Smoothie Recipes

The temperatures has been fairly warm where I live the last few weeks. There were a couple of days that were in the triple digits, so I went looking for some drink recipes to help keep me cool. Here are two that I particularly like:

Strawberry & Banana Smoothie

1 cup frozen strawberries 

1 cup frozen bananas 

4 ounces of plain yogurt 

1 cup of milk

Combine into a Blender and blend until smooth.

Tart Cherry Juice & Lime (Runner's World featured this drink recipe) 

2 lime cubes (lime juice frozen in ice cube trays)

1 cup tart cherry juice 

1 sprig of mint

This is a fairly simple drink to make. Just add the lime cubes and cherry juice in a tall glass. Garnish with the mint. For best results, be sure to let let the juice cubes melt for a few minutes.

Super Food Pancakes

I saw this recipe in an issue of Runner's World magazine and decided to give it a try. It is a healthy twist on a breakfast staple. It contains some "super foods", like kale and broccoli and it also has ginger in it. Ginger is good for fighting inflammation in joints, so its good to eat if you run a lot or have joint problems.

Ingredients
3 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 ½ tablespoons baking powder
2 tablespoons sugar (optional)
1 teaspoon salt
2 ½ cups buttermilk
4  eggs
3 cups kale
2 tablespoons grated ginger
1 ½ cups broccoli
1 cup celery
Arugula
Sunflower seeds

Instructions
1. Combine flour, baking soda, baking powder and sugar in large bowl.
2. In a separate bowl, mix buttermilk and eggs until smooth, then add to dry items.
3. Roughly chop kale, broccoli and celery; grate ginger.
4. In separate bowl, toss small portion of vegetables with ½ cup of batter and mix until well coated; season with salt.
5. Pour into cast-iron or nonstick pan and cook on medium heat for about three minutes or until golden brown on each side.
6. Top with arugula and sunflower seeds.

7. Sprinkle with fresh lemon juice and extra virgin olive oil. Makes 8 pancakes.

Grilled Pineapple Chicken Recipe

Good morning! I hope everyone enjoyed the holiday. Here is a timely recipe....

I found this recipe and tried it out when the outside temperature was in the triple digits. I didn't feel like cooking inside, so I fired up the bbq and retreated back inside to the a/c. I came out once to flip the foil packets and then went quickly back inside.

I did make some substitutions to the recipe. I couldn't find any pineapple jelly, so I had to go with pineapple w/apricot jelly. I also went with Mrs. Dash instead of salt.

I tried this recipe again without the pineapple jelly sauce. I just soaked the chicken chunks with low sodium soy sauce in a zip loc bag for 1/2 hour. That switch also tasted pretty good. Just something to consider.

I do recommend using an "ov-glove" or bbq glove instead of tongs. The tongs can puncture the foil packets and cause a mess. It is also a good idea to use a cookie sheet or a platter to carry the packets to and from the bbq.

Here is the link: Betty Crocker Grilled Pineapple Chicken

The finished product.