Smoothies in Less Than a Minute

I have a strange fascination with infomercials. I love to watch them, but 98% of the time, it's my interest in marketing ploys, er, techniques that has me fixated to the screen at 2:00 a.m. Admittedly, most of the stuff sold on TV is extra junk and clutter.



The Magic Bullet, however, is one of those things which actually looked like a good idea. It doesn't take up a lot of space, and it makes single servings. Strangely enough, a couple weeks after I saw their infomercial for the first time and completely unsolicited, my mom gave me a Magic Bullet. It's been sitting on our counter, getting used at least a few times a month, sometimes a few times a week, and mainly for breakfast smoothies.

Quick Fruit Smoothie

Fruit
Yogurt
Orange Juice (or milk)

Start with any fruit you have on hand (canned, frozen, fresh), and don't be afraid to mix fruits. If you have some leftover peaches, go ahead and throw them in with the pears. Who knows? It might actually be yummy. (Or you won't even taste the difference.) Any stone fruit (fruit that has a seed), berries, or other soft stuff like bananas, are going to be great for smoothies.



Add some yogurt and juice or milk. Use as much as you like. A whole Yoplait container is usually perfect, but do whatever strikes your fancy that morning.

Try different kinds of yogurt too. The combinations really are endless. I usually have a standby of vanilla yogurt on hand, but don't shy away from throwing in that blueberry yogurt with a banana and some pineapple. Maybe try the key lime yogurt with some mandarin oranges. Ooo... That sounds pretty good actually.

The amount of juice or milk you add depends on how thick you'd like your smoothie to be. More liquid for a more drinkable smoothie; less for a spoonable one.



Blend your ingredients in a blender until smooth.



Of course you don't HAVE to have a Magic Bullet to make smoothies. You could make it in your food processor if that's all you have. The Bullet just makes it a whole lot easier and requires less cleanup.

Experimentation Tip: I've heard of people adding instant coffee to their smoothies for a little extra kick. I haven't tried it before because I'm not sure how I feel about mingling fruit with the sacred beverage. Also, my opinion of instant coffee is not very high. At all.

If you've tried this before, do comment! I would be interested to hear if it makes a difference in taste or potency.