TASTY TREATS
Make even better smoothies with this simple fruit addition
Smoothies are a great way to get a powerful dose of vitamins, minerals and fibres in your diet, let your imagination run riot.
Smoothies are a superb and easy way to up your daily dose of fruit and vegetables. And they are so versatile - pick your liquid base, whether it’s milk, yoghurt, ice cream or fruit juice and then add whatever fruit or vegetables you fancy. And you can even chuck some nutritional supplements or protein powder in there to give you an even more potent boost.
One simple smoothie addition you might not have thought of
The standard fruit smoothie go-tos include banana, apple, melon, cherries and ALL the berries - strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, blackberries.
But one fruit you might not have tried—and if you haven’t you should—is avocado.
Wait, is avocado a fruit? It is indeed—in fact, not only is it a fruit it’s a berry (botanically speaking)—containing one large seed (but don’t put the seed in your smoothie). So although it’s often found in the vegetable section of the supermarket and in salads, it is a fruit.
Why are avocados so good in a smoothie?
What do avocados bring to smoothies though? Creamy texture! They blend incredibly well with other ingredients and take the texture to a whole new satisfying, delicious level. Think rich and velvety and you’re on the right lines.
They also help bring out the flavours of the other ingredients, helping them to really zing.
As for other avocado benefits - there’s a long list!
Avocados are rich in healthy fats, and these can help your body absorb fat-soluble vitamins (A, D, E, and K) from the other ingredients in your smoothie. So you potentially absorb more nutrients from the fruits and vegetables in your smoothie when you include avocado.
And the monounsaturated fats in avocados are heart-healthy, and can help reduce bad cholesterol levels. As if that weren’t enough, avocados are high in fibre, which can aid digestion. And with the healthy fats and fiber together can help to stabilize blood sugar levels - that’s good for keeping energy levels up throughout the day.
Avocados themselves are packed with vitamins and minerals, including potassium, vitamin K, vitamin E, and B vitamins.
Top tip: avocados have the lowest sugar levels of any of the most common fruits, at just 0.7 grams per 100 grams (compared with plums at 10 grams, or blueberries at 6 grams).
Your best bet for popping avocados into a smoothie is to use a ripe avocado, but NOT one which has gone past being ripe to the stage where the flesh is mushy and brown.
Exactly how much to use is up to you—more avocado, more creaminess. But as a starting point try using half an avocado with enough other ingredients to make a 12 oz smoothie.
See also: One thing you should avoid doing when storing bananas
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Ingredients for your smoothie
As noted, your imagination - and personal taste - are the limit on what to put in a smoothie, along with the avocado.
Try any or all of kiwi, banana, blueberries, strawberries, mango, apple, pineapple or any other fruit you have lying around.
If you want an extra touch of sweetness try a tiny bit of sugar, honey or stevia.
If you fancy it colder, add ice, which can also help make the smoothie thicker. If you want the smoothie thick and chunky, just don’t blend for so long.
One word of warning: if you’re using vegetables in your smoothie, some people find avocados don’t go so well with asparagus or broccoli, so they might be ones to avoid.
No matter what you put in your smoothies with some avocados, enjoy!