So here is a story... Yesterday evening I was traveling to Jacksonville, Florida, for business. I had a connection in Charlotte, North Carolina, and was stranded for 5 hours because my connecting flight to Jacksonville was cancelled. I was a little hungry but really didn't want to eat greasy airport food. I stumbled across Yovana Yogurt that has been launched by TCBY. All the smoothie options looked so good... pineapple, mango, peach, banana, berries, OMG! I was super excited and decided to go for the Berry Smoothie which consisted of blueberries, strawberries, raspberries, bananas blended with yogurt and pomegranate juice. It was so good and refreshing walking around the airport with my berry smoothie loaded with antioxidants... I was feeling so proud of myself. Long story short, luckily the airline had a couple seats on the last flight out to New Jersey and I ended up coming home; I wasn't about to wait around at the airport till 6 am, the next day! So I basically flew to North Carolina, had a smoothie, bought some earrings, and flew back to New Jersey! C-R-A-Z-Y! My husband picked me up from the airport at 2 am... poor guy, he was so worried about me! Now looking back, it is kinda funny what happened. I'd love to use this line on my husband... "going to Charlotte, be back in a few hours. I'll get you a smoothie!" LOL! I think it's hilarious!
Anyway, I'm exhausted today! I barely slept and I have to work, so naturally, I worked from home and felt inspired to make myself a smoothie. I decided to make a Blueberry Banana Smoothie with yogurt and water. I skipped the pomegranate juice because I believe a lot of juices have unnecessary sugar and calories, not to mention they contain High Fructose Corn Syrup and artificial sweeteners that are so bad for you. Basically what I'm saying is I eat the real thing and avoid juices. The Blueberry Banana Smoothie needed a touch of sweetness so I added 3 teaspoons of Agave; it's this new craze my brother got me into. The smoothie was so good and guiltless... you'll shed the weight without even knowing it. 🙂
NUTRITION: Blueberries are a very good source of Vitamin C and Fiber. They are a good source of Vitamin E. In addition, blueberries are an ANTIOXIDANT POWERHOUSE, substances that can slow down the aging process.
Bananas are a very good source of Vitamin B6. They are also a good source of Vitamin C and Fiber.
Yogurt adds some Calcium and Protein to this smoothie.
INGREDIENTS (makes 1 serving):
- Blueberries - ½ cup (rinsed)
- Banana - 1 medium (diced)
- Ice Cubes - 3
- Yogurt - 2 dollups (shown below)
- Water - ¼ cup
- Agave - 2 to 3 teaspoon (I used 3 tsp); If you don't have Agave, use Honey/Sugar.
DIRECTIONS:
1. Here are the main ingredients.
2. Rinse the blueberries and add to a blender or Magic Bullet.
3. Slice and add the banana to the Magic Bullet.
4. Add ice cubes.
5. Add yogurt - 2 dollups.
6. Add water.
7. Blend. I LOVE MY MAGIC BULLET!
8. At this point you can choose to add Agave. Agave is a much better alternative to sugar. If you don't have Agave, you can use Honey or Sugar instead.
9. Blend again after adding Agave.
10. Pour and serve! Absolutely delicious and guiltless.
Anonymous says
This looks amazing. It definitely would be yummy after my workouts or a nice pick me up for breakfast
Jhiane
Anonymous says
Very cool idea. What's agave? I have never heard it being used as a sugar substitute.
Atul
honeywhatscooking says
Hi Atul..
What is Agave?
Agave is similar to Honey. It is a natural sweetener extracted from an Agave plant. It is a low glycemic index sweetener, so it is slowly absorbed into the body PREVENTING spikes in blood sugar. It is sweeter than sugar, so you need less of it.
I have actually replaced the sugar in my tea with Agave. It is also Gluten-Free!
Thanks.
-Honey
Hanna says
mmmm this is a favorite after workout smoothie for me too. The combination of blueberries and bananas is a real winner. I like to pair it with an apple/peanut butter for an easy healthy lunch
honeywhatscooking says
Thanks Hanna. 🙂
martin's feeling on little giant blackberries and more says
My my your trying out with Berry Smoothie which is full of little giant blavkberries , strawberries and more also have brought water in my mouth too.After a lot of serching I happen to visit a blog http://blueberrygiant.info/. You can visit there too.
Anonymous says
Great Job...
Giant Blueberry Plants says
Gosh, this looks so good. I really like all of the pictures you added, it makes me wanna go out and get the stuff and make this right away... Another great desert to had to the hopper of recipes!
Monique @ Ambitious Kitchen says
Blueberries and bananas are my favorite together! xoxo