5 SUMMER SMOOTHIE Recipes by Starbright’s Kitchen

GUEST POST | HILLARY STARBRIGHT

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This long, hot summer needs some cooling off.

Personally, I love to blend frozen fruits and juices for any meal, and any time of year, but these beauties are my five favorite blends – especially fruity and fresh for the southern California summer.

A quick note: I am a big fan of HYV  – Hiding Your Veggies. This is especially helpful if you have trouble getting your kids (or spouses or parents, for that matter) to eat their veggies. I simply toss a handful of fresh kale, spinach, or other greens – baby spring green mixes and the like are perfect. All of these recipes work with an additional handful of fresh veggies – trust me, you won’t even notice it’s there.

All of these require only a few seconds to prepare – no chopping or mixing, just toss all the ingredients in the blender and fire away.

Green Smoothie

• 1 cup fresh kale and/or spinach (baby greens mix also works)
• 1 small green apple, chopped
• 1 1/2 cups apple juice
• 1 cup plain Greek yogurt

Pitaya Smoothie

• 1/2 cup pitaya fruit (you can also purchase pre-measured “smoothie packs”)
• 1 cup fresh kale and/or spinach
• 1 1/2 cups apple or pineapple juice
• 1 ripe banana

Blue-Cranberry Smoothie

• 1/2 cup frozen cranberries (I use Cape Cod Select)
• 1/2 cup frozen blueberries
• 1 1/2 cups pineapple juice
• 1 ripe banana

 Peach Ginger Smoothie

• 1 cup frozen or canned peaches
• 1 tsp. minced ginger (careful: a little goes a long way)
• 1 cup Greek yogurt
• 1 1/2 cups apple or pineapple juice

Cranberry Fudge Smoothie

• 1/2 cup frozen cranberries (I use Cape Cod Select)
• 2 scoops of fudge-flavored protein shake mix (I use the Orgain chocolate fudge)
• 1 1/2 cups milk (almond, coconut or soy milk is fine)
• 1 tbsp. hemp hearts or chia seeds