For an added nutritional kick, I'll often put a tablespoon or two of wheat germ in my smoothies. Ohh, and I'm a big peach smoothie fan, but banana and peanut butter works for me too. :)

I love smoothies! But mushy banana gets an instant ick factor from me, so my smoothies are always banana-free. I make them using plain yoghurt, a bit of honey, a dash of orange juice, lemon sorbet (or any other flavour that catches my fancy if lemon isn't available), frozen peaches and frozen strawberries or raspberries. Proportions are whatever looks good. :)

Peaches, pineapple, bananas, berries- gosh, I love them all! I survived on them during the scorching blaze of July.

It's nice to add a dash of vanilla or orange extract. Maybe a dash of cinnimon too.
Yum!

I do have a favorite smoothie recipe, though my proportions might be a little off, since I just throw stuff in the blender till it looks right.

Peanut Butter and "Jelly" Smoothie

2-3 heaping tbs soft tofu (could use yogurt)
1/2 cup soy milk (could use regular milk)
3 or so heaping tbsp of peanut butter (creamy or chunky)
handful of red grapes (this is the "jelly" part! Clever, no?) :-)
a squeeze of honey for sweetness (to taste)

All measurements are approximate--the consistency should be rich and creamy, but not too thick, with plenty of flecks of red grape skin throughout.

I love this smoothie because it has lots of protein, not too sugary, and is very rich and tasty! I'm really a kid at heart, and I love PB&"J" in any form!

Oh, and I forgot to mention that if I have a banana around, I'll often throw about half of it in, and turn it into a Peanut Butter & Banana & "Jelly". Not quite the Elvis favorite, but it's good! (And makes for a sweeter smoothie treat, too.)

(I should also mention that my previous recipe was for one serving.)

I basically make smoothies with whatever fruit I have, but I did find a great tip a while back. To avoid possibly watering down your smoothie, freeze the fruit you're going to use in it overnight. The fresh banana, yougurt, and fruit juice should be enough to keep your blender blendings the frozen fruit. If the fruit freezes up the smoothie before its blended, next time try partially thawing some frozen fruit.

Any smoothie suggestions for someone who is allergic to bananas? I have a hard time making a good smoothie without bananas.

Usually, my smoothies are quick on-the-run breakfasts. I barely have time to hit the "puree" button on the blender in the morning, so your smoothie sounds like a wonderful weekend treat! Considering my time constraints, I use frozen fruit -- it doubles as the ice -- and orange juice. I'm sure it's not as creamy as yours, but it's a great start to the day. Like you, I'm a strawberry-blueberry fan:

4-5 frozen strawberries
1/4 cup frozen blueberries
1/3 cup frozen mango pieces
1 - 1 1/2 cups orange juice (depending on desired thickness)

Mix in a blender and pour. For even quicker preparation, Sunday nights are spent putting single servings of all the fruit into individual containers. In the morning, I just pull out a container and dump the contents into the blender with the OJ.

I usually make a peach, blueberry smoothie for a breakfast before I dash off to class. I use frozen peaches, frozen blueberries, yogurt(whatever kind is in the fridge), and a bit of skim milk to make it blend better. Sometimes I throw in a bit of protein powder if I need that extra kick. This makes a really thick smnoothie, but it is soo good.

I think there are two keys to a good smoothie. One is to freeze all the fruit, especially the bananas. Then there is no need for ice! The other is to have a great blender with a sturdy blade. We have this one: KitchenAid KSB5 5-Speed Blender

Our favorite is very simple:

frozen bananas (cut up ripe bananas, place on cookie sheet and put in freezer, when frozen bag them for future smoothie use)

frozen strawberries, peaches, blueberries or other fruit you like

apple juice

How much you use of each depends on the consistency you enjoy. You can add other ingresients to your taste or nutritional needs. Peanut butter, almond butter, or protein powder are all used at my home.

This smoothie was inspired by the raspberry cream smoothies that they sell at Ben And Jerry's.

2 scoops of raspberry ice cream (Ben and Jerry's Black Raspberry Frozen Yogurt preferred, but you can also try it with other flavors for a different twist)
1 large banana
2 cups crushed ice
5 or 6 strawberries
1/4 cup raspberries

Just blend and enjoy!

Peanut Butter, Chocolate & Bannana Smoothie

I almost made this one for breakfast, but ran out of time. It's dessert really.

A few cubes of ice
One Frozen Bannana
1/2 cup soy yogurt
(a little protein powder, if you're so inclined)
1 Tbsp of peanut butter
And Chocolate Soy Milk!!

And then after it's all blended, I throw in some granola for the crunch. But this part is completely optional.

Adding a little fresh grated ginger to your favorite smoothie is a fabulous little kick!

Great smoothie and good for you..

1 Cup Orange Juice
1/4 block of Tofu
1 Banana
Handful of frozen tart cherries (pitted)
1 Tablespoon Honey
any other fruit you have laying around (strawberries, peaches, blueberries, fresh or frozen)
ice

I love strawberry banana smoothies! I make them with with 7 strawberries, one banana, a cup of milk, half a cup of yogurt, half a cup of orange juice, a teaspoon of honey, and seven pieces of ice. Makes two servings.

I worked at a restaurant in high school and learned to make the best smoothies there - similar to ones already mentioned. Banana, apple juice, raspberry sorbet, a bit of ice and whatever berries you prefer. We would keep baggies in the freezer with the banana-sorbet-berry combinations measured out and ready to go.

These days I keep bananas in the freezer along with frozen blueberries and strawberries, and I use organic vanilla yogurt and whatever fruit juice I have on hand. No ice needed and they are the perfect consistency. Maybe the key is just a splash of juice? And although I still haven't tried it, a friend confided that he throws a few dates into his and they are fantastic.

Anyone know the amount of stevia to use, if you're a stevia user?

Instead of ice, I use frozen fruit to keep my smoothies from getting watered-down.

My standard recipe:
1/2 cup yogurt (flavored or plain)
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup frozen fruit (just about anything works)
1/2 banana

Hi Elise, and thank you for all of the wonderful recipes and beautiful pictures! :)

My non-dairy smoothie recipe - I drink it daily and love it:

2 cups water
1 cup frozen blueberries
1 scoop protein powder
1 tablespoon flaxseed oil (great source of omega-3s)
cinnamon or Chinese five spice to taste

I agree that frozen fruit is key; I sometimes add a frozen banana to the mix as well. If I'm out of frozen blueberries and bananas, I use ice and whatever fruit I have on hand.

Heidi - I'm a stevia user, but I don't put stevia in my smoothies, so I don't have a definitive answer. However, a little bit of stevia goes a long way. You might want to try adding just a dash at a time to the blender and tasting the mix until you find the proportion that you prefer.

I am definitely not a fan of bananas, but I do love smoothies. Here's my favorite recipe:

1 small container of Yoplait yogurt (any flavor that sounds good)
1 peach
1 mango
6-8 large frozen strawberries (or whatever looks good)
A dash of grapefruit juice
Just enough milk to allow your blender to handle the job

This is my idea of a perfect smoothie!

By the way, I love your recipes Elise!

These types of drinks are the most popular drinks here in Panama. Of course we are blessed with many fresh fruits and I make the drinks with whatever I picked up that day. It will usually be with mango, cantaloupe, watermelon, strawberry, papaya, pineapple or a combination of all of the above which usually is called tuti-fruity.

Nothing special is required, a little ice a little milk and fruit and sweeten to taste. Think I will go have some now.

We make our smoothies using frozen berries, banana, protien powder, kefier (in place of the yogurt), ground flax seed, bee pollen and sometimes a bit of vanilla. Just add ingredients till it looks right.

I love most fruit in smoothies, but a favorite has to include banana, blueberries, strawberry and maybe something substantial like an apple or pear. Add ice, vanilla soy yogurt, splash of juice, and you have a really healthy breakfast! I find that adding a bit of protein powder (like the previous person) keeps me feeling full until lunch. Try it! For the person who was allergic to bananas, I'd use more yogurt than ice and liquid to keep it creamy.

A fairly common diet-drink breakfast concoction in Mexico, which I always thought of as Mexican Slim-fast, is:

1 leaf of fresh nopal (also known in the U.S. as cactus pad)
1 cup of orange juice
1 cup of grapefruit juice

Throw all 3 ingredients into the blender and blend until smooth. Drink!

Lots of vitamin C in there, and the nopal has so much fiber that you feel full for a long time! Plus, nopal is rich in iron and B vitamins. Make sure you buy nopal leaves (or pads) that have been de-spined.

I know it looks like it would be bitter and "vegetable-y" tasting, but this comes out quite sweet and tasty.

I've always found that using frozen bananas is a great foundation for a smoothie. In fact, if I want ice cream, but don't have any in my freezer, I'll blend up a frozen banana ~1/2 cup of milk, and it has somewhat the consistency of ice cream. But for regular smoothies, I've found that the frozen banana makes it considerably thicker. I've also read that frozen bananas have more vitamins (and probably a bit more natural sugar) than fresh bananas.

My "summer" breakfast smoothie a cup of cold coffee, a cup of skim milk (calcium!), some times a frozen banana, always 1 1/2 tablespoons WW chocolate drink powder, likely cocoa with less sugar and more fiber, 2 boxes last all summer so for $10, I'm happy to stick w theirs. Oh. And. Some times. Ice. Love the idea of the nopal one, will look for them tomorrow.

Wow! What a great bunch of smoothie ideas and suggestions. Thanks everybody! Great tips on the frozen fruit. I love the inspired smoothie ideas like peanut butter and jelly, nopal, and even coffee. Keep them coming...

:-)

I'm big on smoothies and my favorites are either strawberry banana or strawberry kiwi. I love it with yogurt. Here's one I like as well taken from Super Smoothies:

1/2 cup unsweetened light coconut milk
1 1/4 cups diced fresh pineapple
1 frozen banana, sliced
3/4 cup passion fruit sorbet

Combine the coconut milk and pineapple in a blender. Add the banana and sorbet. Blend until smooth.

Makes about 2 1/2 cups or 2 servings.

In 1970(36 yrs. ago!)on the street sidewalk in Milan, Italy in front of the Sforzas Castle, there was a drink stand very similar to our old ice cream counters. This stand had bends of cut-up fruit of every variety. I stood there and pointed to every variety of fruit that I wanted in my drink. No matter what I chose the man added some banana and crushed ice. A blender whirled it all together and gave it to me to drink. It was called a "Fruita Latte" - a Fruit Milk [Shake]
No one in USA had heard of a Smoothie at that time

This has got to be the very best Smoothie recipe and it's low fat too......give it a try and let me know what you think.

Pumpkin Pie Smoothie
Serves 4
1 can (15oz) Pure Pumpkin, chilled
1 can (12 fl.oz) Evaporated Milk, chilled
1 cup (8oz) container vanilla lowfat yogurt
1/4 cup granulated sugar or artificial sweetener
1/4 tsp pumpkin pie spice
1 pint whipping cream, whipped to soft peaks

Combine pumpkin, milk, yogurt, sugar and spice in blender, cover. Blend until mixture is smooth.
Top with whipped cream and a sprinkle of pumpkin spice.

If you would like to see more great recipes (with great images), go to www.mykitchengenius.com, click on Create Supermarket List, then Recipe Browser (recipes are sorted by Starters Mains Desserts etc).

If you like the look of these, email me at recipes@mykitchengenius.com so I can onforward some of our new free Recip-e-Postcards.

Something I lived on while healing from having my wisdom teeth out:

half a block of silken tofu
couple of cups of cubed extra-ripe papaya
honey
ground flax seeds
splash of milk

Was very thick, almost like a pudding. I ate it by the spoonful since I couldn't use a straw. Had plenty of protein and fiber in it and was wonderfully decadent feeling.

I was becoming slightly obsessed with Whole Food's smoothies and decided to take matters into my own hands. I bought a blender and have been going nuts since. I usually eyeball it but my favorite blend includes:
-couple scoops of rainbow sherbert
-cup of orange juice or pineapple juice
-handful of frozen peaches
-handful of frozen strawberries
-cup of pineapple chunks
-3 cubes of ice
It's heaven!

This website is just amazing!I found alot of recipes and now have one of my own.I call it a"strawberry sunset". Its fannnnnnntastic!

- 2 cups of ice
- half a cup of coco lopez
-strawberry syrup,as much as you like [any flavors alright but I like strawberry]
-7 strawberries

Serves 5 people.
Take a sip,its strawberry heaven.

I pretty much use your ingredients except for the ice I use frozen fruits, apple juice or pineapple juice, 3 tablespoons egg white and a 1/2 cup oatmeal. (That breakfast for me!!)

My favorite Smoothie recipe calls for:

10oz frozen Blueberries
3-4 frozen Strawberries
3Tblspoons of Soy Protein powder
about 3/4-1 cup lowfat milk

This makes aprox 1 quart of smoothie.

This breakfast for me. I make it all the time. I'm totally going to try a bunch of the other recipes here, though. They all look so good!

Elise, my mother always made us banana smoothies when we were kids. I think it started because my brother and I had an uneven number of bananas to fight over. Always very simple, never measured, but very different from all these ideas, as far as I can see. We never used berries, or yogurt, or tofu.
My mother always did this:

Ice (couple handfuls)
Milk (1 cup?)
Bananas (2 or 3)
heaping Tbsp(s) of frozen orange juice concentrate

The concentrate makes it tangy, the banana makes it creamy. It's very good. I still make this for my kids.

I practically live on smoothies! I'm constantly expirimenting with all sorts of fruits. This is a smoothie recpie that I found in a cook book that I think is execptionally wonderful for people who want to get in their daily serving of green veggies:

1(?)cup white grape juice
1 cup green grapes
1/2 a cucumber, seeded
ice

Blend in a blender until smooth.
Enjoy!

Like "beyonduplication" I have smoothies most days of the week for breakfast or lunch. I've recently gone away from using banana's as a thickner (most people MUST have banana in their smoothie.) Instead, I've started using avocado; it tastes great, and is hugely benificial for health inside and out. This is a simple but delicious recipe I've been making alot lately.

• 1 ripe/soft avocado
• 1 cup frozen blueberries (thawed)
• 1 cup soymilk
• 2-3 kiwifruit

Simply remove skin/stone from avocado and kiwi fruit, chop into cubes and blend with blueberries. Slowly add soymilk to liquify. Use normal milk if you like, I just like the taste of soy. Add a little honey if you like some sweetness, this is a very creamy, subtly flavored smoothie.

If you like my recipe, please check out my others at http://lifestylesmoothies.com

Enjoy, keep up the good work Elise :)

Hm.. I have great bannana smoothie too.

1 Banana( sliced )
1/4 cup milk
1/2 cup of any flavour/type of yogurt that you currently have in the fridge.
4-5 large ice cup ( about 1 cup )
1 teaspoon of cinnamon
1 tablespoon of sugar

Throw it in the blender and enjoy! :)

Anybody know of a good book for a beginner smoothie maker. I just discovered them and am hooked, but need some advice.

My friend in California and I like to use frozen berries instead of ice and soy milk instead of yogurt and definately a fresh banana is essential! We really enjoy this combination and its a good source of soy! Love your site!
Gina Ballinger & Yvonne Jensen