One thing I love about this time of year is the oranges. I don’t know why the grocery stores suddenly start stocking those cute little peelable suckers, but they’re great. A perfectly portable and not too messy back or an add-on the breakfast, and I’ve found an even better use for them: Green Smoothies!
I bought a crate of them last week to make fruit skewers for the kiddos at J’s nursery school (the parents rotate bringing in the snack every 6-7 weeks) and even though we gobble them up, we had leftovers. They were feeling a bit soft so I decided to peel them, section, and then freeze.
I laid them out flat on a cookie sheet for a couple of hours (I’ve left it overnight before) and then into a container until I was ready to use. You could also portion them into freezer bags.
Then I added leftover frozen pineapple, a banana, coconut milk, and a few good sized handfuls of baby spinach. I blended it all up in my powerhouse of a blender and voila! Creamy tropical chilly goodness in a glass!
These smoothies are so delicious – we all loved them, especially J. Now I’m no nutrition expert either, but a few months post-natal I had pretty low iron levels and the doctor suggested I take a heavy duty supplement along with a glass of orange juice, to help my body absorb it. This makes me feel like oranges and spinach are a good match!
As a typical 2.5 year old, my little J loves to eat these oranges and wants to peel them himself. He can usually manage it as long as I remove the first speck for him. He takes the peel off slowly, in about 45 pieces, and once he’s done just bites right into the thing like it’s an apple.
Try this smoothie – you’ll love it!
Creamy Dreamy Orange Green Smoothie
1 cup frozen orange pieces
3/4 cup pineapple chunks
1 banana
2 cups baby spinach
1 cup coconut or almond milk
Blend and enjoy! Makes 2 -3 servings.
