It seems like everyone is jumping on the juicing and smoothie bandwagon, but not all smoothies are created equal!  When made with the right ingredients, the health benefits are plentiful so we say jump on! On the other hand, not all blended beverages are good for you so think before you drink! Here are six things to consider in order to become a smoothie mixing maven.

1. Smoothies made with dairy (yogurt, milk, or ice cream) can be unnecessarily high in fat. Swap out dairy for almond, coconut, rice or other substitute milk, or an all-natural juice. And honestly, a smoothie made with ice cream is really just a milkshake!

2. Smoothies are an easy way to get extra raw veggies into your diet. Ingredients such as beets, carrots, kale, spinach and broccoli add lots of great vitamins and minerals to your smoothie without significantly changing the taste. Smoothies made with all fruit can be high in sugar and not as nutritious.

3. Avoid adding processed sugar to your otherwise healthy concoction. If you are adding sweetener choose a healthier option such as maple syrup, honey or agave.

4. Homemade is best. A store bought smoothie is certainly a better snack than say a candy bar, but as far as smoothies go, when making them at home, you control what you consume and are sure to cut back on sugar and unnecessary color, flavor and preservatives.

5. Just add water! Using milk substitutes and juice in your smoothie does add extra flavor and some great vitamins and minerals, however, most of the flavor and health benefits are in the fruits and veggies. So if you are trying to significantly cut back on sugar and fat, try using water. We often swap other liquids for water in our smoothies or go half and half and it still tastes great!

6. Smoothies make a meal, juicing makes a drink. While there are lots of great health benefits to juicing, unless you are on a special diet, in our opinion, juice doesn’t serve as as substitute for a meal. Smoothies on the other hand, can serve as a meal because they keep the flesh of the fruits and veggies and allow you to add other ingredients, such as nuts, milks, and oils that ensure you are properly nourishing your body and don’t feel hungry.

Here is the recipe for our Beet Ginger Smoothie. Give it a try and let us know what you think!

• 1 ripe banana

• 1 cup fresh or frozen berries*

• 1 fresh raw beet cut into cubes

• 1/4 cup agave nectar or maple syrup (more or less to your taste)

• 1 cup apple juice (orange juice works too)

• 1/2 avocado

• 1/2 teaspoon fresh ginger

• 2 tablespoons coconut oil (optional)

• dash of cinnamon

• 1 cup ice

• (you can also add a full size carrot stick for added nutrients without changing the taste!)

Put all ingredients in the blender and blend!

*We keep a bag of frozen berries on hand because we add them to most of our smoothies and they’re just as good as fresh berries (with a much longer shelf life). Just make sure there is no added sugar or other ingredients.

Xoxo,

Zyn Beauty