Deep Purple Blueberry Smoothie With Black Quinoa Recipes

My idea for this week's Recipes for Health was to match grains and fruit by color and make nourishing smoothies. For this one I could have also used any of the black or purple rices on the market, such as Alter Eco's purple jasmine rice, Lotus Food's Forbidden Rice or Lundberg Black Japonica. I happened to have a full bag of black quinoa in the pantry, so that's what I went for and it worked beautifully. You can also use fresh blueberries for this, but when they are not in season, frozen will do fine and will eliminate the need for ice cubes.

Provided by Martha Rose Shulman

Categories     breakfast, brunch, lunch, snack, non-alcoholic drinks, main course

Time 10m

Yield 1 generous serving or 2 small servings

Number Of Ingredients 7

• Ingredients

Nutrition Facts : @context http, Calories 298, UnsaturatedFat 1 gram, Carbohydrate 69 grams, Fat 2 grams, Fiber 7 grams, Protein 6 grams, SaturatedFat 0 grams, Sodium 11 milligrams, Sugar 41 grams

You can make this smoothie year-'round because it contains frozen fruit. The ripeness of the banana is important here: if the banana is more starchy than sweet, your smoothie will taste dull. Blueberries and strawberries are packed with anthocyanadins, the antioxidant compounds that give them their blue and red colors, and they're a very good source of vitamin C, manganese and fiber, both soluble and insoluble. Bananas are also a very good source of vitamin C and manganese, as well as potassium, fiber and vitamin B6. Add the protein and calcium in the milk, and you've got a meal.

Provided by Martha Rose Shulman

Categories     easy, quick, shakes and smoothies

Yield One 16-ounce or two 8-ounce servings

Number Of Ingredients 6

• Ingredients

The color alone is enough to make me crave this smoothie. The color also tells me that it's high in anthocyanins, flavonoids that are believed to have strong antioxidant properties. You can use raw or roasted beets.

Provided by Martha Rose Shulman

Categories     easy, shakes and smoothies

Yield 1 generous serving

Number Of Ingredients 8

• Ingredients

This drink is similar to lassi, made tangy with buttermilk (or yogurt), mango and spoonful of lime juice. If you want to make a nondairy version, use almond milk or rice beverage.

Provided by Martha Rose Shulman

Categories     breakfast, easy, quick, dessert

Time 2m

Yield One 16-ounce or two 8-ounce servings

Number Of Ingredients 7

• Ingredients