- Now that we're in the thick of summer,
I've been receiving a lot of requests for smoothie recipes
but particularly for low sugar smoothies.
As you might imagine, many smoothies are loaded
with natural sugars
from the fruits contained in the smoothie.
Now, to be clear I am not against natural sugars
from fruits but when it comes to smoothies,
it's just really easy to overindulge.
I love a sweet mango smoothie like anyone else
and I even have a recipe for one on my website
but that recipe clocks in at more
than 50 grams of sugar per serving
so it should definitely be viewed more as a treat
rather than a smoothie on regular rotation.
So, today I wanted to share five easy,
low sugar smoothie recipes that have less
than 15 grams of sugar per serving.
They're still fruity but not overly so
and I'll be honest it may take your palate a little bit
of time to adjust to the fact that there's less sugar.
You can always add a half an apple or half a banana
to help bridge the gap as you dial down the sugar quantity.
I'll also share a few ways that you can sneak extra veggies
into your smoothie for a nutrient boost
and of course this is totally optional
but it's fun to experiment with and most of the time
these extra veggies are pretty undetectable.
I'm happy to partner with Vitamix on today's video
and I'll share a fun giveaway that we're doing
for my birthday at the end of the video
but for now let's dive into these smoothies.
I'm sneaking a few veggies into my smoothies today
which I'll walk you through in a second but zucchini,
cucumber, cauliflower, beets, butternut squash,
leafy greens, and carrots are always great options.
Bananas are frequently added to smoothies
because not only are they sweet, they add creaminess
and a little heft and when they're frozen
they also keep our smoothies nice and cold
but bananas are high in sugar
so I have a couple of alternatives for you
and the first one is frozen zucchini.
So, let me show you how to prepare it.
Bring a large pot of water to a boil
and while you're waiting for your water to boil,
slice the zucchini into a quarter inch thick slices.
If you have an abundance of zucchini from your garden,
freezing is a great way to save it
for months and to use it in future smoothies.
Add the zucchini to the boiling water
and blanch it for just a minute or so.
Blanching is key because it deactivates the enzymes
which would otherwise cause the zucchini
to become discolored and mushy.
After a minute. use a skimmer or slotted spoon
to remove the zucchini an ice water bath
which stops the cooking process
and then let it cool for about two minutes.
Drain the zucchini over a colander and then pat it dry
with some paper towels just to remove any extra moisture.
Lay the zucchini on a baking sheet and what
we're gonna do is pre-freeze it all in a single layer.
If we just tossed all of the zucchini into a storage bag
and froze it, we'd end up with one very large clump
of zucchini and that wouldn't be very helpful.
After one to two hours, your zucchini should be frozen
and you can now place it into storage bags like
my favorite silicone Stasher bags.
The zucchini will keep for several months in the freezer
and now it's easy to toss as much
as you'd like into any of your smoothies.
The other sneaky vegetable I often add
to smoothies is cauliflower and let's be honest is
there anything that cauliflower can't do?
It's a favorite veggie in the low carb, low sugar world
as it's incredibly versatile and I'll prepare
it the same way I just did with the zucchini.
After I've sliced it into quarters,
I'll remove the florets and then use a knife
to cut them down into bite sized pieces.
Then, I'll add them to a pot of boiling water
and try not to let one sneaky piece get away
and blanch them for one to two minutes.
In addition to killing any lurking bacteria,
blanching helps to preserve the quality
and flavor of cauliflower which is important
if you plan to freeze it longer than a month or two.
Transfer the cauliflower to an ice water bath,
let it cool for two minutes, and then drain it.
Pat it dry with some paper towels and lay it flat
in a single layer on a baking sheet.
You'll freeze the cauliflower for one to two hours
and once the florets are nice and frozen,
transfer them to a storage container.
Because cauliflower is a little bigger
and takes up more space, I'm using the stand up Stasher bag
as I can fit more inside.
And now that we've got our frozen veggies,
let's get to making some smoothies.
The first is a pineapple coconut smoothie and we'll start
with a half a cup of water and a half a cup of coconut milk.
Now, if you'd like to give your smoothie a protein boost,
there are many options and I'm using a whey protein powder
for the smoothie that has a delicious vanilla coconut flavor
but some other options for protein
include a vegan protein powder, collagen powder,
yogurt, cashew butter or almond butter,
a handful of spinach, and nuts and seeds.
And I'll use a variety of these options
in my smoothies today.
Next, I'll add a tablespoon of chia seeds
and a small piece of ginger
which I'll peel using the back of a spoon.
My Vitamix blender pulverizes a whole piece of ginger
with no problems but if your blender isn't as powerful,
you can finely dice or mince the ginger as well.
The sweetness in this smoothie comes from pineapple
and I'll use one cup of frozen pineapple chunks
then blend it up.
The combination of creamy coconut milk,
pineapple, and a hint of ginger give this smoothie
a delicious tropical vibe and I love
those flecks of vanilla from the protein powder.
For our next smoothie, we'll start with one cup
of almond milk and I'm using my homemade almond milk.
Then I'll add a half a cup of Greek yogurt
and you could use a dairy free yogurt as well.
Just make sure that there's no added sugar.
To that, add one tablespoon of hemp seeds
and one cup of frozen blackberry though
you could easily use strawberries
or blueberries in this recipe as well.
Now, we'll sneak in some frozen cauliflower
and I usually add about a half a cup per serving
which is just a couple of florets and then blend that up.
This is a luscious smoothie and while it's not
as sweet as it might look, it's loaded
with nutrients to help power your day.
For our next smoothie we'll start with one
and a half cups of almond milk and I should specify
that if you buy almond milk,
make sure that it's unsweetened.
Then we'll add one tablespoon of flax seeds
and a half a teaspoon of ground vanilla bean.
If you don't have ground vanilla bean,
you could use fresh vanilla
or a splash of vanilla extract as well.
To that, I'll add one scoop of collagen peptides
which I've written about previously on my website
and I'll grate about one third cup of carrots.
To sweeten this smoothie, I'll add one orange
and I've already peeled and frozen my orange
to keep my smoothie nice and cold after blending.
So, I'll add that to the blender along
with a half a cup of frozen cauliflower.
This smoothie is my spin on an orange creamsicle in a glass
albeit a little less sweet and a whole lot healthier.
All right, we're going all in on greens
for this next smoothie.
Start with one cup of water and add a large handful
of spinach and one cup of cucumber slices
which is about a half of a medium cucumber.
To add sweetness along with a good dose of vitamin C,
we'll add one kiwi fruit and to get the fruit out easily,
just slice it in half and use a spoon to scoop it out.
For some healthy fats and to help keep you full,
add a quarter of an avocado
and for protein add one tablespoon of nut butter.
You could add almond butter or cashew butter
though I'm going with cashew butter today.
And to keep this drink nice and cold,
add a half a cup of frozen zucchini.
This is a thick smoothie thanks to the avocado
but it's still a light and refreshing,
thanks to the kiwi and cucumber.
Lastly, we're finishing off
with a classic Downshiftology smoothie
which you might know from my Instagram.
We'll start with one cup of water and add one tablespoon
of chia seeds along with a handful of spinach
and a quarter of an avocado.
To this, we'll add one cup of mixed berries
and a half a cup of frozen zucchini.
Now, on Instagram I normally add a banana
but to keep the sugar low,
we're swapping that banana for zucchini today.
When you blend it up, the combination of red
and green makes my classic reddish brown smoothie
but don't let the color fool you because
this may be the sweetest tasting smoothie of the bunch.
All right, let's chat about this giveaway.
For several years running now I have had the joy
and pleasure of being able to give away a Vitamix blender
on my birthday which is August 31st.
I get another year older and one of you
in the community walks away with a shiny new blender.
The details for the giveaway are listed
in the description box below and whether you win or lose,
I hope today's video inspired you
with some new healthy smoothie options.
If you have additional tips or ways
that you make a healthy smoothie at home
that I didn't mention, please do share them
with the community in the comments
and if you'd like to see more Vitamix videos in the future,
make sure to give this video a thumbs up
so that I know that you enjoyed it.
All right, that's it for me this week.
I will see you guys again in the next video.