Beet and Berry Smoothie

A few weeks ago, Adam was out of town, and I had all these vegetables that needed to be used up.  Cooking vegetables for a toddler is always a gamble, so I ended up throwing them into a smoothie.

It was delicious, creamy, and bright pink and, unsurprisingly, the toddler fell in love.  So much so that he has been asking for a smoothie every other day since then (although his pronunciation is "smoomie," which makes my mama heart melt).  I keep throwing veggies in it, and he keeps drinking it.  It is a win-win!

A few notes about the ingredients:

-Use really sweet fruits.  The vegetables are not sweet enough to make this a legit sweet smoothie, so sweet fruit is essential.  I often like to throw in a clementine or three into the smoothie instead of an orange, because they tend to be sweeter.

- Zucchini makes the smoothie creamy without adding sugar (I learned this thanks to an insta-friend). You could add a banana instead, or an avocado with good results, I imagine.

- Cut the vegetables into pieces no longer than an inch in length, and blend for a long time.  I typically blend them in my blendtec for 60-80 seconds to ensure a creamy texture and no chunks.

- Adding a raw beet to the mix makes the shake SUPER pink.  I love that, because it makes it much more appetizing to eat.  I have recently recovered from a super dislike of all things smoothie (as of two or so years), so I am still a little wary of green smoothies.  Adding a beet means I can add spinach or other greens, all while enjoying a nice, pink smoothie.

Beet and Berry Smoothie

serves 3-4

2-3 small carrots, tops and bottoms chopped off, cut into 1" pieces

2 oranges (or 3 clementines), peeled and seeded

1 small beet, peeled, tops and bottoms chopped off and quartered

2" long piece of zucchini, tops and bottoms chopped off

1 cup or two large handfuls of fresh spinach leaves

2 cups frozen mixed berries

2-3 cups whole milk (or nut milk, if you like)

Put carrots, oranges, beets, berries, and the zucchini in the bottom of the blender, top with spinach leaves, then pour milk over the whole thing. Blend for 60-80 seconds. Works best in a really powerful blender (I have a Blendtec).