Dirty Little Secret

"My dirty little secret....who has to know?" - All American Rejects

I've had a lot of people ask me for my green smoothie recipe. I keep changing it up, adding and subtracting things trying to get the maximum nutrients while keeping good taste, but here's the best tasting version I've made:

Carrot (one big one or a few baby ones...I love the carrot juice and want to add more but my blender doesn't fully chop them)
Apple (I use a honeycrisp - any sweet apple will work)
Kale leaf or two (large..more if you are doing baby kale....be sure to take the leafy part off the spine, toss the spine)
Baby Spinach (2 handfuls)
 Strawberries (to taste...I use 4-5)
Orange and lemon juice (I do fresh squeezed but in a pinch, you could do from a bottle..I pretty much use all the orange just and may half a lemon or so)
Coconut water (I don't measure, just a few pours)
Regular water (keep adding more for smoother consistency)
Agave nectar (just a good squeeze, or you could use stevia....honey does not sweeten well with this smoothie)
Chia seeds (1-2 tablespoons....these expand in liquid, have no flavor, they help fill you up and a loaded with nutrients....they are a superfood)

That's all! Obviously, take off stems and remove the apple core and whatnot. Everyone's blender is different so be sure to read about chopping carrots and apples and stuff. Be sure to keep coconut water, juice, or regular water equal with the solid food when blending to help it all smooth out.

Yields 3-4 glasses (or Mason jars) full, depending on how much liquid you add

It's always best to drink this fresh, but who has that kind of time? I make a batch to get me through 2-3 days. If you are going to make these to last more than 2 days, freeze some! They will only keep in the fridge safely for about 2 days. These are so good when they have been in the fridge over night or have just thawed from the freezer, they taste like an Orange Julius with a hint of strawberry (to me anyways)....I guess it's because all the flavors have had time to meld together.

A little blurry, but that's it!

Chocolate

"Just because I'm sorry doesn't mean I didn't enjoy it at the time." - Snow Patrol (Chocolate)

Cutting out food?!?! They have GOT TO BE KIDDING ME!

Well, I gave up Dr. Pepper for Len...err....21 days....go me! (Yes, I tried to go 40 but I was stressed and tired one day, it was the only thing that sounded heavenly). I will say that I've went from having 3-4 per day to just 1 or 2 per day, and sometimes none at all. I think that's a step in the right direction?!

So, I entered that transformation challenge back in January and let's just say I failed miserably. I somehow gained 10 pounds instead (cold weather = no running, too busy = loss of sleep, cookies = yummy!) ...whoops! So then I started thinking....a few years ago I was at my skinniest (which still wasn't skinny but I felt great) so what has changed and what did I do back then? Oh yes, I ran every day without fail and slept a lot. Oh, and I loved my job and wasn't in school....aka, I wasn't stressed like I am now. Well, I can't help the stress right now, but the rest........

I've entered another challenge and am ready to commit this time! Full force! The weather is warmer so I can finally run again. I'm learning not to ignore the "your body is tired, go take a nap" signs. I've planned my days out a little better so that I have time to prepare meals, work out, and get plenty of "me/nap" time. ::MOTIVATED::

So...about MSG....aka monosodium glutamate....aka, the devil's advocate. In short, it's what they give to lab rats to fatten them up - and it's in most of our food. So I've been reading labels lately. This is a good practice btw. I haven't gotten to the "don't get it if it says *sugar*" stage yet, but if it says *monosodium glutamate* I put it back.

Today, I went to the store to grab some cream of chicken soup to make chicken and dumplings......well wouldn't you know it....MSG in the soup. Thank God for smart phones, I quickly found the substitute recipe that let's you make your own cream of something soup without the MSG! I'm doubling it and adding poultry seasoning to it!

http://southernfood.about.com/od/ingredientsubstitutions/r/bl90911a4.htm

Stay tuned.....I've started living the smoothie lifestyle and I may never look back! :)

::UPDATE:: 2 weeks later

I'm down 2 pounds and feeling great! The secret? I have been sleeping a lot more. Instead of trying to get a ton done and fighting through a tired phase with sugar (or Dr Pepper), I take a short nap. 30 minutes to an hour, then have some fruit or a smoothie when I get up. When you can hardly keep your eyes open, it's your body telling you that it needs rest...seriously! LISTEN TO YOUR BODY!