Pink Lemonade Smoothie - is it summer yet?

Yesterday, I watched the documentary “Fat, Sick and Nearly Dead” about two very overweight men who resolved themselves to a fairly dramatic 60-day juice fast in order to take charge of their own health and, ultimately, their lives. I had several bones to pick with the documentary – it fell victim to what many health documentaries do, and that’s oversimplification of a lot of complex processes involved in metabolism – but overall, it was an inspiring film and the two men did take a lot of precautions with their fast. They were careful, and at the end of the fast adopted a very healthy diet.

Although I don’t 100% buy into these detox diets and fasting fads – our bodies, believe it or not, do not need a “break” from digestion, and are perfectly capable of detoxing themselves – I do, myself, enjoy a good nutrient-rich drink now and then to supplement “food.” Since I don’t own a juicer, this means that I gravitate toward smoothies. What’s even better about smoothies compared to juicing (in my humble, unbiased opinion) is that you can get even more nutrients in your glass – fiber, healthy fats, and vegetable protein in particular. 

Watching the film did remind me how much I enjoy starting my day off now and then with a good power smoothie, so I thought I would share one of my latest creations with you. It may not be a mean, green, clean-eating machine, but it is nutritious and delicious, which is just as exciting of rhyme if you ask me. This Pink Lemonade Smoothie relies on lemon-flavored greek yogurt and “freshly frozen” strawberries (fresh strawberries that I washed, halved and froze myself), and gets an extra boost from some ground flax meal. I thinned it out with a little unsweetened almond milk, and resisted the temptation to throw in a handful of spinach for fear of losing the iconic pink color that I knew it needed. It’s very sweet and refreshing – a great option for the warmer months, and an even healthier alternative to standard pink lemonade!