Spring Is Here: Celebrate with Smoothies

I love spring.  It is a time of awakening, of new beginnings and great change.  Suddenly a landscape barren of green and leaves bursts forth with new color.  Blooms on the magnolias are coming alive.  The red buds are close behind.  And ah, the daffodils, jonquils and tulips.  Everything is coming to life.  There couldn't be a better time for us to fall in line and add a little more color to our lives as well.

I recommend starting with fresh green leafy vegetables and dark berries.  These foods are chocked full of nutrients that fill us with energy - magnesium, B vitamins, vitamins C, A & K, trace minerals, and more phytonutrients than we can imagine.  They also have lots of fiber, which helps keep our digestive tracts healthy and moving freely.  Some studies have shown that the fiber and nutrients in these foods can lower cholesterol and reduce our risks for things like heart disease and cancer.  I was so inspired the other day that I decided to throw all these together into a smoothie that tasted like life (see recipes below).  It was wonderful.  I literally could feel myself getting healthier.

So look to those darkly pigmented fruits and vegetables for the very things that will give you a great boost.  Spring into spring and bring on the color in your diet.  It will change you forever-  from the inside out.

Enjoy!

A couple of my favorite smoothie recipes:

1/4 c. blackberries
1/4 c. black raspberries
1 small carrot finely chopped
1/4-1/2 c. kale, romaine or other green/lettuce
1/2 c. organic plain yogurt (whole or lowfat - not nonfat)
1/2 c. juice of your choice

1 c. mixed berries (strawberries, blackberries, blueberries, raspberries)
1/2 c. organic milk of your choice or organic plain yogurt
1/2 c. green of your choice (kale, romaine, lettuce, etc.)
1/2 c. dark juice (pomegranate, blueberry, black raspberry, acai)
1/4 tsp. fresh ginger - minced 

Just throw in the blender and enjoy.

P.S.  I lean toward smoothies instead of juicing because you still get the fiber, which is just as important as the nutrients.