Meal Prep - Green Smoothies

 

I have a confession to make - I am a movie theater popcorn (with butter) addict. Tonight, I saw The Best of Me with my friend, Kippen. Great movie, total chick-flick, and so many tears I could fill a mason jar with is what the night consisted of. After all that popcorn that became my late lunch, I decided it was a great time to have a green smoothie for dinner that I prepared the other night. 

My grocery store haul for the smoothies included the following ingredients: 

1-2 bag(s) of Fresh Express Spinach and Kale bagged salad mix

1 whole pineapple

3 large bananas

1 bag of mixed berries 

1 carton unsweetened almond milk 

Also optional add ins for the smoothies that I have on hand include: chia seeds, flaxseed, coconut oil, old fashioned oats, vanilla protein powder, small apple, and more. 

I grabbed five ziploc baggies and in each of them I added: 

1/2 banana

1 handful of salad greens

1/2 cup mixed berries 

1/2-3/4 cup fresh pineapple

The salad ran out after four baggies of my pre-packs, so I would recommend two bags of salad. It adds the green color to the smoothie and provides your body with a number of nutrients, but it also does not have a distinct taste or if it does - the fruit and other additives masks the taste. Try it before turning your nose up because of the color! You'll be pleasantly surprised.

I added my pre-pack from the freezer into the blender and then added one cup of unsweetened almond milk along with my two other choices to add to this particalar smoothie. The nice part about the pre-packs is that they start with the same ingredients, but can be altered to taste differently with different ingredients. I chose half a scoop of vanilla whey protein powder and 1/2 tbs of coconut oil. Coconut oil has amazing health benefits that I won't bore you with listing here - but you should research it if you're curious! 

I spooned a dollop of lite whipped topping to my finished product and it added just the right finishing touch to the healthy smoothie. The best part of meal prepping these smoothie pre-packs is that it takes just a little preparation all at once, but then it is so easy to just grab a pack and throw it in the blender with almond milk and any other last minute ingredients and voila, a healthy meal or snack is all ready to enjoy. 

Another plus is that by freezing the spinach/kale and fruits, I don't have to worry about them spoiling and going bad. I usually have that problem as I am typically cooking for one, so the freezing element is so rewarding knowing that my money on groceries is not going to waste!