I’m doing a little life experiment – I’ve been drinking whey protein smoothies every day for the last while, but lately they’ve been making me feel kind of blah in my innards, characterised by weird digestive gurgles coupled by fatigue, and tripled by bloatiness. Gross, right?
Yes, I could just stop drinking them, but I’ve come to really enjoy my afternoon smoothie ritual – especially when they involve cocoa powder. So I’m going to use this as an excuse to find out what the fuss is about these “green smoothies” – smoothies that include something green like kale or spinach, plus fruit and other stuff to make it yummy. I’ve had my Vitamix for a couple years but have never tried one of these – until today!
My smoothie was: banana, beetroot, blackberries, a big handful of spinach, a few ice cubes, water and a heaping spoonful of cocoa powder (that’s right – cocoa powder!). I enjoyed this, though in the future I would skip the blackberries – the beetroot and cocoa are so good together, but the blackberries add a sour note that I’d rather pass on. The spinach? I couldn’t taste it very much. And it must be said: the Vitamix blended this to silky perfection.
While not as satisfying as my whey protein smoothies (I was hungry within 30 minutes of drinking this), it was also not as digestively challenging. And it was real food, which I can’t really say for “whey protein powder”. I could use this opportunity to externalise my internal debate about protein, fitness and a mostly vegetarian diet, but that would be boring. I’ll let the experiment speak for itself. Tomorrow: no blackberries, more cocoa.
After switching to making smoothies in our Vitamix, I’d never go back. So so so silky.
I’ve found that kale is far more filling than spinach–the week we made some with spinach, both of us were really hungry. So these days I used a blend of chard & kale which makes it about as silky as spinach.
The color on yours is phenomenal though! Makes me want to get away from the green hues to the purples 🙂
You inspired me – I bought a bag of kale today. First of the season! Now we’ll see if I can manage to not eat it all at once in my ultimate kale obsession: raw kale salads.
Have you ever tried to add a coffee spoon of spirulina? Personally, I feel satisfied for much longer with spirulina. And it makes smoothies of (almost) everything really green. 🙂
I’ve heard of spirulina but have never tried it. I should – it’s supposed to be one of those amazing superfoods. Does it have a flavour?
It does have a flavour and the first time I smell it I thought it would completely ruin my smoothie. However, the dose is so small that one doesn’t taste it at all in the smoothie (at least I don’t).