If you have been in the world of Instagram and are interested in food and plant based diets, there is no doubt you would have come across smoothies and smoothie bowls. To be honest, 5 years ago they were not on my radar, I was a peanut butter and toast girl who was just trying to make it through my days as a new mum. I also often scoffed at smoothies… wondering how on earth anyone could have a smoothie for breakfast and not be starving in an hour.

However, what I realised was, finding time to make food (let alone shower) was extremely challenging for me, and that I wanted to be eating well but I was not getting what I needed… and all of the sudden, smoothies became my godsend! They are SUPER easy to make, leave relatively no mess, and are full of so much goodness, you feel recharged after having them. I also realised that you could fill them with lots of extra things that made them super satisfying and very filling (winning! Especially for this mumma whose mental capacity was failing).

And the more I learn and play, the more I know that smoothies can be an incredible addition to anyone’s diet, big and small, from great grannies to elite athletes. They are such an easy way to bump up our vitamins and minerals with little to no prep and bring whole food goodness to the concept of ‘convenience food.’

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So what are the ‘go to’s ‘ when talking smoothie creations…

• Choose your base flavours – think about what flavour combos you like and that work together and choose a base fruit… strawberry banana, mixed berries, blueberry, choc banana, pineapple coconut, mango, kiwi
• For smoothie bowls, or those (like me) that love a thick smoothie, make sure your fruit is frozen, this will make deliciously smooth and creamy.
• Consider adding a veggie or two – great ones to have on hand are frozen cauliflower, frozen peas, frozen zucchini, spinach, kale, avocado, carrots, beet, steamed and frozen sweet potato or pumpkin. Just be aware of flavour combinations, cauliflower is awesome because it has little flavour, peas can be easily hidden too… sweet potato and pumpkin can stand out, so just make sure the flavours match.
• Easy add nutritional boosts – oats, chia seeds, flax meal, hemp seeds, dates, psyllium, LSA, protein powder
• Your liquid – I’m big on Almond Coconut Quench, which is a blend of almond and coconut milk and add part water, but its a choose your own adventure. I do minimise the dairy I have so stick to plant based options, water or coconut water, but be creative and find the one you like.
  
  
  

I’ll be sharing some of my fav recipes in blogs to come. Would love to know what your fav combo is!?