Streamline Your Way to Healthy Green Smoothies

22 Mar

Healthforus I promised to post ideas about how to streamline your green smoothie preparation time with a sneak peak at the veggies and fruits in my freezer and refrigerator. Until I started to make the list to share with you, I didn’t realize how much produce, condiments, etc., I have in the freezer, refrigerator, and pantry. To keep a readable size, I’ll address the frozen foods in this post.

 

Today, my freezer holds:

 

  1. grocery packages of blueberries, mangos, and peaches,
  2. aloe,
  3. watermelon,
  4. pineapple, and

 

The first item—frozen grocery packages of fruit—enables me to have a variety of fruit when they’re out of season or not readily available where I live in Florida. Smart shoppers will take advantage of seasonal fruits, buy in bulk, and freeze them.

 

The second item, aloe, is in teeny foil wraps. Live Well Network has a video about growing aloe vera plants and their medical treatments. I cut the leaf off at its base, peel one side, cut out the clear flesh with a knife, and then cut the flesh into small pieces. I wrap these in small squares of foil and freeze them in a plastic sandwich bag. I put the leftover fleshy peels in a large baggie, refrigerate it, and rub them over my hands twice a day to help heal my psoriasis. I had several fingers bandaged before using the aloe—none today. Aloe is beneficial to our bodies, inside and out. When I want to include a little aloe in my smoothie, it’s convenient and easy from the freezer.

 

Thirdly, watermelon seems to go bad when there are only two of us. The solutions are to share portions with others and freeze small pieces for smoothies. I suggest you stock up on plastic freezer bags in quart and gallon size.

 

Lastly, fresh pineapple and bananas freeze well. I put a blender size portion in sandwich bags and then place the individual bags in one gallon-size freezer bag. It makes smoothie preparation easy because the fruit peeling and cutting is done, and the perfect portions are right at hand.

 

Bananas are a mainstay at my house. However, they’re always ripening too fast. I could make loaves of banana bread as in the past, but now when a banana gets those brown freckles, I cut it into small pieces and freeze them as I mentioned above. Bananas are used in a lot of smoothie recipes because they add sweetness and a smooth blend.

 

Strawberries and kiwi are favorites for green smoothies, but they have aggravated my psoriasis since I was a child. I still use them occasionally—but sparingly with other fruits.

 

How do you streamline your smoothies’ fruit preparation?

 

  • Purchase sandwich and larger freezer bags and
  • select your favorite fruits and greens from fresh produce.
  • Supplement the fresh fruits and greens with frozen store packages.
  • When you get home, wash the fresh items (lettuce, apples, cherries, etc.) with distilled or bottled water. You canuse clean, cold water. However, the University of Maine’s Cooperative Extension Programdoesn’t advise using the store-bought produce washes.
  • It’s not advisable to rewash ready-to-eat packages of greens.

 

I hope these freezer-plus hints help streamline your way to enjoying healthy green smoothies. Please check back to read future posts on preparation tips for refrigerator and pantry items.

 

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