Tuesday, October 22, 2013

Feeding the sick: Green juice for Hot Dog Boy

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Let's just get this straight: Hot Dog Boy is the last kid on earth you'd expect to drink green juice willingly.

But when he came down with a cold straight after a week that included few vegetables but lots of milkshakes, burgers, pizza, candy, and cookies, I went straight for the blender.

I try not to police what my kids eat. When you're 11, sometimes a week of Mom's-out-of-town-and-then-too-busy-to-cook pizza runs straight into a sleepover and then two evening concerts with treat-laden intermission snack tables. I understand this.

But at some point we all have to get back on track.

I make green smoothies for my husband; there's a bottle in the refrigerator most of the time. But I've had my personal ups and downs with green smoothies. Michael likes the texture. I prefer them strained, closer to juice.

This is our standard green smoothie. If Hot Dog Boy will drink it with a smile on his face, your kids will too.

P.S. This recipe is designed for a large, high-powered blender like my Vitamix. If you have a smaller blender, cut the recipe in half or you'll end up with Green Counters instead of Green Juice.

P.P.S. Hot Dog Boy really does eat a lot of fruits and vegetables these days. He might need a new nickname.




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Green juice for Hot Dog Boy
A refreshing green smoothie with spinach or kale, cucumbers, apples, grapes, lime, and honey. Strain it for green juice or leave as is for a green smoothie. This recipe is designed for a large blender like my Vitamix; halve it if you have a smaller blender.
Ingredients
  • 1 6-ounce bag baby spinach (substitute equal amount of baby kale)
  • 2 Granny Smith apples, unpeeled, cored and cut into chunks
  • 1/2 large English cucumber, unpeeled, cut into chunks
  • 1 lime, peel cut away (use entire flesh)
  • 3 cups green grapes
  • 2 Tablespoons honey, or to taste
  • 1/2 cup water
Instructions
Place all ingredients in the container of a high-powered blender. (If your blender is small, blend in batches.) Blend until very smooth, about 1 minute in my Vitamix. Serve chilled, either as is or strained through a fine-mesh strainer.
Details
Prep time: Cook time: Total time: Yield: approximately 2 liters

6 comments:

Unknown said...

Oh boy, I was just talking about this with my son today! He has a friend that he says makes delicious green smoothies and I was asking him what was in them because the one's i've had are not exactly what I would consider "delicious". Your concoction sounds good so will try it out. Thanks for posting and perfect timeing!

Ellen said...

Any idea of the calorie or carb count of this ... seems like it would be pretty high in carbs

Erika Kerekes said...

@Ellen - no, I haven't run the numbers on it, but yes, I would assume you're right, given the apples, grapes, and honey.

sippitysup said...

May I have my green smoothie in red? GREG

Erika Kerekes said...

@Greg - sure. http://www.inerikaskitchen.com/2012/01/superfoods-month-smoothie-with-beets.html

Cathy @ She Paused 4 Thought said...

I can really appreciate your comment about the "green counters". This looks great and I am going to try it after I visit the farmer's market tomorrow.

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