September's Smoothie

How are you celebrating  the first day of September?

So far, we're celebrating birthdays down on the Arkansas dairy farm.

I think that calls for a September Smoothie!

If you need a quick,nutritious, refreshment  for your action packed Saturday,

try a Apple Yogurt Smoothie I'm sharing from Midwest Dairy

                                 Apple Yogurt Smoothie

Ingredients:

                                                       2 cups low-fat vanilla yogurt                                                         

1 medium Granny smith apple,cored,

    peeled and diced

  1/2 cup orange juice

  2 tablespoons honey

 5-6 ice cubes.

                                                                       Directions: 

                                Mix all ingredients in a blender or food processor until smooth.
                                                                 Pour into 2 tall glasses. 

                            Garnish with sliced almonds, fresh mint and dollop of honey, if desired.

                                                          Happy September!

Back to School Smoothie

Although the calendar still says it's summer, the relaxed summer schedule is coming to an end  as the first day of school is approaching rapidly for families everywhere.  Even though my boys are no longer in school, I don't think I will ever forget those first of the school year moments of excitement mixed with a little anxiety.

 We often struggled with returning to routine bedtime hours and making sure breakfast was not traded for an extra minute in bed! It's been shown that breakfast is a brain booster and an  important part of the school success equation.   To help ease into the schedule, you may want to offer a Fruity Splash Smoothie as part of the breakfast routine.

You can find more Back to School nutrition tips and nutritious recipes  at DairyMakesSense. 

Fruity Splash Smoothie

Ingredients:
1 cup fat-free milk
5 to 7 large unsweetened frozen strawberries
1 medium banana,cut into chunks
1 tablespoon honey
3/4 cup orange juice
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Preparation:
Combine all ingredients in blender; blend until smooth and creamy. Pour in glasses.

Servings: 2

Substitution Idea:
For frozen fruit pops, pour leftover smoothie into small plastic cups. Cover cups with plastic wrap; insert stick and freeze.

Valentine Dairy Smoothie

 My friend, Bessie, from Dairy Makes Sense just loves to share dairy recipes and information about dairy nutrition.



Since February is Lactose Intolerance Awareness Month, this is a perfect recipe if you or your Valentine needs a lactose free choice.


Raspberry-Strawberry Yogurt Smoothie

Ingredients:
1 cup low-fat yogurt
1 cup frozen raspberries, unsweetened
1 cup frozen strawberries, unsweetened
3/4 cup low fat milk
1 cup ice (about 12 cubes)

Preparation:
Blend all ingredients in a blender until smooth. Serve immediately.

Substitution Idea: For those with lactose intolerance, lactose-free milk may be used in place of regular milk. The yogurt in this smoothie can also aid digestion.

Pineapple-Mint Smoothie

After touring the Mountain View herb garden at  Arkansas Women's Blogger Conference last year, I was  inspired  to try a few herbs in my own garden. Even though I knew mint to be a very prolific and invasive plant, I wanted to have my own bit of mint. I now have a growing patch of mint in a small flowerbed--make that a mint bed with few flowers!

  I've got plenty of mint  for this tasty smoothie recipe that I found in the recipe collection at Dairy Makes Sense.


Pineapple-Mint Smoothie

Ingredients:

6 cubes of frozen crushed pineapple in juice*
2 cups fat-free milk
1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh mint or basil

*Note: Use frozen crushed pineapple to chill and thicken your smoothie.
Spoon contents of a 20 ounce can of crushed pineapple in juice into two ice cube trays and freeze at least 24 hours in advance of making smoothie.

Preparation:

Combine all ingredients in a blender; blend until smooth. Serve in tall glasses or on-the-go drink container.

                                                                     Happy Wednesday!

June Dairy Month Blues

Fresh locally grown blueberries in Northwest Arkansas are the perfect addition for this last week of June Dairy Month celebration. Even though we have access to frozen berries throughout the year, there's nothing that shouts out summer more than  sweet, fresh blueberries blended with low-fat yogurt for a cool, refreshing smoothie.




Blues Buster Smoothie

Ingredients:

1 6-ounce container low-fat blueberry flavored yogurt
1/2 cup apple juice
2/3 cup fresh or frozen blueberries
3-4 ice cubes

Preparation:

Combine all ingredients in a blender; blend until smooth and creamy. Pour into glass and enjoy.






You can find other very dairy recipes for celebrating beyond June Dairy Month  at: