Smoothie Ideas for Kids

I sell a great kids Meal Shake that is very healthy. In vanilla and chocolate. If you would like a link send me a request

I like to use frozen fruit so you don't need to use ice & it's still frozen. I buy pineapple, strawberries, blueberries, bananas, anything you like really, blended with lowfat vanilla yogurt, milk & I add wheat germ for the vitamins/minerals & it adds a nice nutty flavor.

Sky's the limit here. I usually use yogurt, fruit and a little juice (whatever i have of each). Also, you need to buy some of those popsicle forms - you know they are plastic. Make a pitcher of smoothie, give her some and then pour the rest in the popsicle forms for yummy treats later!!!
Also, when I have bananas that are about to go bad, I freeze them and then use them later in smoothies - just let them sit out for a minute or pop in the microwave for 20 seconds, you have to kinda peel them with a knife because the skins don't just come off like normal.

You can add wheat germ for vitamins/minerals, whey or soy protein (go light on this though) for more protein. A friend of mine blends in spinach (I've not tried it). You can use carrot juice in place of part of the OJ or other liquid.

You could do a "pumpkin pie" smoothie, with 1/2 can (small can) of pureed pumpkin, 1/2 cup of applesauce (no sugar added) and 1 to 1/2 cups of plain or vanilla yogurt (if doing plain, add 1/2 to 1 tsp yogurt), 1/2 tsp to 1 tsp cinnamon, and a pinch of nutmeg/cloves/allspice if you want.

1/2 cup frozen mango + 1/2 cup frozen peaches + 1/2 cup OJ + 1/2 cup plain yogurt is good.

The most common one we make, though, is
Whole plain yogurt (1 cup) or 1 cup milk + 1 tsp vanilla (or sub 1 cup vanilla yogurt) + 1 cup of frozen fruit, and sometimes 2 heaping tablespoons of instant chocolate pudding.

Bananas are good, but they tend to make my kiddo constipated, so we don't use them much in smoothies. Honey is a good sweetner if you think you need it (we don't use it), since its liquid and has micronutrients; molasses (in small amounts) might also be good, since it also has some good micronutrients, but the taste is stronger.

Most smoothie recipes make great popsicles! :)

Adding some no-sugar-added, all-natural peanut butter (Central Market has freshly-ground peanut butter- yum!) is an excellent way to add protein to your kiddies' diets, which is something the youngens miss out on a lot. A peanut butter banana shake is yummy!

I make a smoothie for myself every morning to go with my cereal (usually Multi-grain Cheerios).
I use frozen berries. I've found a mix at Wal-Mart that has no added sugar.
I add in orange juice. I really like to use the kind that has calcium and vitamin D added in.
Then I put in a little Truvia (stevia sweetner) and a 1/2 cup of greek yogurt. Greek yogurt is really high in protein, so it stays with you longer.
It's super yummy! You can add in all sorts of things. Sometimes I add in Benefiber, etc.

I use the frozen strawbwrry, mango, peach,pineapple mix vanilla soy milk a tablespoonful of peanut butterand half of a banana. My kids love it! You can use regular milk also I use soy milk because My youngest is lactose intolarent..

We use young coconut in the summer quite a bit since it has natural electrolytes. For "snow cream" blend the water and meat of a young coconut with ice, a bit of milk or cream, a tsp of vanilla extract, and about a tbs of honey or maple syrup.

Coconut or milk kefir is delicious in smoothies too.

If you want a smoothie that doesn't get watered down, freeze your fruit first and then you can avoid adding ice.

If you are dairy-free, coconut milk or soaked raw cashews can add some creaminess.

The only thing I would NOT add is raw spinach. I know this is a popular thing to do right now for "green" smoothies, but raw spinach has properties that keep you from absorbing nutrients. If you want to add spinach (or other raw greens) then please steam them first! We use spirulina powder in ours- it's especially good in orange juice, I think.

I always add a big pinch of Celtic or Himilayan sea salt to ours for added minerals. Salt also boosts the taste of sweet, so you don't have to add sweetener. I've also recently discovered maca and lucuma powders and especially love the lucuma. It has a mild pumpkin/caramel taste that is hard to describe. We love it in frozen banana smoothies.

Have fun experimenting :)
M.

(my food blog- www.chickiepea.wordpress.com)

At my child care center we did purple cows, blueberries in regular milk. You can add ice cream if you want that type of drink. If the blueberries re sour then you'll need to sweeten it a bit, not a lot, just a bit.