Berry Beetroot Smoothie Recipe

Berry and beetroot is a smoothie flavour match made in heaven. I've added apple juice for sweetness and a little ginger to give it an extra healthy kick. This vibrant rosy red smoothie is guaranteed to add a zing to your step.

If you're looking for a delicious smoothie to give your health a bit of a shake-up and add some much-needed nutrients this is the smoothie for you! Not only do the individual ingredients pack a huge vitamin, mineral, and antioxidant punch but the flavours also work well together.

I am a firm believer in eating for health.

"Let Food be thy medicine, and medicine be thy food."

Hippocrates

I find I naturally gravitate to ingredients that I need when my body needs them.

The other day I was having lunch with a friend at a local plant based cafe. I noticed a bright red beet juice blend and I instantly craved it. The juice was a cold pressed beetroot juice with apple, lemon and ginger. I sucked it down like there was no tomorrow! I felt like I had taken a vitamin shot and my energy levels increased as did my mood.

It is so unlike me to buy juice. I really don't like stripping fruits and vegetables of their fibre and just consuming the liquid, but on that occasion, the body wanted what the body needed.

Detox & Anti-inflammatory Smoothie

I have been suffering a little bit lately with some horrific shoulder pain and been rather miserable. Some recent tests showed, bursitis, tendinitis, and arthritis in the one-shoulder! Fabulous! I'm still in denial about arthritis, I am a fit and healthy 50-year-old so I am planning to change a few things up in my diet and send it packing. So after downing my beet juice with some Neurofen I went home to research "anti-inflammatory foods". Guess what? Without evening knowing it I had just consumed something helpful to my inflammation problem.

Smoothie Vs Juice

The main difference between making a smoothie or making a juice is the process.

Juicing

Juicing fruits and vegetables separates the juice from the fibre. The fibre is then discarded. Whether using a cold press juicer or a regular juicer the result is the same. The fibre is separated from the liquid and only the juice is consumed.

Juices have a thinner consistency. They tend to taste sweeter and have a cleaner flavour. It takes more ingredients to fill a cup with juice as the pulp is removed.

Smoothie

When making a smoothie a blender, food processor, or Thermomix is used to process the complete item of produce. This process liquefies all the fruit and vegetables including the fibre. As a result, the smoothie includes 100% of the fruit and vegetable, fibre and vitamins minerals etc.

The smoothie will have a thicker consistency and will need water added to liquefy the produce.

Which is better for you Smoothie v Juice

If we are comparing the same fresh juice to a fresh smoothie they will both have pretty much the same vitamin and mineral profile. Where I believe a smoothie is superior is in the fact that it contains fibre:

What does fibre do?

• Fibre will fill you up more quickly than the liquid-only juice so you will need a lot less volume and calories to be satisfied.
• The pulp helps slow the sugar spike, insulin release, and subsequent drop so it is better for blood sugar levels.
• Cellulose is needed for gut health as a prebiotic.

So this is why I tend to choose a smoothie over a juice. Having said that I totally believe that it's important to have a wide range of fruit and vegetables in your diet. So if you can't stand the thickness of a smoothie, and you prefer to juice these ingredients then go ahead. The main thing is to get it into your body.

This smoothie uses apple juice to add liquid to the fruit and vegetable so it can be processed to a smooth consistency. The apple also adds some sweetness to the drink. You can increase the apple juice if you would like a thinner smoother drink.

What's in this Berry Smoothie & Why?

Mixed Berries

Berries are known to be low in calories, high in fibre, and antioxidant-rich. I've chosen to use mixed berries in this smoothie because each different berry also has a different vitamin and mineral nutrient profile. By using a mix of berries the smoothie takes advantage of adding a range of nutrients.

Raw Beetroot

Beetroot is another nutrient powerhouse. Like the berries, beets are high in fibre and rich in antioxidants. They're also a great source of zinc, copper, vitamin A, and C. Another benefit of including beetroots in your diet is their detox properties. Helping to protects the liver from oxitive damage and eliminate toxins. Plus, Beetroot also aids in dampening inflammation in the body.

Fresh Ginger

Ginger has been an important part of traditional medicine for centuries. There are so many known health benefits of this root it really should be used more in the diet. Besides the health benefits it also adds a lovely fresh, warming flavour to food and drink.

Did you know that ginger is full of anti-oxidants and has fabulous anti-inflammatory properties? Ginger can help control an overactive immune response and help the body to start the healing process. It also helps regulate blood sugar.

Celery

The humble celery stick is another important anti-inflammatory food. It has also been found to be a fabulous detoxifying agent for cancer cells. I initially included the celery because I wanted another vegetable with plenty of liquid so I could reduce the apple juice in the recipe. After a little research, I was even happy with the inclusion of this surprising vegetable.

Apple Juice

Apple juice was chosen to add sweetness to this smoothie. I usually just add water to my fruit smoothies but this one needed a bit of help if it was going to become a regular inclusion on my smoothie rotation.

The flavour combination of these ingredients is awesome, zingy sweet, earthy, and delicious.

It's worth drinking just for the taste!

How many does the Berry Beetroot Smoothie serve?

The recipe makes two large adult serves for a breakfast. The smoothie is really filling.

I prefer to have the smoothie as a snack so I divide the drink into 8 serves. If I'm having this as a snack I only need one yoghurt pot full of the Berry Beetroot smoothie to fill me up.

I tend to have these throughout the day so the Thermomix yoghurt pots, with the lids, are the perfect "shot" size.

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If you're looking for some more quick, healthy smoothies why not try some of these shown below. Smoothies make a great breakfast when you're in a hurry.

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