Blueberry Basil Smoothie

I finally bought a new blender! After A LOT of debate, I splurged on a Vitamix Blender. I can’t even begin to list all the brands and models that I studied and deliberated over. In the end it was a battle between price and quality (as usual) and in this case the price was worth it.

I christened it with… what else… a coffee beverage, a double Cafe Frappe for me and my sister. (We do love our coffee!) Then I made this healthy smoothie for lunch. I know what you might be thinking. Blueberries and basil together? I know! But it works.

This tasty fruit and veggie smoothie is packed with loads of vitamins and nutrients.

Blueberry Basil Smoothie Recipe
(1 Serving)

Ingredients:

1 cup of blueberries
1 banana, frozen
2 fresh basil leaves
1 tablespoon peanut butter
2 tablespoons whole ground flaxseed meal (I used Bob’s Red Mill)
1 cup fresh spinach
1/4 cup skim milk or soy milk (optional)

Directions:

In a blender, combine all of the ingredients and blend them until they are smooth and creamy.
(Optional) If the mixture doesn’t blend well, add the milk to help it out a little. (Note, I did not use liquid in my smoothie.)

I have been wanting a Vitamix for years. I’d pretty much watch it on QVC every time it comes on (and my husband can attest to that because he’s watched some of them with me). I hesitated partially because because it’s super expensive for a blender and partially because I didn’t want to post recipes that are exclusive to Vitamix owners. (Yet, I posted a doughnut recipe not knowing if people had a doughnut pan. Go figure. 😉 ) You do not need a Vitamix blender to make this smoothie, but I would be lying if I said it doesn’t help.

There are a few simple tricks to help a regular blender make a smoothie. You may need to run your blender for a longer period of time to properly beat everything up. Ice breaks all the rules of blending. As if by magic they survive almost unlimited amounts of time in a blender. In other words, if you simply rely on the fact that they float you may have better luck skimming them off than fully blending them. A little bit of liquid can help your blender process some of the more solid things you throw in it. If you aren’t having luck with something, sometimes a splash of a liquid that goes well with the flavors you are blending can help a lot.

There is no mistaking that this smoothie is 100% healthy. It’s filling and I actually enjoyed this as a replacement for lunch. The combination of flavors in this smoothie are unique and they just simply work. It’s hard to explain, but I’ll try.

The basil is a subtle flavor and it’ a nice compliment to the blueberries. (Seriously, I wasn’t sure that was going to work.) The frozen banana helps to give the smoothie a thick consistency, but you really don’t taste it. You know what else you don’t taste? The spinach. Honestly. My youngest sister tried this and she said that she would never have guessed it was in there. Since this contains basil and spinach does that make it a “green” smoothie even though it’s not green colored? Ignoring the proper definition of a green smoothie, and a little bit of color blindness notwithstanding, blueberries are a superfood so I’m totally counting this one.

We all know that fruits and veggies are packed with healthy stuff and the peanut butter is a great source of protein. This smoothie also contains flaxseed meal which is a wonderful source of omega-3 essential fatty acids, fiber, and even more protein. It has a bit of a nutty essence to it. I found it in the “healthy” aisle of my grocery store. (The aisle my husband always calls the “Earthy Crunchy Aisle”.)

I want to thank all of you who gave me blender recommendations. I was super excited that people responded to my cry for help. 😉 You wouldn’t think that buying one would be so difficult. I’m loving my new Vitamix so far!

Rating: