How to Make a Good Fruit Smoothie at Home

Making smoothies is an art that can be mastered over time. Blending the right ingredients in right proportion while preserving the creamy texture will give you delicious and refreshing smoothies. Adding extra charge to your smoothies will turn this refreshing drink into a high nutritious meal supplement. Beginning your day with a healthy smoothie (here I'm not talking about all that store bought sugary stuff that will only be good on your taste buds but a homemade one that will do good to your body) will help you to leap into a healthy lifestyle.

Can you make a smoothie that is healthy and delicious at the same time? Well! Follow the simple directions given here and become a smoothie rock star.

How to Make a Good Fruit Smoothie at Home?

Just know that there are no magic recipes for perfect fruit smoothies. The secret of a good smoothie lies in the ingredients and the proportion you mix up. Try your own set of ingredients and test if it suits your taste and requirement. Toss the ingredients one by one to your smoothie blender as given below and blend it until smooth.

Step-1: Add Liquid

Liquid is the one of the main ingredients of smoothies. Add 1 cup of liquid at first and if you want, add a bit extra later. You can choose from one of these options.

• Water (this is best option if you want to cut down extra calories from your smoothie).
• Dairy or Soy Milk (adds up extra protein).
• Nut Milk like almond, cashew or coconut.
• Fruit Juice (this is a great combo of essential vitamins and minerals. Avoid store bought sugary juices and use freshly squeezed juices like orange or lemon).
• Green Tea (this will add up antioxidants).
• Greek or Plain Yogurt (gives a thicker texture to smoothies).

Step-2: Add Fruits

For great tasting fruit smoothies, add fleshy fruits like banana, mango, peach, apples, strawberry etc. Fresh or Frozen fruits can be used. You can use a single fruit or a combination of fruits. Here the options are endless so try yourself if you like the taste. For example strawberry goes well with banana and pear with orange. If you want to maintain the creamy texture of the smoothies, then avoid using watery fruits like orange, melon or you will end up with a runny liquid.

You can get the perfect smoothie texture by using frozen fruits along with fresh ones. 1 cup of fresh fruit + 2 cups of frozen fruits will do better.

Also remember to keep your liquid to fruits ratio as 1:3. If you are using thickeners like protein powder then add some more liquid.

Step-3: Add Extra Nutrition (Optional)

If you want your smoothie as a real food supplement (like for breakfast) then you need extra nutrition. Add 1/2 to 1 scoop of protein powder. Using wheat, soy or brown rice powder would be a great choice.

You can even add a handful of greens like spinach or kale if you want to make a green smoothie. They are of high nutritional value and you won't taste them in your smoothie.

Step-4: Add Sweetener (Optional)

If you are used to sugary drink then add little sweetener to your smoothie. Even though you can add table sugar it's good to stick with healthy choices like natural honey, stevia or vanilla extract.

But the best substitute to sugar is using over ripe banana. Just freeze 1/4 cup of over ripe banana and add it to the smoothie ingredients to make a deliciously sweet smoothie. If you don’t like banana then go for other choices.

Step-5: Add Extra Flavor (Optional)

To give an interesting flavor to the smoothies, you can add cinnamon (a pinch), nutmeg (a pinch) or peanut butter (1 tablespoon).

Step-6: Add Ice Cubes (Optional)

Finally add 4-5 big ice cubes. You can avoid using ice if you use frozen fruits. They give a good creamy texture and also make the drink chilly. Also freezing one half of the liquids like fruit juices or water will avoid using extra ice cubes.

Don't freeze the whole amount of liquid as the blender will require minimum liquid to swirl the contents initially.

Finally blend all the ingredients from 40 to 60 secs depending upon your blender capacity.

Once it is blended smoothly, transfer the smoothie to a tall serving glass and let it set for a minute before you drink.

Now enjoy your perfect homemade fruit smoothie :)