Saturday, May 18, 2013

Herbs: A Place to Begin... Smoothies

Being part of our county's Master Gardener Speakers Guild is a lot of fun. My program is titled "Herbs: A Place to Begin". It is for anyone who might be curious about growing herbs or is just beginning to use them. I give simple advice for ways to incorporate tasty herbs into your every day life. After such a sweet reception to my presentation, I will be adding regular posts about herbs.
Watch for the ones titled "A Place to Begin".

Summer will be here soon!  My warm weather breakfast of choice is smoothies.  It is absolutely amazing how a couple sprigs of just about any herb will change the flavor of a smoothie!  You may have already seen my recipe for Strawberry Basil .  If not, just click HERE.



Have you tried the green smoothies?  There are about, oh, a bazillion or so recipes all over the internet about green smoothies.  Basically, you are adding a cup or two of either spinach, kale or lettuce to the blender along with fruit and milk.  When I first saw these recipes, I thought, "Blech", but the greens aren't all that noticeable and you get a healthy breakfast that is approximately the size of Connecticut.  I like big breakfasts!

So, here is what you do.  Take your favorite smoothie recipe.  Throw the ingredients in the blender just the way you normally do, but toss in three sprigs of herb that are about two inches long.  It doesn't take much herb to change the flavor. 

Which herbs? 

We've already talked about basil with strawberries.  Basil is nice with any berry.  I like lemon balm (a member of the mint family) with ANY fruit.  Well, going a little broader on that thought, I like any mint with any fruit.  A small amount of fresh grated ginger root is tasty with tropical fruits like oranges, pineapple and mango, or even not-so-tropical apples. 

Have you noticed my Ginger Orange Fruit Salad Recipe?  Check it out! 



I'd love to hear what you like in your smoothies!  Do you have a 'go to' website for recipes?  Which herbs do you like with which fruit?

Summer is coming!  Get out that blender and experiment with adding herbs to your smoothies.

I hope this post gives you...  A Place to Begin!

;-)  -Marci
 
 

9 comments:

  1. My favorite is lemon balm with blueberries! Now I want one and I have neither!! *sigh* I do want to try the strawberry with basil. I had a friend who made a desert of strawberries with basil and ice cream. It was delicious.

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  2. That smoothie looks delicious! I've never had a green smoothie but I'm for trying one! Thanks for the idea!

    Found you through the Blog Train! I would love a visit from you as well :-)

    -Thanks
    --Autumn
    My Kind Of Introduction - http://faerieflysavingsmomma.blogspot.com/

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  3. Very delicious!

    Thanks for linking up with us this week at BeBetsy BRAG ABOUT IT Tuesday Link and Hop. http://bebetsy.com

    We'd love it if you link back to BeBetsy at the bottom of your post.

    See you next week!
    Sharon and Denise

    ReplyDelete
  4. Love smoothies!

    Thanks for linking up with us this week at BeBetsy BRAG ABOUT IT Tuesday Link and Hop. http://bebetsy.com

    We'd love it if you link back to BeBetsy at the bottom of your post.

    See you next week!
    Sharon and Denise

    ReplyDelete

  5. Just found your blog!
    Now following!
    looking forward to keeping up!

    I am also doing a free blog design giveaway! Check it out :)

    xo
    Christina
    pieceitalltogetherx3.blogspot.com

    ReplyDelete
  6. That looks delicious, Marci! I need to get a new blender. I'd love to try some smoothies for breakfast in the morning. I like to keep it light but always make sure I have something to start the day. Smoothies sound like the perfect thing!

    Thanks for linking up to The Creative HomeAcre blog hop!

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  7. Hi......thank you for the recipe....I will be pinning it!!!!!!

    I am new.....enjoying myself!

    Blessings to your day,
    Linda

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  8. One of my favorite herbs for smoothies is lemon balm. Some other favorite smoothie blends include watermelon, basil & ginger; or blueberries, spinach & cardamom. Yum!

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