As part of my diet, I regularly drink a smoothie for breakfast. Quick and easy to make, healthy and nutritious. And there are so many variations possible when it comes to making smoothies! Various fruits and vegetables lend themselves perfectly for blending. For the liquid, you can use milk, yogurt, soy milk, or just water.
One of my favorites is the banana avocado smoothie. Why? The ingredients are readily available, and the health benefits are excellent.
Smoothie Ingredients
Here’s what I put in it:
- banana (1)
- avocado (1)
- date (1)
- spinach (handful)
- soy milk (1 cup)
This will result in 2 to 3 servings. You can keep the smoothie in the fridge as well for 1 or 2 days, although immediate consumption is the best.
Bananas are available in most parts of the world, and bananas are a healthy option for most diets. Just make sure to get a ripe one, as unripe ones contain resistant starch which is not digested. Ripe ones also are a little sweeter, so a single date will suffice.
The health benefits of avocados are numerous. They contain vitamins, minerals, fibers, and healthy fats. Consuming avocados as part of your diet can help lower cholesterol, decrease inflammation, and help reduce the risk of developing heart disease. But since avocados are high in fiber and fat, they make you feel full longer. So consuming them at breakfast will help postpone the next hunger feeling.
For the date, I use dry Medjool dates. They are more easily available, and I can keep them longer (in the fridge). My main reason for adding them is to get a little more (natural) sweetness in the drink. But dates are also high in vitamins, minerals, and fiber. The fiber helps with digestive health. And lastly, dates also contain antioxidants. The most important ones are flavonoids, carotenoids, and phenolic acid. These can help your body prevent diseases. If you don’t eat dates, you could use honey, or other natural sweetener.
Spinach is very versatile and healthy, and great for a smoothie! Spinach is mostly know as a good source for iron (creates hemoglobin in your body to help transport oxygen). But spinach also contains lots of vitamin (A, B6, B9, C, E, K1). Together with the other plant-based components, spinach as been shown to improve oxidative stress, eye health, and blood pressure. Although I use fresh spinach, you can also use frozen (thaw it first).
I prefer soy milk over regular milk, because it is lower in (saturated) fat and contains no cholesterol and no lactose. So it is also a good option is you are lactose-intolerant. Soy milk, in comparison with some other alternatives is also a good source for protein.
How to make it
Making a smoothie is rather easy. In most cases, it is about putting the ingredients in a blender and turning it on. With some recipes it is better to blend some ingredient first, before putting the rest.
In the case of the banana avocado smoothie described here, the ingredients can all be mixed together in one go.
- Peel the banana and cut or break it in parts before you put it in.
- Slice the avocado in half, separate the two halves, remove the seed, and scoop out the avocado from its peel.
- With the date, you also need to remove the seed if it still has one. I cut it up in a few pieces, but that is not really required.
Tip: For the type of blender that was used here, it is best to leave the date in big pieces. The smaller it is cut before putting it in the blender, the more grainy the end result. - If you use fresh spinach, make sure it is washed before using it in a smoothie.
- Poor the soy milk on top, put on the lid, and then turn on the blender.
Tip: You can increase the amount of soy milk if you find the end result is too thick. - It does need a little time to blend, so give it time to get smooth.
Apart from using a standing blender, it is also perfectly okay to use a hand blender. Just make sure your container is large enough to hold the ingredients, and move the hand blender up and down while blending to get a smooth result.
Cheers!
