Smoothies are critical to the success of our family's plant-based diet.  They serve so many functions for us!

 

Numero uno for sure is when the kids won't eat what is served for dinner.  Let's face it- when making the transition to a more plant-based diet this happens A LOT.  The rule in our house is if you don't like what is served, you may have a smoothie.  That way we aren't making 20 different meals AND we can be confident our kiddos are still getting in the nutrition that they need for their growing bodies.  See below for some recipes to hide a ton of nutrition inside what your kids think is a delicious smoothie!

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We also use smoothies as a way to get in our greens.  As a busy family of five we don't always have the time to chop and eat a bunch of kale, spinach, chard, etc.   Yet we know from the science how important the nutrients greens provide are for both disease prevention and healing.  Everyone in our family starts off the day with the "Basic Green Smoothie" recipe below.

 

Lastly, when we are time crunched (or exhausted from a day of parenting/work/time-outs/life) we often cook a whole grain and make a smoothie for dinner.  We throw a ton of nutrition in there and call it a day!