Anytime I can incorporate wild foods into my smoothies I jump at the opportunity.
My girlfriend’s sister (thanks, Karen!) was kind enough to pick some blackberries off her property for us. We resisted gobbling them all down at once and reserved a few for this smoothie.
Berries, Beets, and Citrus, Oh My!
This delicious and supremely nutritious recipe is not my own creation, rather the brainchild of fellow smoothie master, Niko. She sent me this recipe a couple of months ago, but I held off on making it until I could procure beets locally. That happened last weekend at the farmer’s market and this beautiful smoothie is the result.
The nutritional powers of berries and citrus are relatively well known. Beets, not as much. Coincidentally, I just finished reading a fantastic book that I highly recommend, Eating On The Wild Side: The Missing Link to Optimum Health by Jo Robinson. The chapter on beets really opened my eyes and has convinced me to start consuming these nutritional powerhouses more often.
This recipe might just be the healthiest on my site. The combination of ingredients have been tweaked over the years to maximize the health imparting benefits.
However, I can’t take credit for this formula. A kind gentleman by the name of Raul was gracious enough to gift it to me. Raul is a chemistry professor at the National University of Mexico who has investigated turmeric for over 10 year. It’s safe to assume he knows more about turmeric than most people.
Raul shared this recipe with me so that more people can benefit from it. We both enjoy sharing and spreading information people can use to improve their health.
My local CSA had fresh rosemary this week and I couldn’t wait to use some in another smoothie, and smell its beautiful aroma :) My first rosemary smoothie was a huge success and oh so delicious!
I’ve been using rosemary more and more in the kitchen and felt somewhat validated last week while listening to an interview with esteemed herbalist Susun Weed. She mentioned many of rosemary’s wonderful qualities, in particular its antioxidant potency. I actually dug up this article by Susan for those interested in her take – Now Remember Rosemary.
Consider rosemary one of my favorite herbs!
Besides being an antioxidant powerhouse, rosemary is known for the following health benefits:
Is there any better smoothie ingredient than berries? Blackberries, blueberries, raspberries, strawberries, goji berries, mulberries…oh how I love thee!
Not only do the various berries taste great, they pack a hefty nutritional punch. Unlike higher sugar content fruit, you really can’t over do it with low glycemic berries, which are universally accepted by pretty much every type of diet out there.
Blackberries and blueberries are great for your health in the following ways:
Photo by genbug
The old saying, “the darker the berries, the sweeter the juice” is in need of a modification. Recent research has shown that darker skinned berries contain higher concentrations of antioxidants than their lighter skinned brethren. Therefore, “the darker the berries, the higher the antioxidants” might be more appropriate.
Berries as a whole are already known to have more antioxidants than other fruits and vegetables. Most people are familiar with the health benefits of blueberries (and cranberries to a certain extent), but the darker berries aren’t getting the press they rightfully deserve.
