The Basics of Smoothie Making Plus Tips for Smoothie Mistakes

Making smoothies is not hard and drinking it can give you a lot of health benefits, such as hydration, weight loss, improved digestion, having more fruits and vegetables in your diet, more energy and a lot more. But there are basic things you need to know before you begin making your own smoothie.

First step: Determine what recipe will suit your objective

Do you want to lose weight or do you just want to add more greens into your diet? If you're not sure about the recipe, try searching online. There are a lot of recipes that you can find to suit what you want. 

Read about 5 kinds of smoothies you can make and enjoy.

Second step: Know what ingredients you need

Remember that the first ingredient you should add into your blender are the LIQUID INGREDIENTS. You should follow the recipe. Don't add more liquid than what's stated in the recipe (normally not more than 2 cups per person); or else your smoothie will be too watery.

Smoothies are not milkshakes or a sugary dessert. When it is prepared properly, it can be a meal replacement. Dairy is the base of a milkshake, it's usually milk or ice cream with added flavor. Milkshakes can have whipped cream and candy toppings. But we do not want that in smoothies. In smoothies, you are using a healthy liquid base, one that is not sugary. Preferable liquid base choices include:

• kefir
• almond milk
• coconut water
• hazelnut milk
• oat milk
• filtered water
• natural fruit juice

natural fruit juice

Then you can add the BASE that will make the smoothie creamy. Here are some ingredients you can use as base for your smoothie

• banana
• apple
• peach
• avocado
• nut butters
• chia seed gel
• yogurt
• pears
• frozen fruit
  

banana and apple 

Now you can put the fruits or vegetables in your smoothie. You can experiment and add whatever you think is good and then learn to adjust. Some fresh fruits could be frozen in advance. Put together the cut fruits in a freezer bag and put them in the freezer. That way you will be saving time in making your smoothies especially in the morning.

You can also add EXTRA FOODS you like in your smoothie. Adding dates or maple syrup can make it sweeter (although almost all smoothie recipes include enough sweet fruit), a pinch of quality salt that will increase the minerals (such as pink Himalayan salt), quality protein powder, spices, superfoods, such as flax or hemp seeds, chia, goji berries and many more.

Third step: Start blending

When you're done adding all the ingredients, it is time to start blending! Follow the instructions of your blender and don't worry, after a few tries, making smoothies will become second nature for you and you will get used to it.

What To Do If You Make These Common Smoothie Mistakes

Everybody says making smoothies is easy. Nevertheless, there are still some things that could go wrong.

If your smoothie is too watery, just add more fruits (banana is the best option), frozen fruit, nut butter or oats.

oats

If it lacks creaminess, you can add some banana, nut butter, avocado or oatmeal. But if the smoothie is already too thick, add a little bit of non-dairy milk, such as oatmeal, hazelnut or coconut. Keep in mind that the taste might change, so always add the liquids in small amounts.

In case you made your green smoothie taste too healthy by accident, just add more milk, such as  hazelnut, some maple syrup or a frozen banana.

If your smoothie tastes bland, you can fix it. Add some natural fruit juice for acid taste, dates or maple syrup for sweetness or Greek yoghurt for tangy taste. You can add spices or grated ginger for more flavor.

If the smoothie was not blended well, you probably did not put the ingredients in your blender in the correct order. Remember -- liquids first, which will make the blade turn smoothly. Begin blending on slow speed and then gradually increase the speed.