Wednesday, July 14, 2010

Mixed Berry and Spinach Smoothie and Cats


This morning Dan and both saw our respective weight go up a little for the third day in a row. This is no doubt due to a little too much trail mix and fat from the quinotto. Instead of letting a bad trend start we are cutting back a little today and tomorrow if necessary. We decided to start the morning with a smoothie instead of oatmeal. Of course we still had our favorite veggie and fruit juice with beet before the smoothie. Here is the smoothie I made this morning:

Mixed Berry and Spinach Smoothie
Serves 2

Ingredients:

3 cups frozen mixed berries (blueberries, raspberries and Marion berries)
2 cups baby spinach, well packed
1 dash powdered ginger (for its anti-inflammatory properties)
1 dash cinnamon (for its ability to help the body process the fruit sugar)
2 tablespoons freshly ground flaxseed (for the omega 3 fatty acids)
2 cups water
stevia, to taste (if necessary)

Directions:

Toss everything in you blender and process until smooth.  Serve in a well chilled glass.

Nutritional Information:

Amount Per Serving
Calories - 190.62
Calories From Fat (22%) - 42.76

Total Fat - 4.94g
Saturated Fat - 0.48g
Cholesterol - 0mg
Sodium - 37.04mg
Potassium - 339.37mg
Total Carbohydrates - 36.8g
Fiber - 8.97g
Sugar - 21.8g
Protein - 4.48g

Comment:

This is a flavorful and light breakfast. If you are looking for something a little lighter after a day of over indulging this is a light option. If we had not had a fresh juice with kale this morning before the smoothie I would have added a kale leaf or two to this smoothie for more nutrition.

Each serving of this smoothie contains approximately 2,900IU of vitamin A, 30mg of vitamin C, 50mg of calcium, 1.5mg of iron, 70mcg of folate, 185mcg of vitamin K, 40mg of phosphorus, and 40mg of magnesium. Not stupendous nutritional stats but not a doughnut or bagel either. ;-)

Gratuitous Cat Photos:

Last night the boys were particularly cute. But then again I am the cat mommy so I may be a bit biased. As usual Masi was not in the mood to have picture taken. Here he is refusing to look at the camera.


This one is of our youngest boy Nicco (aka Binky) raising one side of his lip. He does this a lot. We call it the Elvis lip. Last night was the first time I actually got a picture of Binky making the Elvis lip. He is funny boy.


I know I am biased but I think they have so much personality. Yes I am a extremely doting cat mommy. ;-)

Unrelated note:

Can you make juice in the Vitamix is a question I get asked a lot. My quick answer is yes and no. Yes you can do it, and no I don’t recommend it. The juice you get from the Vitamix is thick and not overall pleasant from a textural perspective. However the Vitamix does make great smoothies. This is how I like to use it. By including frozen fruit with the vegetables you get an intentionally thick drink that is very pleasant and still includes the fiber from the vegetables. It is more filling than juice from the juicer which must be due to the fiber. I like to have both machines (the Vitamix and juicer) but if you have room for only one on your counter I would stick with a high speed blender like the Vitamix.

I know that many of the “experts” say that you shouldn’t get on the scale every day but we do. Not weighing yourself everyday is probably a good idea if you are battling an eating disorder but I find it very reassuring to know what is happening. It has also been a good tool to see the impact of: eating out, or consuming foods higher in sodium, and the weight increases that occur due to female hormones. We have been using our Wii Fit scale function daily for almost two years. It is great to use since it shows you not only your weight but BMI. It also gives you a graph of your weight and BMI, by week, two weeks, month, three months and year. If you are numbers junkie like me it is a useful too. Please keep in mind I tend to be a nutrition micromanager so this approach won’t work for everyone. ;-)

Today is yet another gray and raining day at our place. The skies are dark and it looks as though it is going to pour any minute. It has been raining off and on since we got up this morning. Today is definitely the sort of day where a nap sounds more appealing than anything else. I am going to take advantage of the weather to do a little cooking and maybe some reading. I know my hubby loves it when I spend extra time in the kitchen.

For the time being I am going to sign off and do something productive before I change my mind and take that nap. ;-) I will talk to you all again soon.

18 comments:

  1. Love love love the first kitty picture. Too funny. That smoothie sounds really good. I never think to add ginger or cinnamon.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Heather,

    They are funny boys. One loves to have his picture taken and the other one hates it. They are so very different it is hard to believe they are the same breed raised in the same family.

    Cinnamon and ginger are things I have have been adding to smoothies for a few years. Spices in general are high in antioxidants so I figure any place I can add them I should. ;-)

    talk to you later,
    Ali

    ReplyDelete
  3. The Elvis lip cracked me up! My dog Chi makes the Elvis lip!! Glad to see cats are into it too!

    ReplyDelete
  4. Brandi,

    I have never seen another animal do the "Elvis lip". That is too funny that Chi does it too. LOL! Glad I could make you laugh.

    Ali

    ReplyDelete
  5. Aww, Masi is so cute and hugable!

    ReplyDelete
  6. Janet,

    You just described Masi exactly. He is the sweetest cat I have ever met. He loves everyone and really likes to cuddle.

    Binky is adorable but not always the sweetest child. Just ask the vet. ;-) He has a warning on his medical record. We call him danger kitty for fun. He is 6 pounds of fury when he gets to the doctors office. *shakes head*

    Ali

    ReplyDelete
  7. ridiculously cute cat pictures!!!they are really REALLY cute and funny!! i get on the scale everyday, i dont like surprises:)

    ReplyDelete
  8. Michelle,

    Thanks, I think they are cute little boys too. ;-)

    Somehow you on the scale everyday doesn't surprise me even a little. I am not the least be shocked that we have that in common. LOL

    talk to you later,
    Ali

    ReplyDelete
  9. Thanks for the kitty shots...I love Binky's little fang-lette.

    I love summer rain! I like to open the windows wide and light candles on the windowsill when it rains in summer...not sure why, but it goes great with classical music too.

    ReplyDelete
  10. Rose,

    Thanks, Binky is a character. *shakes head*

    Opening the windows and lighting candles would be great if it were just a bit cooler. It is 80 and humid at the moment. We opted to leave the AC on since they were predicting we would reach 89 today.

    I have been "busy" spending my day reading. I still need to get into the kitchen and cook something, LOL.

    talk to you later,
    Ali

    ReplyDelete
  11. I am on the scale every morning. My husband does that, too. You're right about that not being healthy, obviously, if you deal with eating disorders/body-ideal disorders, but otherwise, it's very helpful to us. I like what "dirtyduck" said - I don't like surprises. :) I think it's better to deal with things immediately; it's much harder to realize, whoa...I just gained 15 pounds. Plus, if you can get to where you are losing a pound or half a pound, I think that's the greatest motivation. (I like your blog; I'm a fairly new follower!)

    ReplyDelete
  12. Jenny,

    Thanks for letting me know it isn't just our house, and Michelle's where this happens. ;-)

    I agree with you about it being easier to deal with a pound or two rather than 15 or more.

    Thanks for the blog compliment. I really appreciate it. :-)

    If you like seitan I am making smoky seitan lunchmeat now, and trying new techniques of course. I like to keep learning. I will be posting that tonight or tomorrow if you are interested. Fingers crossed the post will say the modifications were a success, LOL.

    hope you are having a good Wednesday,
    Ali

    ReplyDelete
  13. I'm so glad that you included "and Cats" in the title, or I might not have clicked over. (See, I'm still pouting about not having a blender at the moment, so the last thing I want to read about is super delicious smoothies). I love the profile shot of Masi, really suits him! What a ham Nicco is, love it!

    ReplyDelete
  14. Sarah,

    I am so sorry you are still without a blender. I will try to remember to put cats in the title for you when appropriate. ;-)

    Masi really doesn't love the camera he always looks away and/or closes his eyes. Nicco is a total ham. I swear I think Nicco wants to be a star, LOL. Glad you liked the cat pics. ;-)

    talk to you later,
    Ali

    ReplyDelete
  15. I love the Elvis lip--too funny!

    Courtney

    ReplyDelete
  16. Courntey,

    I have no idea why he does that, but it appears to intentional. He almost always lifts the same side and then "chatters" at us. Go figure. Hey, maybe Nicco is Elvis, LOL.

    Ali

    ReplyDelete
  17. i am getting ready to post a berry smoothie on my blog as well - love them! and your kitties are super cute!

    ReplyDelete
  18. Miss V,

    Thanks, I think my fur babies are cute but I am probably a bit biased.

    Smoothies are great aren't they? I have them far too often. ;-)

    Ali

    ReplyDelete

Related Posts with Thumbnails