While healthy smoothies have all the rights (breakfast in a cup, undetectable greens and almighty superfoods, with the ability to taste like a milkshake), sometimes things can go wrong, too.
Like an icy glob of healthy smoothie that smacks you in the face when you unsuspectingly go in for a sip. Or a healthy smoothie that, once blended to perfection, separates faster than oil and water in your glass. Or worse, despite the hype and valiant attempt, it’s kind of… blah.
We hear you loud and clear. And we’ve got a healthy smoothie SOS that’ll put you back in charge when it comes to your favorite blended drinks. So get ready to restart your blender.
Fix 1: It’s too cold
Does one sip of your healthy smoothie send chills down your spine? Or maybe you tried drinking it through your straw and it didn’t work. Let’s hit the defrost button on that brain freeze and work this one out.
The quick fix here is to thin it out. Choose your liquid carefully. Too much water can dilute the flavor, and too much milk can boost the sloppy factor. OK, are you ready? Add a little liquid (one or two, max), flip the switch and stop. Start slow and work up to a higher speed, you want to see the blender swirl. Add a little at a time, mix a little more until you get the perfect texture you want.
If too much ice is to blame, next time consider using frozen cubes of almond milk or Greek yogurt to firm up the thickness level while maintaining the creaminess you want.
And if you’re over the ice and need more cream, avocado, banana, nut butter, or thick Greek yogurt will do the trick.
Fix 2: It’s not cooled enough
Drinking a water smoothie is like eating an apple without the almond butter. It will get the job done, but it will never taste as good. So let’s take that healthy smoothie to the ultimate level of enjoyment, shall we?
Get ice in a pinch, adjust flavors accordingly. But for a real fix, go for frozen fruit (or produce if you just need to go green). And by all means, next time be sure to freeze some almond milk or Greek yogurt cubes. You won’t regret it.
Add the frozen pieces a few at a time and whiz the blender at full speed. Add a few more frozen pieces if it’s still too thin. Then let that blender do its thing. We’re looking for thick but still blending here.
For a moderately runny smoothie situation, rely on chia seeds. One or two teaspoons per serving. Mix them together and give them about 10 minutes to work their gel magic.
Fix 3: It’s too “green”.
Have you managed to green yourself up by adding in ALL the healthy veggies? And now your healthy smoothie tastes like a salad in a cup. Sure, we go healthy with our smoothies, it’s a no-brainer, but since there’s no prize for whoever can put the most green stuff into their blender and still be able to drink it, let’s turn it into a drink. everyone can enjoy.
First, a quick solution. add almond milk or yogurt to control bitterness. Then balance the sweetness with half a frozen banana, pineapple, or a few drops of liquid stevia. As always, add a little more, mix again and reassess.
And try a little less green stuff next time. Go heavy on sweeter greens like spinach and mild vegetables like cucumbers, and be a little less ambitious with stronger picks like kale, celery and broccoli. Throw in a slice or two and taste as you go.
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Fix 4: it got separated
It doesn’t matter how beautifully put together your healthy smoothie is to begin with. Sometimes they’re just meant to be broken up.
It could be the ingredients. Or how long it takes to get from the blender to the mouth. If you make your healthy smoothies ahead of time, they may start to separate as the heavier particles sink to the bottom.
Your quick fix is to give it a healthy shake or stir, or re-stir if you can. But for the healthy smoothies of the future, be careful with certain ingredients, like blueberries, whose natural pectin creates a gelatinous texture, or chia or flax seeds, which can gel too much. They can start to stand out from the mix if left unattended for too long. Plan to use these ingredients in healthy smoothies that you’ll polish off in no time.
Fix 5: It’s just “blah”.
We live by the motto that life is too short for bland smoothies.
Good thing there is a good solution. Or two. Or a bunch! Brighten the flavor with a squeeze of citrus (lemon or lime are solid bets) or a bright fruit like raspberry. Try fresh herbs like cilantro or parsley for extra flavor and nutrition (bonus points). Gather cinnamon, cardamom, ginger (dried, best freshly grated is out-of-this-world good) and vanilla extract in the spice cabinet. Sweeten things up with dates, maple syrup, or honey.
You may have to do a little matching here to combine the flavors you have with their complementary additions, but your flavor saver is there. So get to it and beat the blahs!
A final note, if you’ve tried everything and it just isn’t working, take a healthy smoothie recipe that sounds good and follow it to a T. Once you get your groove back, follow that winning formula as a base and add new fruits, vegetables, and supplements to your heart’s content.