Easy and Healthy Smoothie Ideas

January 9, 2023

Everyone loves a fresh and fruity smoothie. They’re sweet, delicious, and make a nice occasional change from eating fruit. They also make it so easy to combine other ingredients with your fruit to create something that tastes exactly how you want and contains all the special ingredients you love.

Drinking a smoothie is different to eating fruit in its natural form. When fruits are blended smooth with other ingredients, the sugar molecules are mechanically cut down which makes them shorter and easier to digest. This does mean that a smoothie will cause a larger blood sugar spike than you’d get if you were to eat the fruit.

As you can probably imagine, it is better to eat the fruit, but smoothies are still far better for you than drinking fruit juice because you are still ingesting the whole fruit. They are a fantastic treat when enjoyed sensibly and without drinking them to excess, and there is no reason you can’t make your own delicious, healthy smoothies at home.

You can tailor your smoothies to your tastes by switching up your ingredients, and can also choose ingredients that have a lower sugar content and more fibre to make your smoothie as healthy as possible. You need to remember that the trick to making the best smoothies is that you need to put more than just fruit in there.

If you were to simply put fruit in a blender and try to make a smoothie, you’ll end up with something too thick to drink comfortably. As such you’ll need to add supplemental moisture and this can vary depending on the recipe you are using. The most common and least calorific liquid to use as a base for smoothies is water, preferably ice cold, and you can even use ice cubes instead of liquid water to create a super chilled fruity beverage.

Depending on the fruits you are using you can also use milk and milk alternatives as a liquid base, or even thicker liquids like yoghurt can be great to include though you may need to loosen a thick yoghurt with something runnier. Fruit juice is also commonly used. Whichever liquid base you use, you’ll need to be aware of the nutritional content of each ingredient if you are minding your calorie or sugar intake.

Add some oats

Oats are a highly nutritious, high fibre addition to your smoothie bottle and they release their energy slowly and contain more protein than you might expect. When added to blended whole fruit drinks they also bring a creamy flavour and texture to your drink which makes them highly palatable and tasty. Pop some oats into your next creation to feel fuller for longer.

Select some seeds

If you want to include ingredients with healthy fats and minerals then seeds are perfect for this. Chia seeds, pumpkin seeds, flaxseed, linseed and hemp are all excellent, nutritious additions to your smoothie, and their protein and fat content will help you to feel fuller for longer. Seeds contain vital amino acids and vitamins that contribute to a healthy lifestyle but they can be quite tough, so just make sure your blender is powerful enough to handle them.

Throw in some veggies

The best, healthiest smoothies will contain a relatively high proportion of vegetables because they are low in calories, contain little sugar, are packed with fibre and nutrients, and also give your smoothie a delicious earthy taste. Leafy greens like kale and spinach add a powerful punch to your blended drinks, bulking it out without adding excessive sugar to your recipe.

Carrots and red beetroot are also fantastic in a smoothie. Even if you are not a fan of eating these vegetables on their own they taste completely different when blended up with other ingredients in a smoothie so they’re a good way to get extra veggies into your diet. Veggies are also full of antioxidants that are known to slow the physical signs of ageing by capturing and neutralising free radicals in the body.

These are just some of the ways you can make your smoothies even more nutritious and tasty. The perfect smoothie for you will always depend on what you enjoy and what you are looking to get out of your recipes from a nutrition standpoint.

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