Blender Drinks - and other blender foods

Omegaman 3.0 · June 4, 2021

I use the blender so often, I thought I might add a place to showcase some things and hope others might do the same.

Omegaman 3.0 · June 4, 2021

Sweet/tart Fruit / Nutrition Shake

This will be a long post, if you are in a hurry, skip to the bottom and look for the bold print.

I am frequently messing around with my blender because it makes so many good tasting drinks.

Now that I have dropped my weight from 330 pounds into the 205 to 210 range, I try to stay conscious of delicious things that won't get me out of that groove.

People ask how I got to this weight, but the answer is not complicated, I just changed habits and got some discipline.

For me, totally depriving myself of pleasurable food lacked appeal, so instead I am just thoughtful of portion sizes, frequency of treats, and some self denial, where I reward myself once is a while with something a little decadent - like maybe once a week.

I have all but given up sugar, using artificial sweeteners, but I know that other carbohydrates (like bread, crackers, chips) turn into sugar in the body.

Fruits are sweet, and they are sweet for a reason, they contain fructose, a sugar.

So, I do not pretend that I am not eating sugar. When I have carbs and fruits (in order for my diet to work) I have to be honest with myself and eat with a purpose, eat because I should, not because I think I am hungry.

I have come to realize that I do not have to eat until I am full. I have come to realize that what I would naturally choose as a serving size, is probably 2 to 4 serving sizes, that is where discipline comes in, sometimes I just have to say no.

This is the kind of thinking that has led to this shake as one of my treats, yummy, some nutritional value, but not something I should have all the time.

One of the things I like in food (besides thing that others think are too spicy) are foods that are sweet and tart at the same time (like lemonade or cherry pie).

Plums have some sweet and tart aspects, and have antioxidants, the skins especially.

Lemons provide a good amount of tartness (it is the citric acid) and have a lot of vitamin C. They help boost metabolism, which helps a little in burning of calories.

So, here is what I do:

I take two plums, and remove the pits (nectarines, apricots, or pluots would also work here) and remove the stems. You do not have to do this, but I like to freeze them before blending them.

Take the juice of one lemon or if you are ambitious, peel and deseed the lemon. It also could be frozen.

One cup of ice, two cups of water, then whatever nutritious additives you want to get into you.

For me, that can be protein powder (usually vanilla flavored) and maybe some flax seed, or powdered beets, chia seeds, or whatever strikes my fancy that day. You can find all sorts of supplements that have nutritional value, and get some fiber in you as well.

By the way, using these sorts of additives, can make you feel fuller, helping you to eat less later.

I would suggest, that as a matter of value, you might want to avoid some of the name brand items. Not saying there is anything wrong with them, but if it is heavily advertised, then you will pay extra for that, it costs money to advertise, while generic / knock off brands might be just as good, read labels.

For what it is worth, I have been known to toss some raw or frozen veggies in, it is a painless way to get vegetables in you, if you do not like vegetables.

Now, a word about blenders. They are not all the same. To some degree, you get what you pay for. I have a Vitamix. They are pricey, but they sure work well. I inherited mine in about 1992 I think, it was used then, and it is still going strong. It's power makes blending everything pretty simple, and you can even make hot soup in it, from cold ingredients without cooking.

I have other blenders also. For example, I have a couple by Hamilton Beach that I like. They have glass blender jars (which I prefer) and they were inexpensive.

I am not sure the blender above is the exact one I have, the image is just for illustration. They can be had for under $30 at many big box stores. There are also other blenders that use that same thread that accepts mason jars.

The jars have threads where you screw on the blade unit, and this is why I really bought these, here is the thing:

The threads are the same as the threads on certain mason jars. Why does that matter?

I means that I can blend a beverage in a mason jar and that means I get a serving that is limited is size (so I do not drink too much) and don't have as much to clean. These jars help you to limit your serving size because they are smaller then the stock blender jar.

I use these mason jars that have a handle on the side (like a beer mug) and they come with lids that have holes in the, for the included straw that is reusable, so that it will not get stuck in a sea turtle nose.

Also, these types of jars can be had in various colors, which helps people keep track of their drinks at a party or some such.

This of course also means, that you can blend beverages for several guests or family members, who have different tastes.

Instructions / Recipe
(repeated from above)

I take two plums, and remove the pits (nectarines or apricots would also work here) and remove the stems. You do not have to do this, but I like to freeze them before blending them.

Take the juice of one lemon, or if you are ambitious, peel and deseed the lemon. It also could be frozen.

One cup of ice,
two cups of water, then whatever nutritious additives you want to get in you.

For me, that can be protein powder (usually vanilla flavored) and maybe some flax seed, or powdered beets, chia seeds, or whatever strikes my fancy that day. You can find all sorts of supplements that have nutritional value, and get some fiber in you as well.

Put all the ingredients in the blender jar, and blend until the desired consistency is achieved. For me the means it is pourable, no large pieces of ice remaining, but not over-blended to where the ice is nearly gone. You are done, enjoy!

Will likely add some photos at a future time.