Successful smoothie recipes?

[Anonymous]

I want to start trying to give my very picky toddler smoothies to sneak in fruit -- and possibly vegetables -- into his diet. I just got away with yogurt (which he hates on his own) and bananas. Pretty tame. Any smoothie concoctions you've had success with -- especially ones that effectively "hide" the fruit or veg? Thanks!

[Anonymous]

blueberries are good to use. Strawberries have seeds so are harder to hide. Some don't like that texture.

Frozen mango chunks from TJ's work perfectly and are full of vitamin A and C. they go great with banana.

You have to have a really top-notch powerful blender like a Vita-Mix to 100% liquify things like spinach.

Pineapple juice, just an ounce or so, is excellent at masking the taste of liquified vegetables like spinach.

[Anonymous]

I do some combo of the following fruits:
strawberries, blueberries, blacberries, mango, and always a banana - i feel it hides a lot

combined with yogurt, a little bit of OJ and a little bit of honey. my picky toddler eats it up.

[Anonymous]

I used fruit flavored kefir (a kind of drinkable yogurt) and a little banana, then I can add greens like spinach and even broccoli.

[Anonymous]

Always make sure to blend for a long time so that there are no little chunks. Also, start adding a leaf of kale or handful of spinach, so that the smoothies always look green -- you wouldn't want your toddler to get used to smoothies looking cream colored, only to one day see green and get turned off. If you use plain yogurt, a banana and some other fruit (mango, blueberry), and a sweetener (honey or real maple syrup), some greens can be added and you won't even be able to taste them. For nutrition, I also sometimes add things like nuts (hazelnuts are nice), flax seeds, peanut butter, blackstrap molasses (very high in iron), or an egg. Again, some sweetener and a banana will mask many other flavors.

[Anonymous]

My toddler loooves almond milk, blueberry, and banana smoothies...

I also do carrott and mango smoothies which he likes as well.

Smoothies are a GREAT way to hide fruits/veggies. Good luck, OP!!

[Anonymous]

How do you keep them from getting too thick? Just add more juice?

[Anonymous]

my fav is strawberry/banana which is super easy. I got the Magic Bullet (the blender, not the sex toy) which makes it easier. I fill it up 1/2-2/3 full with sliced frozen strawberries, add a scoop of protein powder, 2 packets of Splenda, 1 banana (or most of one), and fill the cup up with water. Perfect consistency everytime.

[Anonymous]

If you put in spinach (I do all the time) start out with small amounts, and be sure to remove the stems!