YIKES Smoothie Time! 5 Cool Smoothie Starters

Smoothies are a delicious way to pack in nutrition and get a fantastic start to any day. It's especially fun to make smoothies with interesting, exotic and seasonal tastes. But not everyone has everything they need on hand at all times to make the perfect smoothie. 

One solution is to make "smoothie starters"-- pre-mixed and frozen smoothies to pop into the blender with some almond milk for an instant treat.

It's the quickest way to an awesome smoothie on days when you don't feel like chopping anything up. With smoothie starters, you can buy more exotic fruits like coconut or pineapple and make lots of starters all at once, so you don't need to keep these exotic fruits on hand at all times to have your perfect smoothie.

Smoothie starters are easy to make. You'll just need some plastic cups or popsicle molds (Available from amazon.com or from many department stores, like Target.) And, of course, you'll need your ingredients!

There are as many ways to make smoothie starters as you can think up, but here are 5 cool recipes to spark your imagination. Make substitutions as needed or desired!

5 Cool Paleo Friendly Smoothie Starters

1. Fall Pumpkin Spice Smoothie

Ingredients

• 1 can of pumpkin or 2 cups pumpkin puree 
• Pumpkin pie spice (or a mix of nutmeg, cinnamon, and allspice)
• 1 can coconut milk
• 1/2 cup almond milk
• 1/2 tsp vanilla
• Optional: 1 banana, chopped

Mix all of the ingredients in a bowl, and portion into small plastic cups or popsicle molds; freeze.

2. Tropical Smoothie

Ingredients

• 1 can coconut milk
• 2 cups pineapple, chopped
• 2 bananas, chopped
• 1 cup pineapple juice

Same instructions, same deal!

3. Supercharged Blueberry Health Smoothie

Ingredients

• 1-2 ripe avocado
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice
• 1 can coconut milk, full fat
• 1 cup blueberries
• Almond milk, as needed for blendability
• 2 tbsp spirulina
• 2 tbsp chia seeds

Place all ingredients in the blender or food processor and blend until consistent, then follow pour into cups and freeze. The lemon juice helps to preserve the avocado.

4. Choco-Banana Smoothie

Ingredients

• 2 cups almond milk
• 1/2 lb pitted Medjool dates
• 2 tbsp cocoa powder
• 2-3 bananas

Place all ingredients in the blender or food processor and blend until consistent, then follow pour into cups and freeze.

5. Magic Mint Smoothie

• 1 cup almond milk
• 1 avocado
• 2 tbsp cocoa powder
• Honey or your sweetener of choice, to taste
• 1/2 cup fresh mint leaves or 2 drops mint extract
• 4 cups spinach (You can also add your spinach fresh when blending the smoothie!)

Blend or process the ingredients and pour into cups or popsicle mold.

When you're ready to use your smoothie starters, run hot water over the cup or popsicle mold until the smoothie starter pops out. Put the starter in your blender and cover with almond milk and any other add-ins you like. Run the blender on a low setting until the starter block has been blended up, then turn it to high.

Enjoy!❉


Suzanne Anderson is the creator of YIKES! Studio Jewelry. Suzanne has been busy creating for most of her life. After graduating with a BA from Maine College of Art, she worked as a graphic designer and a painter. Suzanne works to ensure that YIKES! Studio creates work that is fun, beautiful, always interesting, and adorns the wearer with joy. Catch up with her on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, or Etsy, or her website at www.yikesstudio.com.

Pretty, Thick an' Frosty! Strawberry Pineapple Salad Smoothie

Ok, smoothie time again. I just love my daily smoothies. They help me make my quota of fruits and vegetables and they taste so great.

This is the smoothie concoction I made today.

  

Strawberry Pineapple Salad Smoothie (You won't taste the veggies-- I promise!)

• torn up red romaine lettuce--about small salad's worth
• handful of baby spinach
• small handful parsley
• 4" european cuke cut in several pieces (leave peel on)
• 1/3 can coconut milk (be sure you stir or shake the can first)
• 1 banana (can be frozen)
• water as needed-- start with 1/2 cup
• 1/4 avocado
• two slices of previously frozen pineapple
• big handful frozen strawberries (I always go organic here--sadly, regular strawberries are #1 on the most pesticide laden of foods you can buy).
• ice--I use 5-6 cubes as I like them very cold

Place in blender in the above order. Start on chop setting or whatever is the low setting on your machine. Proceed through to liquefy. If your blender gets air bound or isn't blending things up for you, sometimes it just needs a bit of a stir. Often a little more water will do the trick.

This actually makes more than the glass shown above so my husband always gets a serving too.

Enjoy! ❉