Gut Microbiome Green Smoothie
This smoothie is refreshing, lightly sweetened, and contains a hidden herb to boost the mint flavor – basil. It is a perfect, quick alkaline diet meal. The ingredients in this recipe may help with improving digestive health on many levels. According to research, patients who ate two kiwi per day experienced improvement in their symptoms associated with irritable bowl syndrome. (1) Leave the skins on your kiwi for added benefits!
Like kiwi, mint and basil both have the ability to improve the health of your gut microbiome by keeping in balance healthy bacteria. Basil essential oil which is extracted from the basil plant, was observed to be protective against clinical strains of bacteria collected from patients. (2)
The combined ingredients in this smoothie recipe are a complete meal, supplying portions of your daily vitamins, minerals, amino acids, and enzymes. Aside from the scientific research that supports the gut health health benefits, this recipe simply tastes delicious! It has a clean, lightly sweetened, and minty fresh taste.
How to Make a Green Smoothie
To be honest, pretty much all of my smoothies are green. If you have made a green smoothie that was a completely wrong texture, don’t let that deter you from making another. Smoothies are just like any style of cooking, the more you practice the better they are. I’ve practiced a lot and discovered that there is an easy technique to assembling the ingredients in the Vitamix Blender that will result in the perfect textured smoothie every time.
The first ingredients you add to the blender are the greens, then any superfood powders, and hemp hearts. Next are the chunky vegetables like cucumber, zucchini, or avocado, then add just enough liquid to chop these ingredients well with the blender. Lastly, add your frozen fruit and ice, plus the remaining amount of liquid needed to finish the smoothie to your desired texture.
For some people, myself included, texture aversions are sometimes the hang-up for not drinking smoothies. I finally accepted that using a good quality blender is key to making a daily smoothie more enjoyable. For many years my frugal ways would only allow me to use a lower value blender. It worked, but using a blender that just works required patience and planning to prepare each smoothie. Once the old one finally stopped working, instead of replacing it with a similar model, I realized that it was time to upgrade and treat myself to a higher quality blender. The Vitamix Blender takes the frustration out of smoothie preparation for me, and it makes them much more enjoyable to drink each day.
Mint Kiwi Smoothie
by Jessie L. S. Van Neste, Curing Vision
Servings 2 snacks for sharing, or 1 full meal
Ingredients:
- 2 average sized Kiwi (123g), not peeled but remove ends
- 2 medium Kale leaves (12g)
- 1 tsp Hemp Hearts (4g)
- 2 full sprigs Fresh Mint (9g)
- 1 sprig top Fresh Basil (2g)
- about ¾ cup Cucumber (134g), diced
- 1/8 tsp dried Stevia Leaf
- 1 small Avocado (98g)
- about 1 ½ cups Fresh Coconut Milk (354g)
- 2 medium Frozen banana (285g), chopped
- 1 cup ice, optional
Directions:
Blend all ingredients until creamy in high speed blender.
Ingredients
- 2 average sized Kiwi (123g), not peeled but remove ends
- 2 medium Kale leaves (12g)
- 1 tsp Hemp Hearts (4g)
- 2 full sprigs Fresh Mint (9g)
- 1 sprig top Fresh Basil (2g)
- about ¾ cup Cucumber (134g), diced
- 1/8 tsp dried Stevia Leaf
- 1 small Avocado (98g)
- about 1 ½ cups Fresh Coconut Milk (354g)
- 2 medium Frozen banana (285g), chopped
- 1 cup ice, optional
Instructions
- Blend all ingredients until creamy in high speed blender.
Sources:
- https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21147704 , “Kiwifruit improves bowel function in patients with irritable bowel syndrome with constipation.”
- https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23921795 , “The potential of use basil and rosemary essential oils as effective antibacterial agents.”
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