Healthy drinks

[Fluffy Squirrel]

Hi all,

Just wondered if anyone has some nice tasty recipes for healthy drinks such as fruit smoothies, etc?

Thanks :D

[helenvictoria]

i am having a slim a soup for lunch?! does that count as healthy?!


urrrmmmm.....:D

[SarahandIan]

I struggle with drinks. I tend to have things like cranberry juice, grape juice and mainly tea with sweetener. I'm rubbish at drinking water so try and have cordial whenever I can. Theres always Green Tea if you want to be extra good. Sorry, not much help.

Sarah

[Pebbles]

I used to be an expert on smoothies!

I love soy milk, banana and honey - throw 1 banana, 1 glass of soy milk and a squeeze of honey into the blender and hey presto! banana smoothie

You have really got to like soy milk though

Try it with strawberries, soy milk and wheatgerm

Mango, yoghurt (unsweetened natural) and skimmed milk

Try other fruit/yoghurt milk combos

Healthy doesn't mean low fat though, so use low fat milks and yoghurt where you can, always buy unsweetened and count it into your carbohydrate and calorie allowance for the day if trying to lose weight

[Fluffy Squirrel]

Yeah it's the drinks that I'm struggling with... I've drank nothing but water since Saturday and now I'm bored of it and don't want any more lol, I'm still eating healthily but have given into the bottle of Pepsi Max which had been sitting unopened since Christmas :confused:

When I go shopping on Saturday I'm going to make sure that I stock up on fruit juice I think but other than that, I'm hoping to start making my own smoothies, etc but don't know where to start lol.

[Fluffy Squirrel]

I used to be an expert on smoothies!

I love soy milk, banana and honey - throw 1 banana, 1 glass of soy milk and a squeeze of honey into the blender and hey presto! banana smoothie

You have really got to like soy milk though

Try it with strawberries, soy milk and wheatgerm

Mango, yoghurt (unsweetened natural) and skimmed milk

Try other fruit/yoghurt milk combos

Healthy doesn't mean low fat though, so use low fat milks and yoghurt where you can, always buy unsweetened and count it into your carbohydrate and calorie allowance for the day if trying to lose weight

Ooooh, thanks for that - I'll give some of those a try. Does soy milk taste much different from 'normal' milk?

[auntynet]

My lot won't eat fruit so I make smooties for them regularly. I tend to use tinned fruit in juice - not syrup - as its cheap and I think it blends better than fresh fruit. You can get all sorts of tinned fruit at most supermarkets so you can try lots of different varieties. Two tins of fruit, plus their juices with about half a carton of regular fruit juice (supermarket brand apple juice usually) will make a large jug of smoothie.

We really like mango & pear with apple juice.

I've tried using milk to make them but I just can't seem to make a nice mix and I'm too tight to invest in a recipe book. There are loads of recipes available on the internet though.

[xrheax]

I love smoothies!

I normally make mine with whatever fruit I have lying around the house to be honest - not one of them were ever the same :)

I also bought frozen fruit too - it was lots cheaper I found. Especially if you use farmfoods or iceland - they seem to be cheaper for fruit than supermarkets. I added whatever fruit I liked, a little bit of orange juice and some yogurt. The yogurt again was whatever was left in the fridge - if I had just been shopping it was greek style natural yogurt, if it was a couple of weeks later it was the vitality which was a day out of date! I don't like bananas myself but if you put in a small one with lots of berries it soon takes away the banana taste.

As for other drinks, myself and my children drink a lot of apple juice and orange juice mixed together!

[Pebbles]

There's nothing wrong with pepsi max, it has no calorie content and is sugar free, it is bad for you teeth though and it contains caffiene and those fake sugar things that might give you cancer depending on if the papers are having a slow news day or not.

I quite often drink cranberry juice with soda water and fresh lime. Plain water is boring but you get used to it and actually, you do need it

Drinking water also helps fill you up so that you don't snack between meals.

Edited to say: yeah soy milk tastes a lot different to "normal" milk, buy a small one to try first, you can get 250ml cartons of it in some shops.... most people can't stand it, it is quite an acquired taste. Do you like tofu?

[auntynet]

Hot water with a slice of lemon is good for detox. If you don't like the sour taste, you can add a teaspoon of honey.

[Fluffy Squirrel]

oooh, lots of fab ideas there - I'll definitely be trying out some of those :)

In answer to your question, I've never tried tofu not soy milk so will have to add both to my shopping list to try them :D

[Pebbles]

oooh, lots of fab ideas there - I'll definitely be trying out some of those :)

In answer to your question, I've never tried tofu not soy milk so will have to add both to my shopping list to try them :D

You're in for a treat!

No really, the reason I asked is 'cos they are similar tastes. It really is an acquired taste though so don't throw things at me if you hate them! :D

[Fluffy Squirrel]

You're in for a treat!

No really, the reason I asked is 'cos they are similar tastes. It really is an acquired taste though so don't throw things at me if you hate them! :D

I'll let you know how I get on - need to find out what to do with Tofu now lol.

[maggielef]

I have just been browsing the forum, which is great by the way, and saw the food bit, my favourite thing!
I drink soya milk all the time, as get bad headaches when drinking milk, especially, bizarrely in tea. It took about 3 months to get used to the rather sour bean taste, but now can't drink tea or eat cereal with regular milk, it tastes funny.
Have you tried carrot and apple juice with fresh ginger? Or pear & apple with or without fresh ginger. Both rather yummy.
Or mango, pineapple, and orange, with or without a dash of rum. Very messy with fresh fruit, but worth the sticky mess for the taste.

[madmidwife]

My freezer is full of pre chopped fruit which I buy when it is on offer or at about 3pm at our local market- bananas, apples, kiwi, grapes,pears, all the berries etc.

Then i also freeze in ice cube trays low fat yoghurt - plain, vanilla or banana flavours work well.

So whenever I fancy a smoothie- I choose which fruit I fancy- then either go for a yoghurty one with about 4 cubes of the iced yoghurt and let them defrost maybe for about 30 mins then blitz in the blender with some apple juice- or just omit the yoghurt for a pure fruit smoothie.

You can alter how thick you like it by altering the amount of apple juice.

Have you tried the fruit fusion herbal teas- they are delicious- and I'm not a herbal tea kinda person!!

Another one I love is to blend a bit of elderflower cordial with Robinsons white grape and melon cordial and add fizzy water- delish!!

Ohhhh- I'm off for a smoothy.........

[claireybear]

I quite often make up sugar-free squash with fizzy water instead of tap water, it is fairly cheap and adds a bit more interest.

[Fluffy Squirrel]

I'm definitely going to be giving some of these smoothies, etc a try as after my surgery I'm now on a liquid diet for six weeks and I'm now allowed any gassy drinks so thats everything fizzy that I'd normally drink straight out of the window lol.

Thanks for all the ideas, and I like the idea of separating fruit into usable portion sizes then freezing them... definitely going to start doing that :)

[goldy1]

don't over do it with the fruit though or you will be visiting a certain room very often :D

[bynicki]

This is a really useful. I'm a big green tea drinker myself which I'm told is really good for you but I just love the taste. I bought a smoothie maker last year in the hope that I would use up all the fruit leftovers and made a few good ones and a few that tasted awful, I do remember making something with strawberries which was nice but I have no idea how to make it again!!!.

I think after reading this I will have to have another go!!!.

[Fluffy Squirrel]

don't over do it with the fruit though or you will be visiting a certain room very often :D

Lol, at the moment I'm having as much fruit (and laxatives) as possible as things just aren't happening in that department since my operation on the 16th :o so everything that might have that effect is welcomed lol.

[Emmaosk]

I'm a bit late on this one but a smootie i really love to have for breakfast and it really does keep you going till lunch is a hazelnut yoghurt, banana, porridge oats and ice or milk so you can get it to the consistancy you like, but I love it really thick so it feels like breakfast. lol.
I loved the idea of putting portions of yoghurt in the ice cubes, i will adopt that idea .
Em

[sparkysdad]

My favorite - a slice of lemon (not too skinny slices!) and a couple of slices of fresh ginger.. no need to peel. Put them in a cup/mug and top up with boiling water.. ready after 3 or 4 mins..

Anyone who loves the "ice cream" type milkshakes you get in macdonalds and the like, try popping a banana in the freezer, then blending it up with fresh milk (skimmed or semi is fine) or rice milk, soya milk etc.. something about freezing your 'nana makes it emulsify with the milk and make a really thick and creamy drink without all the sugar and rubbish they put in the commercial ones..

[Madly Creating]

Carrot, apple & ginger! Of course, it helps if you've got a juicer for this one. Lots of juice in a carrot :D

I'd recommend making any smoothies with apple juice rather than orange - you don't have to worry about that awful sour taste from the pith then...

Good luck!

[Powell P]

Great combination for a good healthy drink. I think it may taste bad, but it is good for health. Even antioxidant is good for health.

[Chicita]

Here's a quick smoothie recipe that I use every breakfast, whizzed in an ordinary liquidiser.
Slice of pineapple, handful of grapes, 1 banana, 1 kiwi, cup of orange juice.
A great way to start the day and lots of Vit C.

[Chicita]

...and you can add a handful of baby spinach leaves too!

[bodrighy]

What's wrong with tap water?

pete

[bodrighy]

Why do people spend a fortune on 'health foods' instead of sorting their diet out. Loads of vegetables and fruit, (fresh not tinned) decent meat and fish (not the awful stuff that comes pre-wrapped in the supermarket), cut back on the sugar, red wine for your cholesterol, decent amount of exercise, total not jogging. People during the war ( seo I read) were at their healthiest because they had no choice, given the option we seem to prefer to eat drink and take no exercise then take vitamins and wonder foods to compensate. Just how ridiculous does this sound?

Pete

[the card shark]

Why do people spend a fortune on 'health foods' instead of sorting their diet out. Loads of vegetables and fruit, (fresh not tinned) decent meat and fish (not the awful stuff that comes pre-wrapped in the supermarket), cut back on the sugar, red wine for your cholesterol, decent amount of exercise, total not jogging. People during the war ( seo I read) were at their healthiest because they had no choice, given the option we seem to prefer to eat drink and take no exercise then take vitamins and wonder foods to compensate. Just how ridiculous does this sound?

Pete

There's nothing wrong with tinned fruit/veg - it still counts towards your 5 a day.

[bodrighy]

Tinned fruit and veg is fine as it is canned within hours of picking but the meat and veg you buy in the plastic wrapped containers etc is usually up to a week old. The meat is often not hung properly as can be seen when blood comes out of it and a lot of meat products are from stuff that has been reconstituted. Additives to keep it looking fresh make it worse. The truth behind a lot of mass produced food products is a nightmare. A good small butcher, fishmonger or veg shop is often cheaper and better quality. Sorry for the rant but living in the country I tend to get uptight at the way that supermarkets have monopolised our way of eating to the point where we need to take substitutes to maintain a healthy diet.

Pete

[cosmic grammie]

Ooooh, thanks for that - I'll give some of those a try. Does soy milk taste much different from 'normal' milk?

Does it ever!! You really have to get used to it...it takes some doing. I mean, it isn't milk at all, just a liquid made from soy beans...

Smoothies mae with fruit and yogurt are terrific! You can even throw in a couple tablespoons of wheat germ just before drinking...

8 oz. plain Bulgarian yogurt
a banana - whatever you have on hand - strawberries or melon, etc.
a little fruit juice or some milk or water..or, okay, soy "milk"

[Powell P]

Does it ever!! You really have to get used to it...it takes some doing. I mean, it isn't milk at all, just a liquid made from soy beans...

8 oz. plain Bulgarian yogurt
a banana - whatever you have on hand - strawberries or melon, etc.
a little fruit juice or some milk or water..or, okay, soy "milk"

I never tried this kind of combination. Seems like an healthy and yummy drink. I always consume the monavie, because it has more vitamins, minerals.

[wastril]

Take one bottle of light ale. Fill a pint glass 2/3 full of bitter. Add the light ale to the bitter and consume. Repeat the process 8 times, imbibing the mixture each time. After this, you will feel the healthiest you have ever been. However, on the down side, after about 5 hours or so, you may not feel quite as chipper

[cosmic grammie]

I never tried this kind of combination. Seems like an healthy and yummy drink. I always consume the monavie, because it has more vitamins, minerals.

I forgot to say that you frappe all the yogurt and fruit together and only add enough liquid to make it drinkable.

Be careful with the acai berry juice...I have read negative things about it.