Healthy, Home-made Smoothie..

We have never actually tasted bought smoothies (I don't think there's even a Smoothie Bar at all in Kuala Terengganu). Going online and reading health magazines for healthy food tips (yeah...when you're middle-aged and having peers with all sorts of ailments make you think about what you eat) introduced us to this wholesome drink. We experimented with all kinds of fruits and best of all, we found out a great way to use up our home-made yogurt (yogurt itself having numerous health benefits of its own). You may say it's not cost effective to buy so many kinds of fruit just to make a smoothie...well, the secret is to buy many kinds and freeze them! They keep for ages in the freezer... Also by using frozen fruit you don't need to add ice cubes to chill the drink. (I don't think I can take warm smoothies, can you?) We combine local and imported fruits...use any fruits available or in season. Though, one local fruit that we find quite unpalatable is the starfruit (buah belimbing) - yucky. We haven't tried the durian, though... (call it intuition but I can't quite savour a durian smoothie even in my mind...hmm...I think it just got stuck in my throat - not that I don't love the fruit per se). For those of you who may think that something healthy couldn't taste that good...well you might think again once you've tasted this. Anyway, here are some pics and steps on how we make it:

Frozen blueberries - a bit expensive but you only need to throw 4-5 pieces/glass

Mango - also frozen

Strawberries and Kiwi fruit

You don't find soursop often but when you do, peel and freeze. This fruit has excellent health benefit; look it up online

You can also use preserved fruit like this one - cranberries has many health benefit, too

You may also add fruit concentrate such as this: pomegranate concentrate - notable anti-cancerous properties

And here's how to whip up a healthy smoothie. Oh, and you'll need a blender of course... :

Add a slice or a piece or two each of the fruit you have into a blender. Don't forget to de-seed any fruit with seeds...Also a little of the fruit concentrate if you want and/or a sprinkle of preserved fruit pieces.

Then add a dollop (or two) of (your home-made) yogurt

Now, this is optional. Some fruit has enough sweetness of its own (like if you add a banana) but if you find you can't get pass the sour taste, add some brown sugar or honey.

Lastly, add some low-fat milk (how much depends on the consistency of the smoothie you prefer)

Blend everything until smooth...

Pour into a nice tall glass...throw in some nuts - walnut/hazelnut/cashew/any nut/raisins and just enjoy the goodness of this healthy drink... yum..my! (do I sound like a commercial?)

Different colour for different fruit combination..

There you are...simple, isn't it? Have a glass of smoothie for breakfast every morning. It's great for your well-being (I'm sounding like a commercial again, right....lol)