The Blender Diaries: Dedicated to smoothies, juicing, Superfruits and healthy living. » blender

Guest Blogger: Pimp My Protein Shake’s Cralmondberry Protein Shake

Chris — Fri, 22 Jan 2010 16:45:56 +0000

Hey there! This is Allie from Pimp My Protein Shake, a blog obsessed with homemade blended protein shakes. Does that sound a bit familiar? That’s why I’m so excited to guest post on The Blender Diaries and give you the recipe for the Cralmondberry Protein Shake!

The holidays may be over, but I still have a freezer full of cranberries. Loaded with phytochemicals and antioxidants, the low-glycemic cranberry is a fruit that shouldn’t be put away with the ornaments as soon as you’re sick of holiday carols…

As always with my shakes, the measurements are approximate and adjust to taste.

1/2 cup washed, frozen cranberries
1 serving of vanilla protein powder
Almond flavoring: a splash of sugar-free almond syrup, sugar-free Almond Roca syrup or about 1 tsp almond extract
Stevia extract if needed for additional sweetness
Liquid: Unsweetened Vanilla Almond Breeze, milk or non-dairy milk – just enough to blend if you want a thick shake
5-10 ice cubes
Optional: 1/4 tsp guar gum plus 1/8 tsp xanthan gum to help thicken and emulsify the shake

Blend all ingredients and adjust ice cubes and liquid to desired thickness. Enjoy!

© Chris for The Blender Diaries: Dedicated to smoothies, juicing, Superfruits and healthy living., 2010. | Permalink | 2 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: Allie, almond, antioxidant, blender, blendtec, crandberry, fitness, fruit, health, healthy, nutrition, Pimp My Protein Shake, protein, smoothie, supplements, whey, workout, Zola

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Berry Good Smoothie

Chris — Tue, 19 Jan 2010 18:24:42 +0000

When you’re a parent, you almost always get sick if your kids are sick. Since a cold is starting to go around my house, I tried this blend of berries and Zola Acai to boost my antioxidant intake and immune system. This recipe is what my kids always call “The Berry Good Açaí Smoothie” because it incorporates berries (blueberries or blackberries work well) and Zola Acai to give you energy and give your immune system a fighting chance.

Berry Good Smoothie

1 banana
1/3 cup blackberries or blueberries
½ cup Zola Acai
½ cup Apple juice
¼ cup of ice

Place all ingredients in a blender and enjoy!

What’s in your blender today? Email me:drinkzola@gmail.com and follow me on Twitter @drinkzola.

© Chris for The Blender Diaries: Dedicated to smoothies, juicing, Superfruits and healthy living., 2010. | Permalink | No comment | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: Açaí, antioxidants, berries, berry, blender, blending, Blendtech, blueberry, cancer fighting, cold season, flu season recipes, health, immune system, immunity, juice, nutrition, raspberry, recipes, sick, Vitamix

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Carrot Ginger Soup

Chris — Tue, 12 Jan 2010 19:24:02 +0000

I know that living in the Bay Area leaves me with little room to complain about the weather but it has been pretty chilly! I realize its not nearly as bad as it is for folks living in the Midwest and East Coast who have had record amounts of snow but cold enough to excuse a couple of nights of staying in watching DVDs with the kids and enjoying an excellent cup of hot soup.

The other night I made this delicious and filling Carrot Ginger Soup – and you guessed it, I did it all in my blender!

Carrot Ginger Soup

3carrots chopped
1 cup shredded coconut
1 ½ Tbsp shallots, diced
½ cup coconut water
1/4 c Zola Acai Original Juice
¼ cup orange juice
½ clove of garlic
1 Tbsp minced ginger
1 Tbsp miso
Pinch of sea salt

Place all ingredients in your BlendTec or Vitamix and blend until completely smooth. Enjoy!

What’s in your blender today? Email me drinkzola@gmail.com and follow me on Twitter @drinkzola.

© Chris for The Blender Diaries: Dedicated to smoothies, juicing, Superfruits and healthy living., 2010. | Permalink | 2 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: blender, blendtec, healthy eating, healthy recipes, juicer, smoothie, snow, snowfall, soup recipes, Vitamix, winter recipes, winter weather, Zola Açaí, Zola Superfruit juice

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A New Twist on Mulled Cider

Chris — Tue, 15 Dec 2009 23:45:39 +0000

For a delicious, new twist on mulled cider this holiday season, try using Zola Açaí instead of apple juice. This drink can be served hot or added to a smoothie for a truly delightful holiday brew!

Ingredients:

2 cups Zola Açaí Original
2 tbsp ground cinnamon
¼ tsp salt
½ lemon, zested
2 tsp clove powder
2 tbsp fresh nutmeg
Ice (optional)
Banana (optional)

Combine all ingredients in a saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium low heat. Reduce heat to low. Cover and simmer for 20 minutes.

If you want to drink it hot, then you’re all done! Top it with a cinnamon stick if you desire and enjoy…

If you want to add it to a smoothie, here’s what you can do next.

Let it cool for about 20 minutes in the refrigerator. Once cool, put mixture in a blender along with 1 cup of ice and a banana and blend until smooth. Pour in your favorite smoothie glass and top it with a cinnamon stick – and enjoy!

What’s in your blender today? Email me: drinkzola@gmail.com; Twitter: @drinkzola.

© Chris for The Blender Diaries: Dedicated to smoothies, juicing, Superfruits and healthy living., 2009. | Permalink | 4 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: blender, Brazilian Superfruit, Christmas, holiday beverages, holiday drink, holiday smoothie, holidays, mulled wine, seasonal drinks, smoothie, spiced cider, spices, wassail, Zola Açaí

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Crantastic Smoothie

Chris — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 10:00:57 +0000

For the past couple of weeks, it seems like every time I am at the store, all I see is red – Cranberries are EVERYWHERE. And since I just can’t seem get my wife’s delicious cranberries soaked in cabernet out of my head, I decided to try a cranberry smoothie. I’m really hoping this will curb my cranberry craving until the big feast.

Here’s the recipe:

1 cup cranberries
1 cup raspberries
1/3 cup cran-apple juice
8 oz vanilla yogurt

Put all ingredients in a blender. Add ice. Blend and enjoy!

What’s in your blender today? Email me: drinkzola@gmail.com and follow me on Twitter: @drinkzola.

© Chris for The Blender Diaries: Dedicated to smoothies, juicing, Superfruits and healthy living., 2009. | Permalink | 5 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: blender, cooking, cranberry sauce, health, healthy food, holiday recipes, holiday themed smoothie, Smoothies, Thanksgiving, Thanksgiving feast, Zola Açaí

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A Spooky Smoothie: Pumpkin Cinnamon Delight

Chris — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 22:56:22 +0000

With Halloween right around the corner, the time is right for pumpkins. I don’t know about you, but over the last several days, we’ve been on a pumpkin kick — carving Jack-O-Lanterns with the kids, baking pumpkin pies and cookies, and roasting pumpkin seeds. While I was helping my wife with the pies, it dawned on me that I should create a Halloween Smoothie.

After a few attempts, I think I’ve finally come up with the perfect recipe that both my wife and kids enjoyed.

1 cup organic canned pumpkin purée
1 cup soy or almond milk
2 tablespoons agave syrup (maple will also work)
1/3 teaspoon nutmeg
2/3 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 cup ice
Whipped cream and cinnamon as garnish

Put all ingredients in a blender except for the whipped cream. Once smooth, pour in a glass, garnish with whipped cream and cinnamon.

What’s in your blender today? Email me: drinkzola@gmail.com; Twitter @drinkzola.

© Chris for The Blender Diaries: Dedicated to smoothies, juicing, Superfruits and healthy living., 2009. | Permalink | 3 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: baking with family, blender, blender diaries, Halloween, healthy smoothies, holiday recipes, in the kitchen, indulgent smoothies, kitchen, smoothie, smoothie recipes, smoothies for kids, trick or treat

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Give Your Skin an Energy Boost!

Chris — Tue, 06 Oct 2009 18:49:22 +0000

There is nothing quite like October in San Francisco because you get the best of both worlds – brisk fall temperatures in the early morning followed by warm sunshine throughout the afternoon.

On these beautiful days, I just can’t resist being outside and tend to overdo it. Since my wife is always hounding me to protect my skin, I decided to create a smoothie that was not only delicious but would give my skin the little boost that it needs.

Skin Energy Smoothie:

1 cup carrot juice (can also use apple if you like your smoothie a little sweeter)
½ cucumber
½ cup strawberries (fresh or frozen)
Lemon juice (to taste)
Ice cubes

This smoothie is the perfect combination if your skin needs a little love. The carrots contain Vitamins A and E which help to repair and regrow skin and cucumbers are a natural skin refresher and toner because they are rich in silica, a mineral that boosts collagen to lessen fine lines as well as elasticity-preserving potassium. Lemon juice is also known to lighten the skin because of the ascorbic and citric acids present.

Give it a try! You’ll be glowing by tomorrow.

What’s in your blender today? Follow me on Twitter @drinkzola; email me drinkzola@gmail.com

© Chris for The Blender Diaries: Dedicated to smoothies, juicing, Superfruits and healthy living., 2009. | Permalink | No comment | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: blender, carrots are good for skin, cucumber, energy boost, healthy juice, healthy smoothie, juicing, natural, outdoors, San Francisco, skin boosts, skin energizers, smoothie, sun protection

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Heather’s Green Smoothie Recipe

Chris — Thu, 17 Sep 2009 21:55:54 +0000

I was reading Health, Happiness and Hope (a great blog if you haven’t already read it) and found this wonderfully healthy and delicious green smoothie recipe that Heather,the wonderful blogger has agreed to let us share with our readers.

Its simple, green and oh so good – check it out!

1 cup vanilla light soymilk
2 cups organic spinach
1 large organic banana
1 tbsp MaraNatha raw almond butter
5 ice cubes

Place all ingredients in a blender and blend away!

If green’s not quite your thing, Heather has many other delicious sounding smoothie recipes to share on her blog – I’m ready to try Heather’s Green-Less smoothie next.

What’s in your blender today? Email me: drinkzola@gmail.com; Twitter: @drinkzola.

© Chris for The Blender Diaries: Dedicated to smoothies, juicing, Superfruits and healthy living., 2009. | Permalink | One comment | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: Açaí, blender, Brazilian, green smoothie recipe, greens, happiness, health, healthy body, healthy breakfast, hope, meals, natural, nut butters, raw, smoothie recipes, soymilk

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Reader Recipe: Post Bike Ride Smoothie

Chris — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 21:26:12 +0000

Today, I received a very kind email and smoothie recipe from Candy Steele, a Zola fan and Blender Diaries reader in Hudson, IA. Candy said she always keeps some Zola Acai Original juice in the freezer as she likes it a little slushy, whether in a smoothie or in a glass!

Here’s Candy’s Perfect Post Bike Ride Smoothie Recipe:

Blue Bunny Light Yogurt
One banana
Zola Acai Original
Handful of Chia seeds
Handful of ice

Put all ingredients in a blender and voila!

Candy also sent through a photo of her smoothie ingredients — we need to get her some more Zola, she still has the old bottles!

Thanks Candy!

What’s in your blender today? Email me: drinkzola@gmail.com; Twitter: @drinkzola

© Chris for The Blender Diaries: Dedicated to smoothies, juicing, Superfruits and healthy living., 2009. | Permalink | No comment | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: acai juice, antioxidant, berry, bike ride, blender, blender diaries, Brazilian Superfruits, Chris Cuvelier, post workout, smoothie recipe, Zola Açaí

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Ask The Smoothie Guy: Frozen vs. Fresh Fruit?

Chris — Tue, 25 Aug 2009 15:00:22 +0000

People are always asking me about fresh vs. frozen fruit for smoothies – which is better? How much do I use? Should I still use ice? Do I still need to add juice?

First of all, both will work just fine – if you just went to the Farmer’s Market and have a fridge full of fresh fruit goodies, I say blend them up! If you’re a little low on fresh produce, I’d be wiling to bet you have some frozen fruit hiding in your freezer.

Here are a few best practices for adding the fruit to your smoothies – whether frozen or fresh:

If you use frozen fruit, you do NOT need ice – the frozen fruit will give it a good consistency and of course, make it cold
If you use fresh fruit, you will need to lower the juice by 1-2oz and add approx 2-4oz ice to taste. Ice will dilute the flavor a bit, but will add some coldness and thickness
For frozen fruit smoothies, its best to add the juice first, then the banana, then the frozen fruit. Will help it blend
For fresh fruit smoothies, its best to add the juice, then the banana and fresh fruit and then the ice. Again, this will help it blend.

Hope this helps!

Email me with any questions or ideas for smoothies at drinkzola@gmail.com; Twitter @drinkzola.

© Chris for The Blender Diaries: Dedicated to smoothies, juicing, Superfruits and healthy living., 2009. | Permalink | 5 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: blender, Brazil, farmer's market, fresh, fruit, fruity, health, healthy, juice, juicing, natural, recipes, smoothie recipe, Smoothies, strawberries, Superfruit, Zola Açaí

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