The subtleties of making berry smoothies
Berries occupy a leading position in the amount of vitamins. But the main advantage is the low energy value, due to which they can be eaten in large quantities without gaining weight. Few people will be able to eat a lot of berries in their pure form, since such food will be monotonous, moreover, an unpleasant feeling of heartburn may appear from an excess of acid. A much better option would be to use these gifts of nature in combination with other ingredients. True connoisseurs of a healthy lifestyle have long preferred nutritious and healthy berry smoothies. They are drinks, most often containing fermented milk products with the addition of various berries and fruits.
Drink Features
A smoothie is a cocktail that may contain different components, most often these are berries, fruits, kefir, milk. Foods such as ice cream, honey, juice, nuts, vegetables, ice, coffee and tea are also added to these drinks.
At present, there is a wide variety of recipes suitable for different purposes: for weight loss, strengthening immunity, creating quick and tasty breakfasts that give vigor for the coming day. The prepared drinks contain the whole complex of vitamins and useful elements, as in fresh fruits, so smoothies differ not only in their pleasant taste, but are also healing.
There are several types of smoothies:
- refreshing cocktails that do not contain sugar;
- thick drinks that quickly satisfy hunger;
- sweet mixtures that can replace desserts;
- cold options, which add a large amount of ice crushed in a blender.
Refreshing drinks consist exclusively of berries, without sugar, but you can add a small amount of banana to them (by the way, although it is considered a fruit, from a botanical point of view it is also a berry). Such a component will allow you to quickly feel full, which is very important for a dietary breakfast.
Recipes
There are a lot of recipes for berry smoothies, because for this you can use various ingredients, mixing them in different combinations. Thanks to the extensive range of options, you can cook a dish that will appeal to everyone. Most often, strawberries, raspberries, blueberries, apples are taken for smoothies, diluting the delicate fruit and berry platter with kefir, yogurt, milk, juice or tea. In the cold season, when berries cannot be purchased fresh, they can be easily replaced with frozen ones.
Fruit and berry dessert
For lovers of a healthy diet, the following cocktail of fruits and berries is perfect.
Ingredients:
- 1 glass of blueberries;
- 0.5 cups of peaches;
- 1.5 cups mango;
- 1 banana;
- 2 tablespoons of yogurt;
- 1 glass of milk;
- 100 ml fresh orange juice.
All products must be thoroughly mixed with a mixer (or blender). If desired, fruit and berry platter can be decorated with mint sprigs or pieces of fresh fruit.
Cappuccino berry smoothie
For real coffee gourmets, there is an opportunity to enjoy your favorite drink in combination with healthy berries. A cappuccino-berry cocktail is a great option for serving to the festive table at family feasts and parties.
The creation of such an original drink consists of two stages:
- directly the process of making cappuccino;
- connection with other products and decoration of the dish.
To prepare a cappuccino-berry dessert, the first step is to prepare the actual coffee base.
For this you will need:
- 180 ml of strong coffee;
- 180 ml of milk;
- a glass of crushed ice;
- sugar to taste.
All components must be whipped with a mixer for two minutes.
To create a berry dessert, you should take:
- 150 grams of ice cream;
- 3 tablespoons of mint syrup;
- 3 tablespoons of any juice;
- 3 teaspoons of fresh strawberries, raspberries and blueberries (they can be replaced with any other to taste);
- 3 tablespoons cream.
Add syrup, juice and ice cream to cappuccino. After that, the resulting mixture will need to be mixed with a mixer for one minute. Pour the finished cocktail into glasses and garnish with whipped cream and fresh berries.
blueberry smoothie
This simple drink can be a great healthy breakfast. It is also suitable for those who are trying to keep their body in good shape and are on a diet.
To prepare a blueberry smoothie, you need to take the following products:
- 1 cup fresh or frozen blueberries
- 1 glass of low-fat kefir.
In a mixer, mix kefir with berries, garnish with blueberries and fresh mint leaves.
The nuances of cooking
Despite the simplicity of the process, It is worth paying attention to some features of smoothie preparation in order to get the maximum possible benefit from the drink.
- Fruits for a nutritious drink can be taken frozen and fresh. As for the latter, they must be carefully sorted out, removing their branches and leaves. Rinse with cold water immediately before cooking.In order to get rid of excess moisture after washing, the berries are laid out on a napkin that will absorb excess moisture. Dessert can be prepared immediately from frozen fruits, but it will turn out to be quite cold and thick. When the fruits thaw, the prepared drink will be a more liquid mixture.
- Berry smoothie with kefir is a sour dish, so you can add a little honey to make it more tasty. In addition, granulated sugar and a little ice cream can be added to the cocktail, but this will stop the product from being truly healing and healing.
- To give satiety, in addition to bananas, you can add oatmeal and yogurt there. With these products, the drink will be even more useful, but its energy properties (that is, calorie content) will also increase.
- When smoothies need to be made into a liquid consistency, it is recommended to add juice, while it is best to use a freshly squeezed version, which will make the cocktail more vitamin.
- Berry smoothie is best consumed immediately after its preparation. You should not stock up on a drink, as it will lose its value and be less useful than a freshly prepared cocktail.
- If the smoothie is not drunk immediately, but eaten with a spoon, then saturation from this product will occur much faster. Such a technique makes it possible to replace a snack with a berry drink with a low calorie content and maximum benefits for the body.
- For people on a diet, sugar and ice cream should not be used when making smoothies. You also need to refuse to add juice, honey and bananas. It is best to make combinations of fresh berries, citrus fruits, herbal tea, low-fat kefir and apples. This combination of components will help in the fight against excess weight and strengthen the immune system.
- Berries are best mixed separately from liquid products. It is best to add milk to the already crushed ingredients and mix everything together again.
- If frozen berries are used to make a smoothie, then when creating a cooling drink, you do not need to put ice cubes. In this case, you just need to add warm milk or coffee to the cocktail.
A true creative approach to creating a unique drink will allow you to make a tasty, and most importantly, healthy product that all family members will appreciate. The main feature of a smoothie is complete freedom in choosing the ingredients for making a drink, and taking into account all the nuances of preparation, it will not be difficult to create the cocktail of your dreams.
For how to make smoothies from frozen berries, see the following video.