Power Smoothies

Ever eye a Tropical Smoothie Cafe on your way home from school or work and think “I’ve had such a hard day, I deserve a treat.” Well, you do! But I’ve got the answer: make your own! It’s so easy to make a nutritious smoothie that will not only satisfy your sweet tooth, but will also keep you full and give you a powerful boost of energy for the remainder of your day. These smoothies are great for breakfast or an afternoon pick-me-up when life has gotten the best of you.

The secret to these “power” smoothies is nonfat Greek yogurt. Nonfat Greek yogurt has double the amount of protein in regular nonfat yogurt, with just half the amount of sugar. This yogurt is a nutritional powerhouse, especially for those of you who frequently hit the gym. It has an ultra-thick, creamy texture that is great for smoothies. Just add a little ice, your favorite fruits, and either reduced calorie juice or nonfat soymilk, blend it up and you have nutritious, energizing, (and portable!) breakfast or snack to keep you going. After strenuous workouts, I also add a scoop of protein powder.

I'll let you in on the my low-cal staples for smoothies. The lowest calorie nonfat Greek yogurt I've found is Fage Total 0%. It comes in either individual 6 oz containers or larger 17.6 oz tubs. The lowest calorie nonfat soymilk is WestSoy Plain Nonfat Soymilk, which comes in at 70 calories per cup. Unsweetened Vanilla Almond Breeze almond milk has just 40 calories, but does include 3g of fat. Lastly, there are some great diet juices out there, both artificially and naturally sweetened. I like Trop50 Juices because unlike some of the other lower calorie juices that taste more like a flavored water drink, this stuff tastes like the real thing. For lower calorie options, check out Ocean Spray's line of diet juices.

Smoothies are a great place to play around with different flavors. There are many different ways to add your favorites to your treat. You can opt for straight up extract (vanilla, coconut, almond, etc) or sugar-free, calorie-free syrups such as Torani or Da Vinci Gourmet. For rich peanut flavor, I use PB2* for a fraction of the fat and calories of regular or reduced fat peanut butter.

Some of my favorite smoothie combinations are:

Berrylicious Smoothie: 4 ounces nonfat Greek yogurt, ½ cup frozen blueberries, ½ cup frozen strawberries, 2/3 cup Trop50 Pomegranate Blueberry Juice, 5 ice cubes

            Calories: 151

            Total Fat: 0.5g

            Saturated Fat: 0g

            Cholesterol: 0mg

            Sodium: 50mg

            Carbohydrate: 28g

            Fiber: 3.5g

            Sugars: 22.5g

            Protein: 11g

Peanut Butter Banana Smoothie: 4 ounces nonfat Greek yogurt, 1 small banana, 2 tbsp PB2*, ½ cup nonfat plain soymilk, 5 ice cubes

Calories: 230

Total Fat: 1.8g

Saturated Fat: 0.1g

Cholesterol: 0mg

Sodium: 190.8mg

Carbohydrates: 37.7g

Fiber: 5g

Sugars: 22.5g

Protein 19.1g  

Tropical Orange-Coconut Smoothie: 4 oz nonfat Greek yogurt, 4 oz Fiber One Vanilla Yogurt, ½ banana, ½ cup Trop50 Orange Juice, 1 tablespoon coconut sugar-free calorie-free syrup, 5 ice cubes

Calories: 225

Total Fat: 0.3

Saturated Fat: 0.1

Cholesterol: 2.5 mg

Sodium: 104.3mg

Carbohydrate: 47.2g

Fiber: 7.6 g

Sugars: 26 g

Protein: 14.4g

For a more decadent dessert smoothie, Chocolate Peanut Butter Smoothie: 4 ounces nonfat Greek yogurt, 1 Jell-O Sugar-Free Pudding Snack (any chocolate variety), ½ medium banana, 2 tbsp PB2*, ½ cup nonfat plain soymilk, 5 ice cubes

Calories: 133

            Total Fat: 1.6g

            Saturated Fat: 0.5 g

            Cholesterol: 0 mg

            Sodium 180.4 mg

            Carbohydrates: 22.4 g

            Fiber: 2.4 g

            Sugars: 9.7 g

            Protein: 10.4 g

Tip: If you have the luxury of crushed ice out of your freezer, use that. If not, put the ice cubes in the blender first and pulse until crushed. If there are still a few large chunks just pull them out before adding the rest of your ingredients.

*PB2 is an AMAZING find for any peanut butter lover. Can’t stand consuming 190 calories and 12 g of fat for a measly 2 tablespoons of "reduced fat" peanut butter, but still can’t stand living life without it? PB2 is for you! It’s an all-natural, powdered peanut butter that you mix with water to reconstitute. No chemicals, no artifical crap, just roasted peanuts that have had 85% of the oil removed. Same peanuty flavor, for 45 calories per 2 tablespoons. Yes, I said 45 calories for peanut butter!! Click here to find it near you at specialty food store or order online.

If you were to stop to pick up a smoothie from a local chain, you will be spending an average of 300-600 calories if you do not choose wisely, not to mention the lack of protein (usually only around 1-2g) and unnecessary amounts of sugar (about 40-50g). No one wants to drink that!!