The Green Breakfast Shake
One of the things that I really love having first thing in the morning is my green breakfast shake. Usually I don’t like to drink my calories (unless it’s a glass of Cabernet* ;)). I’m not tempted by juices or soft drinks, Slurpees or energy drinks, hot chocolate or smoothies the way that I used to be. And I also like to crunch on most of my food, as I find it tends to be satiating.
But the green breakfast shake is a little different. I like to make a glass of it in the evening so I can have it for the following day. The taste was nothing spectacular when I first started drinking it, but now I love it and crave it, which is awesome.
You can really put just about anything into your green shake, but this is my favourite combination (the entire drink is about 200 calories):
– 1 cup cold water
– Handful romaine lettuce, spinach, bok choy, or whatever greens you have on hand, torn up (basically however much you can fit into the blender so that it reaches the top line of the water).
– 3 pieces frozen banana (I always peel my browning bananas and then cut them each into 6 pieces before putting them in a container in the freezer, so 3 pieces equals 1/2 banana)
– 1/3 cup frozen blueberries
– 2 tbsp ground flax
– 1 scoop calcium/magnesium powder
– The contents of 1 probiotics capsule
Toss it all into a blender and blend until it’s smooth. It keeps in your fridge all night (and all day the next day, if necessary). You can also make this batch (it makes 2 cups worth, but I use a glass big enough to hold the entire drink), put it in a glass, and then make another batch and put that in a separate glass so that you’ll have enough for two days. I like doing that because then I only have to clean my blender once 😀
The ground flax adds lots of healthy fats and some protein, so I like that I don’t have to add extra protein powder. You can also add wheat germ or chia or hemp seeds instead.
For the probiotics capsules, I don’t like to eat the capsule itself (I know the ingredients in the plastic capsule are safe, but I’d rather just have the contents), so I empty the contents of the capsule into my blender. Sometimes I do the same with digestive enzymes capsules if my tummy isn’t doing so well.
Although I call this a “green” shake, it’s actually purple from the blueberries. I like that! It’s a great way to get some greens in first thing in the morning, and to get a jumpstart on calcium (especially since I don’t drink regular milk).
I often drink half of this in the morning and then the other half when I get home from work. It’s a nice way to wake up and energize, and then to quench my hunger when I arrive home and need something in my stomach now. I went out of town this past weekend, so when I ran out of leafy greens earlier this week I didn’t want to go out and buy a huge head of romaine, knowing that I wasn’t going to be around to eat it all while it was fresh. Instead of forgoing my green shake altogether, I instead used up the celery that was in my fridge (it had to be eaten anyways!) by substituting it for the lettuce, and it worked almost as good. You could probably easily use cucumber or snap peas, too, if you want some vegetable nutrients first thing in the morning but you’re all out of lettuce.
Do you like green shakes? If you’ve never tried a green shake before, give my recipe a try! You can’t taste any “green-ness” at all; it tastes like whatever fruit you’ve added. Use a whole banana and try it with milk instead of water if you’re scared for your first time; having a bit of extra fruit plus the frothiness of the milk adds a whole lotta taste and texture for when you’re first getting used to it. Leave a comment with your favourite green shake add-in!
*Not at breakfast, obviously.
I’ve had the creamy-type green smoothies, but not any made with water. My favorite add-ins are the banana, a smidge of peanut butter, and a sprinkling of cocoa powder. I also like the strawberry-banana-kiwi combo.
I’m not normally a fan of fruit-flavored water (I’d rather eat the fruit and drink plain water), but maybe making it with my widdle hands will change my opinion. It’s worth a try! Minus the capsules, of course. 🙂 Thanks for the nudge, Sagan.
No green shakes here 🙂
I always start eating with fruit, but I like the whole versions.
Why no hemp product in the shake? That’s classic green 🙂
Cammy- Heh, I guess it IS sort of like fruit-flavoured water! I’ve never thought of it quite like that before. I agree that I prefer to eat the fruit and drink the water, too- a green shake is just a nice way to get some greens in. Plus it’s thick, rather than watery.
Dr. J- Just haven’t gotten around to getting any hemp powder 🙂 But as for SEEDS, yep, sometimes I use them in place of the ground flax!
I love mixing spinach, ground flax seeds, frozen blueberries and raspberries and a splash of almond milk. I never measure, so each morning is a bit different… but that’s probably a good thing. 🙂
I love green smoothies. I call them smoothies at least. Are they shakes? Is that interchangeable?
Usually I use water or milk with a banana and other fruit, plus lettuce and spinach. Yummy!
Elizabeth- It’s nice to switch things up a bit!
Mary- I’m pretty sure shakes and smoothies are interchangeable 😉 Yummy indeed!
Sounds nutrient rich for sure. With Dr. J here, I know people love a variety of green drinks but, crazy as this sounds, if I’m doing greens for breakfast it will be a monster sunrise salad. Just not into drinking calories unless it’s Pinot Grigio. That said, this is one of the better morning drinks I have seen, and if it works for you, then enjoy!!!!
Wonderful! I just ordered a vitamix and am totally looking forward to trying one of these Green Smoothie concepts. Thanks for the recipe.
I swear these days in the TX heat Im about 90% green shakes 🙂
I love my husband, Sagan but I LOOOOOVE my vitamix 🙂
Emergefit- I had a few breakfast salads during my Raw Food Challenge, but for some reason I’m not a big fan of eating salad first thing in the morning… I DO like steaming veggies for breakfast though!
Monica- JEALOUS of your Vitamix- they sound awesome.
Miz- Tehehe I hear ya 😉
They’re a firm favorite in my house! We don’t often have berries, so I like using whatever fruit I can find. I do add hemp from time to time, and sometimes a little tahini.