so everything I drink looks green, haha), you wont see it. But it is sooooo good for you and you wouldnt even know it was there if it werent for the color.

    When I'm in a hurry, here's what I do.

    1 c. water
    1 scoop whey protein powder (vanilla)
    1c. frozen fruit (strawberries and bananas are my fav)
    1 pk sweetner

    blend till done. Though high on the glycemic index, its really yummy!

    Another version:

    1 c water
    1/2 c. crushed ice cubes
    1 scoop protein powder
    1 pkg crystall light (flavor of your choice)

    Tastes like a creamcicle and is low on the sugars.

    Be creative with your smoothies...they are easy to do and very hard to make taste bad...

    When all else fails, add a little spenda or stevia (or sweetner of choice) to your concoction. Sometimes a little more sweet is all it takes.
  • engineman312
    engineman312 Posts: 3,450 Member
    6 ounces of fruit juice, 1 cup of frozen berries, 1/2 cup of non fat plain yogurt, 1 scoop of protein powder.
  • Missjilly1025
    Missjilly1025 Posts: 146 Member
    I love coconut milk! Also, extra soft tofu gives it a nice smooth texture and lots of protein without the calories.
  • Frozen berries yum and it makes it thicker
  • xSophia19
    xSophia19 Posts: 1,536 Member
    23jplq0.jpg

    this is the key ingredient for making the smoothie taste much nicer! you only need a few table spoons of it, and its quite low in cals :)

    hope this helped
  • Missjilly1025
    Missjilly1025 Posts: 146 Member
    Another version:

    1 c water
    1/2 c. crushed ice cubes
    1 scoop protein powder
    1 pkg crystall light (flavor of your choice)

    Tastes like a creamcicle and is low on the sugars

    I love this recipe, I'm going to have to try it!
  • mblanchard0625
    mblanchard0625 Posts: 74 Member
    almond milk..... yummmmm. The chocolate is good too.
    Or for a little chocolate kick, throw in a tsp of cocoa powder. not too much though, it can be very bitter
  • grapenutSF
    grapenutSF Posts: 648 Member
    protein powder, peanut butter, & banana. sometimes water or sometimes almond milk.
  • xSophia19
    xSophia19 Posts: 1,536 Member
    23jplq0.jpg

    this is the key ingredient for making the smoothie taste much nicer! you only need a few table spoons of it, and its quite low in cals :)

    hope this helped
  • I put unsweetened vanilla almond milk, frozen strawberries, a banana, ice, 0 cal sweetener and sometimes fiber one vanilla yogurt on mine and it's absolutely delicious! It also has a pretty pink color.
  • ttrussel
    ttrussel Posts: 99 Member
    for my fruit smoothies i add spinach (you cant taste it!), greek yogurt, whatever frozen fruit i feel like, ice and water or juice to get the right consistency.
    sometimes ill throw in a banana and/or avocado instead of ice

    Ewww I'm not sure about the spinach bit, I hate spinach though! I was wondering about yoghurt or juice, couldn't decide which would be best though.



    Sorry if this is a dumb question, but, Do you mean spinach frozen/drained or leaves? I've never made these...


    you honestly can not taste the spinach.. also if you add spinach put in some mango.. they are supposed to compliment each other

    I use fresh baby spinach leaves (not frozen - never tried frozen). And you really, truly can't taste the spinach at all. It does turn your shake green though.





    No, I like spinach, just didn't know which too use. Gonna try it when I get all my ingredients. Thanks!
  • I haven't made a smoothie in a while, but when I did, I put in:

    Whatever frozen fruit I had on hand
    1/2 cup FF greek yogurt
    1 tbsp Flax Seed
    And a splash of milk
  • jeepyj93
    jeepyj93 Posts: 392 Member
    This morning I made one with frozen cherries, raspberries,and banana. I alway toss my over ripe bananas in the freezer and use them in smoothies. I then looked in the fridge and I had only cottage cheese no yogurt so I put that in and some juice that was there and whipped it up in my Magic Bullet. No 2 smoothies are ever the same here I use whatever I have, sometimes it will be frozen peaches and blueberries. You can add ground flax seeds and bran to add fiber if you want. I don't add water I like mine thick enough to eat with a spoon.
  • Soozie1978
    Soozie1978 Posts: 138 Member
    Can't drink milk.... does anyone use Silk?

    I raised three kids with multiple allergies. I have made smoothies for 30 years one bag of frozen berries - any flavor, one or 2 ripe bananas, and enough liquid to blend. I like pineapple juice, but orange, apple, water or any of the milk, soy, almond, rice drinks should work, too. Play around with different fruits. My daughter liked pineaple, mango, and coconut milk.

    For more protein, try adding peanut butter to a yogurt smoothie! :happy:
  • hpynh2o
    hpynh2o Posts: 194 Member
    I buy my fruit frozen in large bags. Usually strawberries and blueberries. I buy fresh banana and cut them in half.

    At the beginning of the month I get zip lock bags and make up my fruit packs. Usually about 30 at a time.
    1/2 banana
    4-5 whole large frozen strawberries
    handful of frozen blueberries

    Each morning I blend until smooth and frothy...
    1/2 cup of 1% milk or unsweetened Almond Milk
    1 packet of Truvia sweetener
    1/2 cup of cold water
    1 scoop of protein powder
    1 fruit pack

    Makes about 24 oz (once blended/aerated)
This discussion has been closed.