• Recipe: Special Strawberry Smoothie

    Special strawberry smoothie with cool whip & sprinkles

    Every once in awhile in celebration of our Saturday mornings together occasionally we do something extra special like add a little cool whip and sprinkles to our smoothie or waffles!  With Spring in the air and the weather getting warmer I want to share a smoothie recipe.  In case you haven’t already notice we love smoothies in our household!  If the girls are home and I start up the blender they are immediately in the kitchen asking for a smoothie.  Also, since one of our girls needs a little extra protein in her diet and one of the best ways to get her to drink a pack of Carnation instant drink mix is to add a touch into a smoothie (she can’t tell the difference and drinks all of it).

    Special Strawberry Smoothie:

    • 5 frozen Strawberries
    • 10 frozen Grapes
    • 1/2 Banana
    • 1/2 cup Vanilla Yogurt
    • 1/2 cup Milk
    • Cool Whip
    • Sprinkles

    Put the strawberries, grapes, yogurt, and milk in the blender and mix until smooth.  Pour into a cup and top with cool whip and sprinkles! Enjoy! 🙂

    Special Strawberry Smoothie (before the cool whip & sprinkles were added!)

  • Be My Valentine: Sweetheart Strawberry Smoothie

    Sweetheart Strawberry Smoothie

    Last week I picked up some fresh strawberries on clearance at Ingles.  As soon as the girls saw the strawberries they wanted to know if I would make them a smoothie.  This past weekend while they were playing together I decided it was time to make they smoothie for them.  I came up with this recipe using ingredients we had on hand.

    As an extra treat I put freshly cut strawberries around the smoothie on a plate.  I cut the stems off the strawberries in a “v” pattern making the strawberries look like little hearts.

    Sweetheart Strawberry Smoothie:

    • 5 Strawberries (fresh or frozen0
    • 1/4 cup Raspberries
    • 1/4 cup Cranberries
    • 1 cup Milk
    • 1/2 cup Ice
    • Extra Strawberries for garnish
    • Cool Whip for garnish

    The girls loved the fresh “heart” strawberries and their smoothies.  I super excited that they willingly ate some fresh cranberries and raspberries which were in their smoothies.   The more healthy fruits, vegetables, and nutritional goodies I get into the kiddos the better.  They love smoothie treats just as much as I do! 🙂

    Strawberry Smoothie with Cool Whip and a Straw!  The girls LOVED it!

  • Fresh & Healthy: Deep Freezer Goodies – Purple Grapes, Blueberries, Bananas, Green Grapes, & Strawberries

    Freezing Seasonal Fruit - Blueberries, Bananas, Strawberries, Purple & Green Grapes

    This summer we were able to stock up on some fresh produce, including fruit.  Thanks to friends sharing their goodies, time picking produce as a family, and clearance items at our local grocery store we have been able to fill up a section of our freezer with delicious fruit.  The girls have been enjoying Smoothies the last couple of months and were super excited to stock up on some of these great items.  They are already planning on having smoothies after school because they will not be able to share them with me over lunch.

    Here is a great Smoothie Recipe:

    There are many variations to smoothies, may be sharing a couple more favorites over the next few weeks.  Add a handful of fruit you have on hand, a little cream (milk or yogurt), blend,  and you have a smoothie.  If you want a little extra sweetness you can add a touch of honey.  Usually after adding the fruit that is plenty sweet for us but we have tried a variety of different ones.

    Another great use for strawberries is as a healthy sauce!  When we have pancakes or waffles we blend up a cup or two of fresh strawberries to use as a dipping sauce in place of the traditional syrup.  It is healthier and fresher plus the whole family enjoys it.