Wordless Wednesday

Yesterday, as we watched the rain falling, we sang "rain, rain, go away." After one time through, when the rain did not oblige, Matty turned to me and said "mama, sing louder, it didn't hear you!"

a monster for my monster

Does your toddler like to eat spinach? Matty does not care for it. I knew I needed to find a creative way to get him to enjoy spinach because it is so good for you and I didn’t want him missing out on all those antioxidants and vitamins! A few months ago, on my beloved Pinterest, I came across the green monster smoothie. There are many variations, but I use the following:

One sliced banana {some recipes call for you to slice it, then freeze it before adding, but I don’t do this}

½ C vanilla greek yogurt or non-fat regular vanilla yogurt

1 Tablespoon peanut butter

¼ C low or non fat milk

2 big handfuls of spinach

Ice

Usually, I make this right before I rush out the door for work, so I never measure it out. I have never tasted a bad batch, so basically, I don’t think you can mess this up.

I throw in the banana, the yogurt, pb and milk and then add spinach to almost the top of the blender. I blend it for about 10 seconds and then use a spoon to push down the spinach. Blend again for about 15 seconds.Then push down spinach again and blend. By this time, it should be pretty smooth, but if not just keep alternating between pushing down the spinach with a spoon and blending. Once you have a lovely green smooth consistency, add ice, blend until smooth again, and pour into your favorite glass or to go cup. This recipe makes the perfect amount for Matty and I to share. 

Originally, I made this with myself in mind as a quick breakfast and tasty post-run drink, but it ended up being the perfect solution to get Matty to eat spinach. Plus, he loves to help me use the blender. Think about it: dump a bunch of things into a bucket like object, press buttons and you get loud noises. And the result is the coolest shade of green. This has boy written all over it! Thankfully, I have successfully avoided any attempts thus far that my little monster has made to press the buttons while the lid is off the blender.

For another healthy treat for both children and adults, be sure to try this lemonade smoothie recipe over at my running buddy’s blog, food is good.

What’s your go to smoothie for the summer?