Power Smoothies and Super Foods...

Okay time for the promised "Power Smoothie" post! This little graphic is helpful... thank you Pinterest.  I pinned this a while ago, and found it to be a helpful jumping-off point for the green smoothie newbie.

Now for what I personally use...

Bee Pollen, Hulled Hemp Seeds & Spirulina

Flax Seed & Chia Seed

Protein Powder

Soaking my flax & chia seeds (I do this for about 1 minute+)

Wheat grass

I also throw in whatever greens I have on hand.  Spinach, kale, beet greens and cabbage are the most prevalent. I don't personally add extra sweetener (like in the graphic) but I do use some frozen fruit, again whatever I have on hand. Usually I stick to 1/2-3/4 cup.  To bump up the protein I also throw in about a half cup of Fage plain greek yogurt.  Blend away and you have a tasty smoothie that is full of nutrition.

Some of you are probably looking at  all these ingredients and going "Seriously Tiff?!?". I know,  I take it to another level :)  Here's a great site to explore. It's a raw food site but it has some really great info.

Here's a quick break down of each "super food":

Spirulina-  This is a dried algae powder or you can get it in capsle form. A little goes a long way. 1 tsp equals approx 3-4 servings of vegetables. Be warned though that it has a "seaweedy" smell.  You cannot taste it once it's mixed in, but the smell surprised me the first time I opened my jar. Here's a great article with more in-depth info...

Bee Pollen- "Bee pollen contain more than 96 different nutrients, including every single nutrient that you need to live. It's made up of 40% protein." -http://www.thebestofrawfood.com/super-foods.html
I added local bee pollen in an attempt to alleviate some of my allergy issues and because of it's high nutrient content. Currently I'm adding 1/2 Tbs to my daily smoothie.

Hemp Seed- Hemp is a high protein seed containing all nine of the essential amino acids (like flax). It also has high amounts of fatty acids and fiber as well as containing vitamin E and trace minerals.
Read more here.

Flax Seed- This one is a little more mainstream :) Flax seed is high in most of the B vitamins, magnesium, manganese and fiber. You can use whole seed or ground.  If you shop at Costco you can buy a large bag of ground flax seed for under $5.  The ground flax is convenient for cooking or adding to smoothies. Additional reading here.

Chia Seed- The nutritional benefits of chia include fiber, omega fatty acids, calcium, antioxidants and protein. More on the subject here.

Wheat Grass- "Wheatgrass contains most of the vitamins and minerals needed for human health. It's a whole meal and complete protein with about 30 enzymes. It has up to 70% chlorophyll (which builds the blood). It's an excellent source of calcium, iron, magnesium, phosphorus, potassium, and zinc."-thebestofrawfood.com

I hope this clarifies WHY I use all of these super foods in my smoothies.  If you are just starting out, I recommend the ground flax seed and spirulina.  I feel like those two additions will provide the biggest bang for your buck.

Finally, I'll touch quickly on the protein powder.  I really like the MRM brand because it's sweetened with Stevia and not artificial sweeteners. I read lots of labels before settling on this brand. One scoop contains 85 calories, 18 g of protein and 1 g of sugar. 

The beauty of smoothies, in my opinion, is that you can vary your ingredients and get a ton of nutrition all at once. 

So there you have it folks! Super foods and power smoothies...

Did you find this helpful??