Green Smoothie

If the tuna steak with lime & cilantro sauce was the flirty pool boy who helped me get my groove back than this green smoothie is my spouse - reliable, comfortable, and nourishing - the one I come home to at the end of a long day. Melissa and Dallas of Whole9Life actually advise against drinking smoothies during the Whole30. I think a lot of people abuse it as a way to pack in tons of sugar (even fruit is sugar, y'all) and if fat loss and/or kicking a sweet tooth is your goal then a smoothie is not the way to go.

But for me, this green smoothie is a great pre & post workout meal - it's especially refreshing during these hot summer months where leftover bakes salmon and steamed veggies in the middle of the day doesn't sound particularly appetizing. Also, my goals aren't really to lose weight

Here's the recipe.

Green Smoothie
2 cups spinach
1-2 cups of coconut water (depending on the consistency you want)
1/3 cup coconut chips
1/2 - 1 whole avocado
1 banana 

This first step is the most important: first blend your spinach and coconut water together before adding any other ingredients. I use an immersion blender for about a minute to get the spinach fully blended into the coconut water. Then add the coconut chips and blend for another minute to get those nice and fine too. From there add your avocado and banana - you may want to add a little more coconut water at this point too just depending on the desired consistency.

Also - sometimes I'll play with the avocado to banana ratio. I may use a whole avocado and half a banana or vice versa just depending on what flavor I'm after. You could also add a cucumber to the mix.

Do you have a favorite green smoothie recipe? Let's hear it.