TGIF! : )
I decided to try to be a little more productive during these holidays and experiment a little more in the kitchen. I love making interesting stuff to eat because I absolutely adore food and constantly search for new dishes to try. My obsession with smoothies actually started last December in Kerala. I was at Kovalam Beach at this gorgeous restaurant called the German Bakery with one of my best friends. I remember we were ready for a day at the beach and we had just finished a bit of yoga early in the morning before heading down to the restaurant for a bite to eat. I ordered a banana-oat smoothie and it was seriously just… perfection. It beat a lot of other drinks I’ve had and since then I’ve been fantasizing about replicating it.
Over the next couple of months I was living by myself and I didn’t have access to a kitchen, so my friends and I were making do with the little milkshake/juice shop at the corner of our street and on our college campus, but I never did find that perfect banana-oat smoothie. Now that I’m home and I have a kitchen, I can terrorize my mother with my little experiments [which are usually successful].
I spent some time looking up some smoothie recipes and finally mixed them around to come up with my own. I usually do not use measurements and cook by eye and taste so though I shall give you some measurements, I recommend you taste along the way and decide what you like best because it might be too sweet, not sweet enough etc.
I’m going to show you how to make two smoothies: A banana-oat smoothie and a strawberry-banana smoothie.
Strawberry-Banana Smoothie
This smoothie is very refreshing and really does taste like summer, along with being packed full of anti-oxidants and energy. It’s a good substitute for a bag of chips or cake for a snack and cools you down immensely, which is a big plus in this weather.
Ingredients:
Half a banana [if you’re using little bananas, then use 1 whole]
5 strawberries
half a cup of skim milk
half a cup of yogurt [preferably low-fat]
3 teaspoons of sugar/2 teaspoons of honey [you can reduce or increase the amount depending on your taste]
1 teaspoon of vanilla essence
crushed ice
Method:
Cut the fruit into little slices so they’re easier to blend, and remove the leaves from the strawberries. Put the fruit, yogurt, milk, vanilla essence and sugar/honey into the blender and blend until it’s somewhat smooth. It should look like this, a little frothy and not altogether that creamy:
At this point you can add the crushed ice. Remember to crush the ice manually before putting it in the blender because ice cubes can damage your machine [I learned the hard way]. After you’ve added the ice, you can keep blending until you get a cold, creamy and smooth mixture.
Pour into a fancy glass, garnish with a tiny strawberry and voila! You have yourself a fantastic, pinkish smoothie!
Banana-Oat Smoothie
Now this smoothie is extremely filling and high in fiber. It is a brilliant breakfast food or a post-workout drink because it gives you instant energy and helps lower your cholesterol, along with keeping you full and away from unhealthy snacking.
Ingredients:
1 banana [or 2, if you’re using the little ones]
a handful of oats
half a cup of skim milk
half a cup of yogurt
3 teaspoons of sugar/2 teaspoons of honey [you can reduce or increase the amount depending on your taste]
1 teaspoon vanilla essence
crushed ice
Method:
It’s pretty much the same as the previous smoothie. Remember to cut the banana into slices before you put them in the blender and then add the oats. Put in the yogurt, milk and vanilla essence and blend until you get a frothy, somewhat smooth mixture. You can then add your crushed ice, but remember to crush it manually first and not put in ice cubes [I cannot stress how important this is. Your mum/friend/partner will kill you if you ruin the blender]. After adding the ice, keep blending until you get a very smooth mixture, which might take some time due to the thickness of the oat.
Finally, pour into a fancy glass and garnish with a tiny slice of banana, and yay! You have breakfast! : D
So there you have it! Two delicious and healthy smoothies you can make yourself easily at home and enjoy. You can make smoothies out of any fruit and even vegetables, for example a spinach-banana smoothie or a papaya-carrot smoothie. If you liked this recipe or have any more you want to share with me, email me at mangomustacheblog@gmail.com or leave a comment below. Let me know if you tried it out. : )
Cheers!
Mango Mustache 