Into the clearing

In my family we make a jug of smoothie most days and we are hardly ever sick. This is despite the fact that my husband and I work at two separate schools and my daughter is at a third one. We are exposed to a lot of germs, but I think the way we eat helps us stay well. So in these times of health risks and focus on sicknesses, I say lets focus on our immune systems instead!

Smoothies take less than a minute to make but give you a vitamin and nutrition BLAST.

The first thing we put in our blender jug is water or mylk (oat/almond/soy). Then we add any of the following depending on our mood and what is in the fridge and freezer:

Apple, orange, frozen fruit from the freezer like berries. We also add things like figs from our tree), tomatoes, celery, ginger, and then mint or parsley from the garden.

It is good to seek out locally growing fruit when it is in season, and put it in your freezer for later. Why? Because it has ripened on the tree and not been stored and transported before it even reached the door of the supermarket. It is also possibly organic if the tree is happily neglected like most back yard fruit trees!

From our own trees we have frozen mulberries that we harvested months ago, frozen figs we harvested in the last weeks, and some frozen cumquats harvested in the last days. My neighbours have lemons too.

If you have fruit trees, you can freeze it and use it all year round. Or maybe your friends, neighbours or Grandma has a laden tree?! Gathering in local fruit means more nutrient value and less cost.

You can also check your ‘buynothing’ Facebook group for your suburb and ask for some. There are often people in my local group giving away fruit.

I also freeze any bananas that are getting too ripe. I peel and throw them in a bag in the freezer. My other favourite ingredients are frozen mango pieces (very affordable at Aldi) and frozen mixed berries (from supermarket). I also add a handful of my home made muesli which includes oats, pepitas, coconut flakes, chia seeds, cacao nibs, etc.

Smoothie bowls are even nicer as it feels like a luxurious dessert! Just use less water, for a creamier dessert-like consistency. You can add some sprinkles on top : chia, cacao nibs and coconut flakes. Another variant is wonderful nice cream, see recipe here.

My smoothie from this morning has a range of treasures from my freezer: 2 figs, some mulberries, mango pieces, 3 cumquats. I also put in an apple, a tomato and some of my home made muesli. I often add some mint and spinach leaves from the garden too.

Always put the water in the jug first so that ingredients swirl and don’t get stuck on the blade.

More about my home made muesli here.

Enjoy your nutrient RICH smoothie! Great for your immune system, your gut health and mood and your skin!

🌿Siobhan