Green Goddess Smoothie

I've always been pretty good about not drinking soda, not drinking sugar filled juices, packaged ice teas, any of those sports drinks. I had a brief affair with Kombucha but didn't notice any major health benefits that really offset what was essentially like drinking moldy flavored soda water. But the one thing I absolutely cannot resist when it comes to drinks outside of water (alright... and coffee) is Naked's Green Machine. I don't know why but it's just delicious. But it's also pricey and juice of any kind just means more sugar. So why not make my own.

I'm not a big proponent of diets, or cleanses, or anything that causes me to change up my body's status quo for a short amount of time in the hopes of maintaining once it's done. For me, it doesn't work and just messes up my system even more. But working something into my diet that I can maintain on a mostly daily basis, and is something that I already love to begin with and if sugar and/or money were no object would consume on a daily basis... well bring it on. And the beauty is that for smoothies you really don't need to follow a formula. Need some protein- throw in some nuts or peanut butter. Need potassium, how about a banana. My big thing though is calcium. I loath milk, usually going the soy route, and am not the biggest fan of yogurt so this is a great way to hide it in a smoothie, a la Jessica Seinfeld style. As for veggies, bring it on. I love every kind of green, so that's not a problem, but if it is for you, just add more fruits to help balance it out. The beauty is you can make it your own and make it different every day.

Green Goddess Smoothie
(everyone calls it Green Monster, I prefer goddess after the very tasty dressing) 
1 banana, try it frozen to eliminate the need for ice cubes
1 c. milk- regular, soy, almond, etc
2 handfuls of spinach
1 Tbl peanut butter- or almond butter (try to use all natural to cut down on additives)
1/3 c. uncooked broccoli
2 dates- or figs, apricots, prunes, etc

Optional: Honey, agave, splenda, sweetner if necessary. My suggestion is to taste after the first ingredients are mixed and see.

1. Add everything in the blender (or food processor) and blend until well mixed and creamy. If it needs more liquid just add more milk.