Odwalla’s fruit juice drinks sure are tasty – Heck I used to enjoy drinking them thinking I was doing something great for my body. But it turns out they are not quite as healthy as they seem. My issue with the fruit drinks are not taste, but otherwise. 1) They contain Soy Lecithin, see why I avoid any soy. 2) They are a little $pricey. AND 3) They are flash pasteurized. As stated on their web site: “…the juice is rapidly heated for a short period of time to a temperature high enough to eliminate harmful bacteria. It’s then quickly cooled to retain fresh flavors and nutrients.”
I’m not sure about you, but I prefer to make my own fruit smoothies. It’s easy, inexpensive and the end result tastes just as good (if not better) than some of those store-bought beverages. And at least you know that you’re getting ALL of the nutrients available to you.
- 1/2 cup full-fat coconut milk
OR 1/2 cup whole-milk plain yogurt - 1/2 cup filtered water
- Juice of half a lemon
- 1 small banana
- 1/2 of an apple, peeled and cored
- 6 ounces frozen pineapple
- 2 to 3 frozen peach slices
AND/OR strawberries - Stevia, to taste (optional)
- 1/8 to 1/4 teaspoon Vitamin C Powder, optional
- 2 teaspoons Spirulina Powder (learn more about the benefits of Spirulina)
In container of blender, add first 5 ingredients in the order listed. Process until mixture is smooth.
Add in frozen fruit and process again until smooth.
Sweeten to taste with a few drops of stevia, if desired. Add in Vitamin C powder, if using, and process briefly to mix in.
With machine running, preferably on low speed, sprinkle in the Spirulina Powder (this will help to keep the powder from forming lumps and clumping together).
Enjoy immediately.
Serves 2
Use all water or even better, fresh Apple Cider. I buy my cider from our local orchard, and use in place of the yogurt or coconut milk. If you use a fresh cider or fresh pressed Apple juice, you probably wouldn’t need the stevia. I also throw in a rough chopped golden delicious apple and frozen mango, strawberries, and even a few pieces of frozen broccoli florets. No ice needed, when I blend with the frozen ingredients.
Thanks for sharing your smoothie idea for an apple cider fruit smoothie. And yes I agree you would not need stevia with all the fruit. You may want to look at the total sugar load of your suggested drink you may find it high. Keep in mind even natural sugars can be an issue when consumed in high amounts. 🙂
I have been looking for a superfood option without soy and am looking forward to trying yours. I am just wondering if you have tried this without the Stevia? I try to avoid artificial sweeteners. Do you think the fruit is sweet enough?
I’ve not tried it without the stevia. But feel free to do so, the fruit alone may be sweet enough for you. Everyone’s tastes are different 🙂
Just a quick note on stevia though… stevia is a naturally sweet herb, it is not artificial. Yes the liquid stevia and powdered stevia are “processed” to some degree. If you are uncomfortable with that you can grow the plant yourself (I have it in my garden) and grind the fresh leaves directly into your drink. You could also purchase dried powdered whole stevia and use that in-place of the commercial stevia products. I would suggest looking at Mountain Rose Herbs.
Yum!
we use spirulina in our smoothies too. I have a mock “green machine” recipe that I make in my VitaMix using fresh fruit, veggies and spirulina. so good and costs so much less! 🙂