Smoothies-A Collection of Recipes
Smoothie Selection
Mamta Gupta
If you have any special favourites, please feel free to send in your recipes, with pictures.
Smoothies, as their name implies, are drinks made from pureed fruits, often mixed with a fruit juice (fresh or from a carton) or yoghurt or lemonade. Personally, I am not in favour of fizzy drinks and prefer fresh ingredients. The smoothies made with yoghurt are more filling. You can use up fruits that are lying around in the house, perhaps a little over ripe! For best results, use fresh fruits and mix a sweet fruit with a slightly tart fruit. To sweeten further, you can add sugar, honey or an artificial sweetener (for diabetics). Generally, a smoothie should contain 2-3 fruits, but there are no hard and fast rules. You can use any fruits of choice. some may contain yoghurt, but I prefer without yoghurt generally. You can also add creamed coconut, if you wish.
Below are a few ideas under the ingredients section. Quantities are approximate. Don't make a smoothie too thick, it is a drink!
Ingredients
You will need approximately 1/2 glass of fruit and 1/2 glass of juice/water, lemonade per person. If using yoghurt, you will need 1/2 cup natural yoghurt+1/3 glass water per person.
Choice of fruits:
Apples, bananas, blackcurrants and apple juice
Banana, pineapple, 1 cup natural yoghurt or dahi and water (Picture 7)
Bananas, strawberries and water
Banana, Yoghurt and water (Picture 2)
Blackcurrants/ Blueberries + honey or sugar + orange juice
Blueberries/Blackberries + fruit juice like orange or grapefruit
Blueberries/Blackberries + yoghurt, sugar and water
Mango-Banana; 1 mango, 1 small banana, 1 cup orange juice, a dash of cinnamon, 3-4 ice cubes.
Melon (Kharbooja) and Orange Juice Smoothies (Picture 1)
Mixed fruit Smoothie; banana, apple, apricot, pear and lime
Mixed melons of different types + orange juice and mint
Nectarine + Orange juice or yoghurt+water
Orange and cherries + orange juice/lemonade
Orange (flesh included) and bananas with water and a dash of lime juice (Picture 5)
Orange juice, kiwi fruit, honey
Orange juice, Peach, water (Picture 5)
Papaya with or without bananas, water and lime juice to taste (Picture 3)
Peaches, orange juice or yoghurt
Pineapple and a dash of lemon juice (Picture 4)
Pineapple, pineapple juice and coconut cream to taste
Pineapple, mangoes, orange juice
Raspberries, banana + yoghurt or fruit juice
Raspberries, mint, grapefruit juice or yoghurt
Strawberries, yoghurt, water and sugar, if needed (Picture 6)
Summer berries of any type, orange juice, a small piece of root ginger (mint optional), sugar to taste
Water melon, liquidised
Instructions
Prepare fruit; peel, remove seeds, pips, stones.
Place all the ingredients, except yoghurt, in a blender and blend until smooth. If there are any crushed seeds in the puree, remove by straining through a sieve. If using yoghurt instead of juice, add towards the end, as you don't want to blend it for too long, butter might separate if you do.
Add the liquid you have chosen and blend together for a few more seconds.
Add honey/sugar/sweetener, if required.
Check and get it to the thickness you like, by adding more water/juice if necessary.
Add a handful of ice cubes and give a quick whizz.
Serve immediately in tall glasses, garnished with fresh mint.
Also see Cool Drink Selection
Notes
For an extra kick, add a tot of white rum or gin.
For an Indian taste, add 1/2 tsp. Chat Masala per glass, instead of sugar or honey!
