Energy

Yummy Beet Smoothie to Build Blood

Genevieve Leave a comment

So last night I asked my 4 year old daughter, “what kind of smoothie do you want?” She replied a “red smoothie mommy.” Well okay so I thought I don’t have enough strawberries to make it red so I decided to go with beets. I have plenty of those since I’ve been doing some amazing fermented beets and veggies mix, but that will have to be another post…

The beet smoothie consisted of really simple ingredients and when I was thinking about their medicinal properties I realized that actually this smoothie was quite a blood building smoothie. In Chinese Medicine our Blood is made from the Spleen and Stomach Qi and stored in our Liver. Basically it is a part of our post natal essence that we can affect through diet and lifestyle. Our Blood gives us energy and turns into Qi. The Blood is what nourishes our organs, tendons, and ligaments and is even a part of our Yin… pretty important stuff isn’t it? So of course I want to build my blood to help nourish my whole body, mind and spirit. Here is a delicious smoothie to help and nourish our blood.

Beet Blueberry and Hemp Smoothie

  • 1 small beet (can include the greens too)
  • 1 banana
  • 1/2 cup blueberries
  • about 1/4 cup hemp seeds
  • enough water to blend

In TCM most dark colored fruits and vegetables build blood. In this case the beets, beet greens and blueberries and blood builders. Beets and their greens are also great for the Liver, which is the complimentary organ for this time of year, Lungs. Hemp seeds are actually an herb used in TCM called Huo Ma Ren to build the blood. Since it is a smoothie these ingredients are easy to digest and better assimilated. Hope you enjoy this as much as me and my daughter!!!

Jade drinking her Beet Smoothie

Who Needs Coffee When You Have GREEN SMOOTHIES!!!

Genevieve Leave a comment

I have been absolutely loving GREEN SMOOTHIES! I used to make them all the time and when I would try to share them with someone… well let’s just say it wasn’t the most palatable experience. But now after reading Green Smoothie Revolution by Victoria Boutenko, the smoothies I make are amazing and other people love them too. So the smoothies I used to make were out of spiralina, wheat grass, kale, maybe an apple. Yes they are good for you, but they tasted a lot like a grass smoothie.

It was actually my brother who said he was reading Green Smoothie Revolution, and actually making the smoothies and liking them. He had better energy and digestion from consuming 1-2 quarts of green smoothies/day. I had heard of this book before and I just assumed that it would be more of my crazy super green smoothies that tasted a bit too green. So I borrowed his book and actually followed some of the recipes and… WOW!!! So delicious, so fruity, still a beautiful green color (at least the recipes that don’t have blueberries or beet greens), and I keep wanting more. I have been consuming green smoothies every day for the past 2 weeks and I can tell you, even living on the Oregon coast with the lack of sunshine my energy is better than if I were having a couple shots of espresso!!!

Today the green smoothie I made (pictured below):

  • 1 mango
  • 1 banana
  • 2 cups spinach
  • 2 large kale leaves
  • 1 or 2 cups water (enough to blend up)
Green Smoothie

Green Smoothie for Today!!!

Some tips for making delicious GREEN SMOOTHIES:

  • rotate greens (meaning use different greens every couple days: maximizes nutritional value)
  • use fruit high in soluble fiber (this makes smoothie homogenous in texture and prevents separation)
  • drink 1-2 quarts/day (increases energy: can even be used as a meal replacement)
  • remember greens have the most protein/cal of any food so you will be getting all the protein you need
  • experiment to find recipes that you love!!!
  • check out Green Smoothie Blog for more recipes and ideas