Kiwi, Banana, Honey Mango Smoothie Recipe

Here's a great fruit smoothie recipe that requires no extra sweetener, and is therefore low-calorie in addition to it being healthy and delicious!

The beginning of June and it's already July-hot and August-humid out. After a 20 minute bike ride today and then going straight into the Ab Ripper X workout DVD from P90X, I was hot and sweaty (or perhaps "perspiring" is the proper ladylike term).  After drinking a big glass of water, I still wanted something else to reward myself, so I decided to whip up a smoothie, and relax for a few minutes.
I happened to have a fresh kiwi fruit and a banana on hand, and plenty of frozen  honey mango in the fridge since I keep buying the honey mangoes like I'm an addict.
Here's what I came up with. It tasted great!


Kiwi, Banana, Honey Mango Smoothie Recipe

Prep Time:	8 minutes
Cook Time:	none - (no hot oven to turn on!)
Serves:	1

• 1 Fresh Kiwi fruit
• 1 Honey Mango, fresh or frozen
• 1 Banana, fresh or frozen
• 3 oz. Chobani Greek fat-free plain yogurt
• 1-2 oz. fruit juice like cran-raspberry or similar 
• 1 "scoop" of vanilla protein powder, if desired

Place all ingredients in a blender, start at low speed until it starts to mix and then change to the medium and high speeds until blended.
 
The fruit juice is added to thin out the mixture enough to get it to blend better, especially if you happen to use a frozen banana in addition to frozen mango. If all your fruits are fresh, you may not even need it. As for the protein powder, I ended up not adding it to my smoothie, because I had chocolate flavored Whey Protein Powder and didn't think that would mix so well with all the other added fruit flavors. 

Kiwi, Banana, Honey Mango Smoothie

I only added 3 ounces of the Chobani Greek Yogurt because I was afraid it would make it taste too tart. However, even without adding any kind of sweetener, this smoothie was plenty sweet, and I probably could have added even more yogurt and it would have been fine (and added an extra dose of protein).

Health Benefits of Bananas:
Bananas are one of our best sources of potassium which help to prevent high blood pressure and protect against atherosclerosis.  Compounds in bananas called protease inhibitors help eliminate bacteria in the stomach that have been pinpointed as a primary cause of stomach ulcers.

They are high in fiber, which improves digestion. Bananas are an exceptionally rich source of  a prebiotic compound called fructooligosaccharide.  When fructooligosaccharides are fermented by these friendly bacteria, numbers of probiotic bacteria increase, as does the body's ability to absorb calcium and other nutrients. Bananas are high in vitamin B6 and are also a good source of vitamin C and manganese. For more detailed information see World's Healthiest Foods.

See my previous posts for Health Benefits of Kiwi Fruit and the Health Benefits of Mangoes.
One other thing to note: "Data reported in a study published in the Archives of Ophthalmology indicates that eating 3 or more servings of fruit per day may lower your risk of age-related macular degeneration." So this recipe satisfies that, while satisfying your taste buds as well!
 

The flowers in my yard are starting to bloom like crazy! I'm loving it. They make me happy and bring me serenity. And the deer haven't been back for snacks (knock on wood). I think I've found a solution to that problem. I will have to post about that soon. Soooo, here's today's flower:

Double Hibiscus