second chance smoothies

I'll be completely honest with you: up until a few days ago, I was NOT a smoothie person. The few that I had tried never impressed me and the thought of replacing a precious meal with blended anything was less than appetizing. The addition of yogurt into smoothies, popular though it may be, really did not appeal to me either as I am not big on dairy (or really, dairy is not big on me).

I recently came to find out via Joy of Cooking that -traditionally- smoothies don't include dairy products at all! (Oh, snap!) They're actually made with fruit flesh and juice, and are thickened with frozen fruits, creamy bananas or ice (rather than yogurt, milk or ice cream). In fact, dairy-based blended drinks aren't smoothies at all-- they're technically milkshakes. I'd been so mislead by popular juice bars and chain coffee shops that I claimed to dislike something that I had really never tried. For shame!

And so, I gave smoothies a second chance. My husband (also a former Smoothie Hater) and I had a lot of fun last weekend making our own personalized concoctions with frozen peaches, strawberries, and blueberries, and some sweet-tart lemonade. I can't believe I'd held out for so long, 'cause this was YUM. As in, good enough to replace your current breakfast kind of yum. Or even, good enough to replace that snack cake you've been eyeing kind of yum.

Consider this my PSA for *real* Smoothies.

Old School Smoothies

Total time: 5 minutes, if that

Serves: 1

 Ingredients:

• 1 heaping cup of frozen fruit (I used 3/4 cup strawberries with 1/4 cup peaches, and 3/4 cup blueberries with 1/4 cup strawberries)
• 1 cup of chilled lemonade (or other juice)

Add frozen fruit pieces and lemonade into a blender, and blend until smooth.

Notes: The more fruit you add, the thicker your smoothie will be. I made a thicker version and a juicier version; though I prefer thick, both were delicious. Also, the blueberries tend to be more watery than other frozen fruits and the skins look chunky when blended -- but they're still a great tasting addition to any smoothie.

Don't restrict yourself to this recipe! Have fun mixing and matching your favorite fruits, juices, and add-ins like a drizzle of honey, a scoop of sorbet or a shot of rum. There's a smoothie for any time or anyone... even picky, fruit-loathing husbands. x

edible exploits: pineapple with tequila & mint

Hello there friends. Its *Friday* ya-hoo! Some days I felt like it would never come!

Well, I've continued with my resolution to try new recipes every week to expand my culinary horizons, and I'm pretty proud of that. I'm told that many people have given up on their resolutions by now, and for once I'm not one of them.

I was looking around for some snack and dessert recipes that are on the healthy side because I'm also attempting to eat better this year. So, I thought maybe having a delicious fruit dessert recipe would be handy for those days you just need something sweet but, don't want to resort to something too sinful.

I came upon this super simple recipe in Perfect Mexican -- a little gem of a cookbook, with lots of fresh, wonderful recipes and vivid, enticing photos. Sweet, succulent pineapple combines with fresh mint and just a touch of smokey-smooth tequila for a treat that is sure to satisfy your sweet tooth (without all that sugar, of course).

Pineapple with Tequila & Mint

{Recipe from Perfect Mexican, Parragon Publishing 2006}

Prep Time: about 10 minutes
Serves: 4-6

Ingredients:

• 1 ripe pineapple


• sugar, to taste
  
• juice of 1 lemon
  
• 2-3 tablespoons tequila (or a few drops of vanilla extract if you prefer)


• several sprigs of fresh mint, leaves removed & cut into thin strips
  
• fresh mint sprig, to garnish (optional)

::What to look for in a ripe pineapple: the flesh should be firm, somewhat golden in color and it should have a sweet aroma. Steer clear of fruits that are completely green, don't smell sweet, have brown leaves or are bronze/red in color.::

1. Using a sharp serrated knife, cut off the top and the bottom of the pineapple. Place upright on a cutting board, then slice off the skin, cutting downward. Cut the pineapple in half, remove the core, then cut the flesh into bite-sized chunks.

2. Place the pineapple chunks in a bowl and sprinkle with the sugar (only a pinch is needed as ripe pineapple is already quite sweet), lemon juice, and tequila or vanilla extract. Toss to coat well, then cover and chill until ready to serve.

3. To serve, arrange on a plate and sprinkle with the mint strips. Garnish with a fresh mint sprig if desired.

I would recommend using a good quality blanco (white) or plata (silver) tequila for this dish, as the smokey-ness does not overwhelm -- I like Don Julio or Herradura for their smoothness. As a general rule of thumb: if you wouldn't drink it straight, don't put it in your food!

Thanks for stopping by and have a great weekend! x