The following smoothie has consisted of 50% of my diet for well over a year now. I just got a new blender because I worked my last one too hard and it shattered. Don’t worry, it was made of plastic, but it was a pain to clean up 2 litres of goop and chunks. This new blender is way better, and made of glass… I sure hope it doesn’t meet the same fate, because glass fragments are a little bit less forgiving…

This drink is delicious IMO, but it was constructed entirely for its health benefits, so it is perhaps not the most delicious thing you ever did drink. I have recently decided to start tinkering with it, because it sends me quickly in a mid-day coma, and that is no good (meme). I believe this is due to the amount of nuts (I reduced them in this version) and calories. I once measured the calories in 3 tall glasses of my smoothie, and it surpassed 2000. This version might still be up there. For fun, I’ll say 1800 (or 600 calories per tall glass).

• 325g (half tub) of yogurt
• 3x60ml (ie. using measuring cup at top of blender) of walnuts
• 2x60ml of nut mix (less air, so not the same as 180ml walnuts)
• an apple! (without the core)
• a banana! (without the part you slip and fall on)
• 1 tablespoon (very generous) of peanut butter
• 30g dark chocolate (anti-oxidelicious!)
• 3x60ml frozen blueberries
• 3x60ml frozen berry mix
• 7 seconds of red wine pored from a wine box
• fill halfway (of existing smoothie, ie. filling air pockets) with Five Alive (citrus)
• fill remainder (of existing smoothie) with cranberry juice

Steps:

1. Put ingredients in blender (in the order above).
2. Blend until smooth.
3. Consume.

(Yes, I was tempted to make an underpants gnomes joke.)

In practice I don’t actually care about exact measurements. The more juice and berries, the better the flavour. You can omit the nuts, though it decreases the calories and health benefits. Most of my friends can’t stand nuts in their drinks.

Ingredients for health benefits (anti-oxidants, etc.): everything, actually.
Ingredients for calories: nuts, peanut butter, cranberry juice.
Ingredients for flavour: berries, cranberry juice.