Green Smoothie - "Mixi"

3 leaves lacinato kale
Large handful baby spinach
1 cucumber
1 small ruby red grapefruit
1 small handful raspberries frozen
1 handful mango frozen
3 T ground flax seeds
Water

I love the way a bit of citrus can really liven up a smoothie. The acidity balances out the bitterness of the greens and the sweetness of the cucumber and mango. This was a great blend.

Dessert - "Kale 'n Fruit Ice Cream"

6 leaves lacinato kale

1/2 cucumber

16 oz frozen pineapple

Handful black seedless grapes

4 T ground flax seed

1 c soy creamer

1 c unsweetened almond milk

It was the middle of summer and I was really hungry and hot. I knew a green smoothie wouldn't fill me up so I decided to make ice cream from greens and fruit. The main difference between this mix and a green smoothie is I used soy and almond liquids instead of water and it had a higher fruit ratio. I added 1 more tablespoon than I usually use of ground flax seeds so it would be thicker than usual.

If you are eating raw, you could make your own nut milk and use that instead of the soy creamer and almond milk.

I was so excited about it I had forgotten to take a picture of the ingredients so I took one when I remembered. Once blended, I added to my ice cream maker. I have and earlier version of this one and I really like it.

I thought it tasted great--filling and cooled me off but my husband didn't like it at all. I'm not sure why. Maybe because he expects ice cream to have a certain flavor? 

This made a lot! It completely filled up the ice cream maker. I tried freezing what was leftover but it got rock hard and didn't thaw evenly. It was inedible after that. If you make this, make sure you have enough people to eat it just after it's made. 

Green Smoothie - "Swamp Thing"

3 leaves lacinato kale
Large handful baby spinach
Large handful frozen blueberries
1 small orange
Small handful frozen mango
Dulse
3T ground flax seeds
Water

This sure was ugly but nutritious!

I put a few pieces of dried dulse in water before I start chopping the produce. Then I add it to the blender along with the water it soaked in. This ensures that no minerals are lost.

I grind the flax seeds in this coffee grinder and add the powder in at the very end of blending.

Green Smoothie - "Cherry Rainbow"

Large bunch of rainbow chard (I had about 4 leaves of each color--pink, red, orange, green)
~8 oz cherries frozen
~8 oz chilled vanilla almond rooibos tea (no flavorings, just vanilla bean, almonds, and rooibos)
3 T ground flax seeds
A few shakes of Ceylon cinnamon
Ice

I actually made this today so this recipe is jumping way ahead but I just felt like writing about it now.

I stopped juicing and blending for a while because I got really busy with other things and then I started to get headaches almost every day. Maybe because I stopped? My skin is also not too great since stopping. I was determined to make a green smoothie today but didn't have much in the way of produce (or any groceries for that matter) so I went out to the garden and harvested some rainbow chard. Thankfully, I had some frozen cherries left. I was a bit worried that this would turn out bitter but the tea and the cinnamon really helped balance things out and it had a bit of a kick. This was a very watery smoothie--more like a juice but that is completely fine with me.