Un-Green Your Green Smoothies

Green smoothies can be intimidating. Even I shied away from them for years. The idea of blended greens sounded weird. And if that wasn't enough, there was the color. How could anything that shade of green be tasty? Not only am I a convert, but I have become a loud evangelist.

Green smoothie with blueberries.

The undeniable health benefits I've received since incorporating one green smoothie a day into my lifestyle outweigh any possible aversion I may have had in the past.

Still, I can empathize with the odd looks and incredulous comments I get from others when drinking my smoothies in public. My carpool buddy says it looks like I'm drinking salsa. Other folks in the office can't even look. When it comes down to it, we are trained that green=mold and mold is nasty.

If you're averse to green drinks does that mean green smoothies aren't for you? Of course not, you just have to un-green your green smoothie? The "green" in the name doesn't really refer to the color anyway. It's about the ingredients. You can make green smoothies in almost every shade of the rainbow, depending on what you add in.

Green smoothie with beets.

My favorite add-ons to change the color of my smoothies to something more palatable by others are beets and blueberries. 

If you're not a beet fan, stick with blueberries. Blueberries are great because they mask both the color and the taste of the vegetables you're blending. This is especially great for winning over skeptical kids. Unless you have a Hulk fanatic at your house like I do. Then just make it as green as possible, call it a "Hulk Smoothie," and watch as they gulp it down in record time.

Other options include beet greens and rainbow chard in place of whatever greens your recipe calls for. Both will bring a bright pink/purple hue to your smoothie as they are pureed. 

Once the April smoothie challenge kicks off, I'll share some additional smoothie tips. Until then, start experimenting.