For the last two weeks, I have been in my kitchen faithfully...every morning. Out of the blue a couple weeks ago, I got a craving for a smoothie like you wouldn't believe. I literally went to bed excited about waking up so I could get one of the new smoothies from McDonald's in the morning. I hurried through my morning routine and left about five minutes early so I could hit up Mickey D's with the rest of the coffee drinkers and scarf-down-a-breakfast-burrito-on-the-way-to-workers. I ordered a McCafe strawberry banana smoothie. And boy was it delicious. As I sucked down my last drop, I already wanted another, but I knew shelling out three bucks for pureed fruit every morning would get pretty pricey. Then I had a light bulb moment. Duh! I can just buy the fruit myself and bring a smoothie to work for breakfast every day.
I immediately Googled "smoothie recipes" and was a bit overwhelmed with the possibilities available to me. But I decided to start simple and just stick with strawberry-banana. It was a brilliant plan, except for two things: I had neither a blender nor a way to transport my smoothies. But I was determined to start eating a healthy breakfast every day, so after work I bought a Magic Bullet knockoff blender and a plastic to-go cup (for $10 bucks!), along with all the fixin's I'd need for my nutritious liquid breakfasts: frozen berries, fresh bananas, apple juice, and a couple smoothies-in-a-bag, one from Jamba Juice and one from Yoplait. Since I have become quite the smoothie aficionado the last couple weeks, here are my reviews of the different types of smoothies I tried.
1. Yoplait: For this smoothie, you just add milk to the frozen fruit and yogurt pieces. This one tasted a bit chalky to me and was my least favorite. It was quite difficult to finish it all. I've still got half a bag of the mix left and don't plan on using it all.
2. Berry-banana: The first smoothie I tried without a packaged mix was a combination of blueberries, blackberries, raspberries, and strawberries with a banana and a cup of apple juice. This concoction was considerably tastier than the Yoplait fail, but the blackberries left too many seeds for me. I had a bit of a texture issue with this one. When I went with all strawberries and a banana, I liked the taste much better. This is the one I will have most often.
3. Orange Julius: That's right; I made my own Orange Julius. And let me tell you, it was bomb diggity. It tastes just like the delectable OJ you get at the mall. Unfortunately, this option isn't so healthy because it uses half a cup of sugar, equal parts powdered and granulated. But that's what makes it taste so good, so I'll probably limit myself to one a week and call it good. To make this smoothie, you combine 3 oz. frozen orange juice concentrate, 1/2 cup milk, 1/2 cup water, 1/4 cup both powdered and granulated sugar, 1 tsp. vanilla, and ice and blend away. The smoothie is a pale orange color, frothy, and oh so delicious. It's significantly thinner than the other smoothies I've tried, but it's one of my favorites.
4. Jamba Juice: This one is my favorite by a wide margin. I mean, it's made by Jamba Juice. Of course it's sinfully delicious. I'm a predictable girl and got the strawberry-banana in this mix too, but this one tasted much better than the disappointing Yoplait smoothie. It was fresh and fruity with just the right amount of tang and a perfect texture. Unfortunately, at $2.50 a pop, I can't afford to buy one of these for every day of the week, so I'll have to treat myself once every two weeks, most likely.
And there you have it. If smoothies don't trigger your gag reflex and you're looking for a nutritious, filling, portable breakfast, smoothies are the way to go. Just avoid the Yoplait at all costs. If you've got plenty of money to spend on smoothies-in-a-bag, try Jamba Juice's. But if you're like me and don't, just throw a few strawberries (frozen or fresh), a banana, and some apple juice in a blender. You'll be sipping summer in a glass in no time.
No comments:
Post a Comment