Delicious. Healthy. Food.
Looavul, Luhvul, Lewisville, Louaville, Loueyville. However you say it, the locals recommend sipping on a little bourbon first to facilitate proper pronunciation. It comes out in a smoother, unhurried way when your motor skills are slightly impaired. While there’s always been some contention about how to pronounce the name of my adopted city, there’s never been a question that bourbon is king in My Old Kentucky Home.
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Summer is my season. I used to think it was fall. You know with the crisp breeze and chunky cable knit sweaters? But I’ve grown up a bit, matured, and in so doing have come to realize that I shake like a malnourished Chihuahua when I’m cold and my broad shoulders really bulk up in knitwear. So fall has been replaced by summer, and now I count down the days until I’m lying poolside drinking a margarita.
…
I’ve been doing a lot of this…
And not a lot of this…
Since we’ve chatted last, I’ve traveled over 4,000 miles, slept under four different roofs, consumed meat and alcohol every. single. day. and have noticed a tightening of my favorite jeans and a sluggishness in my gait. As Ellen Griswold says, “It’s Christmas and we’re all in misery.” Maybe miserable is a little dramatic, instead I’ll compare my holiday festivities to the bloody French revolution, “It was the best of times; it was the worst of times.”
I reeeaallly enjoyed my best friend’s generous contribution of 20 dollar brie to our Dip Day, and the first four bottles of bubbly went down reeeaaal smooth, but instead of dreaming about fried chicken, as per usual, I’m now fantasizing about a 110 degree hot yoga room and a giant kale salad. This mood usually strikes me but once a year, so I’m planning to harness my holiday heaviness, both literally and figuratively, to usher in a new year of healthy and satisfying foodie happiness.
Can you relate? Been perusing Gwyneth Paltrow’s two week detox plan? Enjoy a few of these green smoothies, and I promise you’ll begin to feel lighter, both literally and figuratively, within the week. This recipe is a great foundation. Once you start feeling comfortable with the idea of drinking a viscous mixture of fruits and veggies slightly resembling swamp water, you can begin to make this surprisingly tasty drink your own by adding herbs, spices, supplements, ginger, healthy fats…the list is endless!
Just in case you’re late to the green smoothie party, you’ve never heard the trendy new word ‘microbiome,” or the idea of downing 12 ounces of blended cruciferous plants makes you queasy, I’ll say this: my boyfriend is a Midwestern meat and potatoes type of guy. He drinks these smoothies. Happily. He’s even started requesting them. If he can get behind them, you can too. Promise. Start off your new green smoothie kick by adding an extra hunk of frozen banana or a couple extra pieces of pineapple. The sweetness will cut the sometimes grassy-bitterness of the greens, and you’ll barely noticed that you’ve consumed a day’s worth of fruits and veg in one glass!
INGREDIENTS:
1 kale leaf, center stalk removed
1 handful of baby spinach
1/3 carrot
1/3 celery stalk
1/4 kiwi, washed (leave the skin on, tons of nutrients in there, I promise you won’t taste the fuzz)
3/4 cup water
1/4 frozen banana
3 pieces frozen pineapple (I get a massive bag of it from Costco; it’s organic)
1 handful frozen berry mixture (also Costco, organic)
1/4 cup orange juice
Blend greens, kiwi, carrot, and celery with the water until smooth. Add frozen fruit (pineapple, banana, and berries) and orange juice and blend again until smooth. You can add things like a 1/4 cup of Greek yogurt, 1 tablespoon of spirulina (AKA algae, it’s really good for you, find it at any health food store), and/or 1 teaspoon each of ground flax meal and chia seeds. A half-inch piece of peeled ginger couldn’t hurt, nor would a teaspoon of turmeric or a couple of dashes of cinnamon. I prefer non-dairy smoothies so I usually add a tablespoon of spirulina and a teaspoon of flax meal and chia seeds to my blend. When I’m feeling under the weather, I throw in a little ginger. The point is, these smoothies are really hard to mess up, so make them your own.
Happy detoxing!
