Family Gluten Free

A Blog for Gluten Free Families Who Want to Eat Better

TwitterFacebookPinterestEmail
TwitterFacebookPinterestEmail
  • Home
  • About Me
  • Our Story
  • Recipes
    • Beauty
    • Breakfast
    • Condiments
    • Main Dish
    • School Lunch
    • Side Dish
    • Smoothies and Drinks
    • Soup and Salad
    • Sweet Treats
  • Products I Love
  • My Kitchen Tips
  • Eating Locally
April 11, 2014
7 Comments
familyglutenfree
My Kitchen Tips

Guide to Building a Better Smoothie

April 11, 2014 My Kitchen Tips 7 Comments
Smoothie Guide

As you may know based on my previous posts, my family makes a lot of smoothies.  I started making smoothies for my son as a way to sneak in fruits and veggies into his diet when he was one and a half.  It has become a daily routine for the whole family.  I make 2 batches each morning, one to split among both of my boys and one to split between my husband and I.  I feel refreshed, energized, and satisfied after my smoothie and I know my kids are starting the day off with something healthy.  It serves as my breakfast and it gets me through my crazy morning routine chasing after 2 boys.

This is my guide to building a smoothie, but it is absolutely not the only way to make a smoothie.  When I get my blender out every morning, I don’t know what combination of ingredients I plan to use.  I use what I have in the fridge/freezer and I think about the flavors I am craving at the time.  Lately, as the weather is warming here in Massachusetts, I have strawberries on my mind.  Though my taste preferences may vary each day, I generally follow this guide.

My general rules are:

  • No grains
  • Only naturally occurring sugars
  • Make sure there are healthy proteins and fats
  • Add plenty of greens
  • Keep it vegan (no dairy)

I should also mention that this guide is based on using a high-powered blender.  I started out with a basic blender, then upgraded about a year ago to a Vitamix.  You can certainly get a great smoothie out of a conventional blender.  However, I have found that dates and hard seeds like chia seeds are difficult to blend uniformly.  You may have to figure out what your blender can handle.

I hope you find this guide helpful and it inspires you to incorporate more smoothies into your life!

Family Gluten Free Guide to Building a Better Smoothie

1.            Start with a good thickener
I prefer to use a banana (1 small or ½ a large), but you can also use avocado (1/2).  Frozen bananas are also great, I regularly freeze bananas we can’t eat before they get too ripe.
2.            Add some chill
You can use any frozen fruit of choice (1/2 – 1 cup).  I like mango, pineapple, peaches, strawberries, cherries, and blueberries.  If you don’t want the extra fruit you can just add ice (2-3 cubes).
3.            Add your sweets
I like Medjool dates the best (don’t forget to take the pit out).  You can find them in the produce section of any supermarket.  The amount you use is based on your taste preference and the sweetness of the other ingredients.  I typically use 1-2 dates per smoothie batch.

You can also use honey, agave nectar, or maple syrup.

4.            Add healthy fats and protein 
You can use any of the following: chia seeds, sesame seeds, hemp seeds, or flax seeds.  I use 1-2 Tbsp per batch.

You can also use nut butters or nut meal (1-2 Tbsp per batch)

5.            Add a yummy boost (Optional)
This can be anything to add flavor and nutrients.  Here is a list of my favorites:

Raw cacao nibs or powder, or unsweetened baking cocoa powder – 1 Tbsp

Unsweetened shredded coconut – 1 Tbsp

Raw goji berries – 1 Tbsp

Yogurt (I prefer non-dairy) – 2 Tbsp

Acai powder – 1 tsp

Spirulina – 1 tsp

Maca powder – 1 tsp

6.            Add Greens
I heaping handful of any of the following:  kale (I like baby kale or flat-leafed kale, de-stem if needed), baby spinach, lettuce, or arugula
7.            Add liquid to desired thickness
I usually add enough liquid to cover all the ingredients except the greens.  You can always add more if it’s too thick.  Here are the best choices for liquid:

Coconut water

Soy milk (I like brands that are only soybeans and water for ingredients)

Almond milk or other nut milks (avoid brands with carrageenan)

Coconut Milk (avoid brands with carrageenan)

Water

Splash of juice (pomegranate, acai, or orange juice)

 

7 Comments
« Jovial Pasta
Grain-free Cinnamon Sugar Fun-Dough Cookies »

7 thoughts on “Guide to Building a Better Smoothie”

  1. Marie says:
    April 16, 2014 at 7:11 am

    Hi!

    It is noticeable that there is a great number of tasty recipes on your site and we would like to suggest you to have a look at the Top Food Blog section on our site, the http://www.mytaste.com

    MyTaste is a social platform for foodies and blogs/sites owners like you and it helps to reach more people, get more visibility on the web and share/save recipes. Some of the top food blogs receive 20000 visitors from us on a weekly basis.

    To add your blog to the Top Food Blog list just follow the link http://www.mytaste.com/top-food-blogs

    If you have any questions please don’t hesitate to contact us at
    info@mytaste.com

    Kind regards
    Marie

    Reply
  2. puree juice bar says:
    April 16, 2014 at 7:46 pm

    so excited to find your site! i’ve been gluten free for 7 years now and it changed my life! glad to see you getting your family in on it as well. :)

    Reply
    • familyglutenfree says:
      April 16, 2014 at 8:33 pm

      Thank you! It has made such a huge difference in our lives. I am glad you found my site and I hope you find it helpful!

      Reply
  3. Pingback: Strawberry Coconut Cashew Smoothie - Family Gluten Free

  4. Pingback: Mint Chocolate Green Smoothie - Family Gluten Free

  5. Pingback: Frozen Grape Spirulina Smoothie - Family Gluten Free

  6. Pingback: Coco-Choco-Banana Smoothie - Family Gluten Free

Leave a comment Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Categories

  • Recipes
    (35)
    • Smoothies and Drinks
      (8)
    • Side Dish
      (3)
    • Condiments
      (2)
    • Main Dish
      (5)
    • Sweet Treats
      (6)
    • Breakfast
      (2)
    • Soup and Salad
      (5)
    • School Lunch
      (3)
    • Beauty
      (1)
  • My Kitchen Tips
    (3)
  • Eating Locally
    (2)
  • Products I Love
    (8)

Browse My Kitchen Tips

  • Smoothie GuideGuide to Building a Better Smoothie
  • How to get the Most out of Your AvocadosHow to get the Most out of Your Avocados
  • Homemade KombuchaMy Homemade Kombucha Experience

Featuring Top 3/3 of My Kitchen Tips

Family Gluten Free

My Taste

myTaste.com

Posts

  • Melon Matcha Smoothie

    Melon Matcha Smoothie

  • Mini Strawberry Rhubarb Crisps

    Mini Strawberry Rhubarb Crisps

  • Crab Bisque

    Crab Bisque

  • Rao’s Homemade Sauces

    Rao's Homemade Sauces

  • Slow Cooker Chicken Stock

    Slow Cooker Chicken Stock

  • Happy 1 Year Anniversary!

    Anniversary

  • Simple Mushrooms and Greens

    Simple Mushrooms and Greens

  • Homemade Deodorant

    Homemade Deodorant

  • Coco-Choco-Banana Smoothie

    Coco-Choco-Banana Smoothie

  • What Do I Eat?

    Unglamorous Selfie

  • Van’s Simply Delicious Cereal

    Van's Cereal

  • Honey Lemon Chia Pudding

    Honey Lemon Chia Pudding

  • School Lunch 3

  • Dairy-Free Raw Pesto

    Dairy-free Raw Pesto

  • Frozen Grape Spirulina Smoothie

    Frozen Grape Spirulina Smoothie

  • Quinoa Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins

    Quinoa Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins

  • School Lunch 2

  • Cashew Chocolate Chip Dairy-Free Ice Cream

    Cashew Chocolate Chip Dairy-Free Ice Cream

  • School Lunch 1 and Introduction

    Going to School

  • Grilled Pepper Salad

    Grilled Pepper Salad

  • Raw Revolution Bars

    Raw Revolution Bars

  • Summer Vegetables Three Ways

    Fresh Green Beans

  • Mint Chocolate Green Smoothie

    Mint Chocolate Green Smoothie

  • My Homemade Kombucha Experience

    Homemade Kombucha

  • Fresh Herbed Quinoa

    Fresh Herbed Quinoa

  • Spinach, Strawberry and Pecan Salad with Balsamic Dressing

    Spinach, Strawberry and Pecan Salad with Balsamic Dressing

  • Dairy-free Healthy Chocolate Cream Popsicles

    Dairy-free Healthy Chocolate Cream Popsicles

  • Spring – Garlic Scapes

    Outdoors

  • Grain-free Crab Cakes

    Grain-free Crab Cakes

  • Easy Mint Infused Water

    Mint Infused Water

  • How to get the Most out of Your Avocados

    How to get the Most out of Your Avocados

  • Lotus Food Rice Ramen Review and Bonus Miso Soup Recipe

    Miso Soup with Lotus Foods Rice Ramen

  • Portuguese Kale and Potato Soup (Caldo Verde)

    Caldo Verde

  • My Son’s Story

    My Son's Story

  • Strawberry Coconut Cashew Smoothie

    Strawberry Coconut Cashew Smoothie

  • Kielbasa with Peppers and Coco-Buttery Basmati Rice

    Kielbasa Peppers Basmati Rice

  • Grain-free Cinnamon Sugar Fun-Dough Cookies

    Grain-free Cinnamon Sugar Fun-Dough Cookies

  • Guide to Building a Better Smoothie

    Smoothie Guide

  • Jovial Pasta

    Jovial Pasta

  • Baked Meatballs

    Baked Meatballs

  • Easy Strawberry Pecan Breakfast Quinoa

    Easy Strawberry Pecan Breakfast Quinoa

  • Pamela’s Baking and Pancake Mix

    Pamela's Baking and Pancake Mix

  • Chocolate Coconut Balls

    Chocolate Coconut Balls

  • US Wellness Meats

    US Wellness Meats

  • Cherry Chocolate Almond Smoothie

    Cherry Chocolate Almond Smoothie

  • Omission Beer

    Omission Beer

  • Fried Turkey Cutlets

    Fried Turkey Cutlets

  • Slow Cooker Salsa Chicken

    Slow Cooker Salsa Chicken

  • Whole Grain Mustard and Apple Cider Vinegar Salad Dressing

    Whole Grain Mustard and Apple Cider Vinegar Salad Dressing

  • Quinoa with Zucchini and Portobello Mushrooms

    Quinoa with Zucchini and Portobello Mushrooms

  • Orange Cream Smoothie

    Orange Cream Smoothie

  • Introduction – Welcome

    IMG_7853

Foodie Blogroll

Pages

  • About Me

Archives

  • September 2015
  • July 2015
  • April 2015
  • March 2015
  • February 2015
  • January 2015
  • December 2014
  • November 2014
  • October 2014
  • September 2014
  • August 2014
  • July 2014
  • June 2014
  • May 2014
  • April 2014
  • March 2014
  • February 2014

Categories

  • Eating Locally (2)
  • My Kitchen Tips (3)
  • Our Story (3)
  • Products I Love (8)
  • Recipes (35)
    • Beauty (1)
    • Breakfast (2)
    • Condiments (2)
    • Main Dish (5)
    • School Lunch (3)
    • Side Dish (3)
    • Smoothies and Drinks (8)
    • Soup and Salad (5)
    • Sweet Treats (6)
  • Uncategorized (3)

WordPress

  • Log in
  • WordPress
© Family Gluten Free