Eating Healthier w/ Fruits and Veggies (Spinach Smoothie Recipe)

Today I am sharing the tips that work for me and my family to eat healthier. I am a member of the Collective Bias®  Social Fabric® Community.  This shop has been compensated as part of a social shopper insights study for Collective Bias and their client.

A few days ago I talked about how we are trying to eat healthier and do more clean eating in our diet. I’ll admit, it’s not been an easy journey. But last night I resisted the urge for Mexican food, I have been without Root Beer for 2 days and I even skipped popcorn at the movies. Baby steps, right?  As we continue our quest, we had to restock our fridge with healthy eats.  As a family we went to Smart & Final to pick out some produce for our snacks and meals. The kids were able to give their input on the fruits and veggies they wanted. I think it is definitely helpful for kids to be involved in the food selection process especially when it comes to produce, that way they feel like they picked it out and they will be more willing to eat them.

We ended up spending quite a pretty penny but I was so happy with the selection. Smart & Final has regular sized packages AND large restaurant sized packages! It was cheaper to buy a 25 lb package of carrots and a bulk bag of lemons rather than buying a smaller package or individual. We bought raspberries, blueberries, kiwi, spinach, lemon, cut onion, potatoes, cucumbers and more! We really loved the quality and selection. They were out of peaches though which is a bummer since it’s National Peach Month! If you are looking for peach recipes, you can check out these peach recipes for National Peach Month! http://ow.ly/cc1uK

You can read about everything we found at Smart & Final here!

When we got home I washed all the fruits and veggies by placing them in a clean sink full of cold water and 1/2 cup vinegar and letting them soak for about 15 minutes. I then gave them a quick rinse with water and dried them before storing them.

I really want to make eating fruits and veggies appealing to my kids so I displayed them with easy access in my refrigerator. I also boiled some eggs and had some yogurt on the side for easy breakfasts and snacks.

So what are we doing with all these fruits and veggies besides snacks?

I’ve started making Green Smoothies in the morning. The great thing about smoothies is you can throw in what you like and blend it and bam, instant breakfast! I know for me, I can’t always remember to eat vegetables and fruit throughout the day so it’s a great (and easy) way to ensure me and the kids are getting our nutrients! If you have been hesitant about trying a green smoothie, don’t! My family found that actually you can’t even taste the spinach and if you blend it well you can’t even tell it’s in there!

Here are my versions of green smoothies!

Spinach Fruit Smoothie Recipe

• Spinach
• Banana (frozen if possible)
• Strawberries
• Tablespoon of Vanilla Protein Powder
• Vanilla Greek Yogurt
• Tablespoon of Honey
• Milk

I don’t really measure, I just put everything in and measure it out to everyone’s liking. For instance, some like it creamier with more yogurt and some may like it with more milk. If you like it a little colder and you don’t have frozen bananas on hand, you can use ice. I just throw it all in my big blender and blend it well for a smoother consistency.

You may be wondering, what am I doing with a 25 lb bag of carrots? Well as you can see from the photo above we have them in our vegetable drawers that way if someone is hungry, they can just grab one. I also have them for juicing/smoothies!

Here is a recipe for Carrot Spinach Fruit Smoothie

• Spinach
• Banana (frozen if possible)I
• Strawberries
• Kiwi
• Blueberries
• Raspberries
• Vanilla Greek Yogurt
• Milk

 I found with this recipe, the carrot took a little bit of getting used to because the pulp is thick. Also, the kiwi seeds were a bit of a nuisance but it was still good!

One thing I am advocating for all of us is drinking more water. Yep, I am trying to say see ya to good ole root beer and drink more water. I’ve seen the fruit water all over Pinterest so I thought, hmmm I could try that!

This is a simple drink with just sliced limes, lemons and cucumbers in water which sits for at least 8 hours in the fridge to set for flavor.  I keep a big jar of this fruit water in the fridge and it will keep for a few days. I just refill it when it’s low and when it’s time to empty the fruit I dump it in the sink and use it for cleaning and my garbage disposal for a clean smell.

Want to jumpstart your journey to healthier eating? Here are 5 easy tips to eating healthier!

 

Want to try a banana smoothie? Click on the photo below!

http://cleverpinkpirate.com/2012/11/25/banana-smoothie-recipe/

You can take all of your fruits and vegetables and throw them in a juicer! This is the easiest way I have found to make sure I eat my fruits and vegetables.

http://cleverpinkpirate.com/2015/01/07/new-juicing-tips-power-smoothie-recipe/