Green Smoothie

Straying a bit from the dinner theme, here's my go-to green smoothie recipe. I drink a green smoothie every day - or every day I can manage. One batch in the blender usually lasts me three days, unless Hubby takes some - and sometimes he does, because it's so delicious! You can't even taste the spinach (and I'm not lying). This smoothie really cleanses me and helps prepare me for a healthy day. I drink one every morning as part of my goal to have veggies with every meal. I highly recommend it!

Ingredients
2 cups spinach
2 cups water*
2 bananas
1 cup frozen mangos
1 cup frozen pinapple

*For a thinner drink, I usually do 2 cups juice (your choice - I use Cran-Grape) and 1/2 cup water. I prefer my smoothies to have the consistency of juice instead of frosties. Adding juice will also make it sweeter.

Baby Food - Pears

For those of you who want a more detailed set of instructions to apply for most foods (produce) if you're looking to make your own baby food, here's what I do:

1. Wash

Wash the food well, even if you're going to peel it - those germs can spread through the knife or peeler!

Baby Food - Broccoli

If you've read my first post about making baby food, you can pretty much apply it to any food you want to purée for your little one. But in case you like step-by-step instructions like I do, here's a recipe for making broccoli.

I don't have a specific measured amount of broccoli I use - I just keep a few florets leftover from a dinner recipe and purée it in the blender.

1. Steam broccoli

If your broccoli isn't already cooked, here's how I do it: Put about 1 cup of water (or 2, if using a lot of broccoli) in a small pot and bring to a boil with the broccoli in the steamer. Cover for 5-10 mins, depending on how much broccoli you use. Test with a fork. When it is soft enough to come apart with the fork, it's ready.

Baby Food - Sweet Potatoes

I thought I'd shake things up and share how I make homemade baby food :)

Before Baby started eating solid foods, I wanted to make the food myself just in case funds got tight and we couldn't afford the fancy jarred stuff. And it's so easy! I generally use the produce we already have (with a few exceptions), so I don't have to spend any extra money. With most foods, all you have to do is cook it (I like to use a steamer) and purée it.

1. Wash and poke

Preheat oven to 400. Wash your sweet potatoes thoroughly and poke several holes in them with a fork (or, in my case, a fancy cheese utensil you never get to use). This keeps the potatoes from exploding in the oven.