Simple Summer Smoothie

Welcome to the first ever Tasty Tuesday! Clean eating is important in our home. Now, everyone has their own definition of "clean eating" so in my opinion, you gotta eat what makes your body feel the best (and I'm not talking about mint Oreos here-even though they do make me feel pretty good!!). We eat lots of meat, fresh fruits and veggies and try to keep it gluten free if possible (which is sometimes hard for this pasta loving gal!). So Tasty Tuesday will be all about some of my favorite clean recipes. Let's start with this recipe for a Simple Summer Smoothie! 

I naively bought a bag of pre-made smoothie mix a few summers back. I had never really made a fruit smoothie at home and was completely perplexed about how to go about it. Do I need a blender? Should I use ice? Milk? I was having a total blonde moment so I caved and bought the bag of frozen smoothie mix. 

I got home and opened it up. All that was inside was some frozen fruit. The directions said to blend it with juice. Did I seriously just spend $3 for this? I knew I could find a simpler, less expensive way. So next time, I made my own. Here's whatcha do:

Use any variety of fruit you like. I like to buy what is in season...it is almost always sweeter and juicier. My "go to" combo is strawberries and bananas (I always include banana slices...there's just something about those bananas that give the smoothies great texture and natural sweetness). Then I usually throw in whatever is on sale...blackberries, peaches, and even raspberries. I have been known to buy fruit just for the sole purpose of keeping our freezer stocked with smoothies year round because my family LOVES them that much!

Cut up the fruit and freeze it in individual baggies. I usually put about
1 1/2 cups of fruit per baggie. Here are some that I have in my freezer right now (eek! I'm running low!! I know what I'll be doing soon!)

For a single serving:

1 baggie of frozen fruit (set on counter for about 5 minutes)

4 oz apple juice (I use 100% juice with no sugar added)

I use my large, glass Pyrex measuring cup to make the smoothie. Pour in the juice. Add the fruit. 

Then use an immersion blender to blend until smooth. Here I doubled the recipe.

And there you have it! Super fast, simple, and cost-efficient! 

And honestly, these smoothies help me keep out of the ice cream in the hot summer months (well, sometimes!). 
See you next week for Tasty Tuesday!