5 best summer smoothie recipes using seasonal vegetables, fruits and herbs

Dear reader, we present to you our beauty columnist Inessa Tsarkova!

Inessa is an active nutritionist, gastroenterologist, therapist, naturopath and aromatherapist, health coach, integrative medicine doctor with a holistic approach. And now she will share with us her knowledge in the field of both physical and mental health, nutrition and much more.

Summer is in full swing. It’s time to stock up on vitamins and antioxidants. As a rule, in the heat you don’t really want to eat, especially thermally processed, “heavy” dishes containing a lot of animal protein and fat. During this period, we want something light and juicy.

And very beneficially, at this time a wide variety of seasonal crops full of sun and vitamins appear in the garden beds.

Inessa Tsarkova

What is useful to choose from all this diversity and what unusual dishes can you prepare?

First of all, it is worth expanding the list of seasonal products. There are many more edible plants growing in the garden than you might think. Your diet should include not only fruits, berries, fresh herbs and vegetables, but also their tops, leaves of fruit trees and shrubs (for example, raspberries, currants, strawberries, sunflowers, cherries, apple trees), garden flowers plants (squash and squash flowers, jasmine and peonies, purple sedum, rudbeckia, cornflower borage, nasturtium). Wild plants are also quite useful. Including the weeds that you are used to removing when weeding the beds (for example, nettle, dandelion, quinoa, chickweed, chickweed).

All seasonal produce is best used fresh and raw. Moreover, the less time it takes to get from the garden bed to your plate, the more vitamins and enzymes it will retain.

Peeled young leaves can be added to green smoothies and vitamin-rich salads (you can rinse them with boiling water first to soften them).

You can make infusions with them, use them fermented or fresh to improve the taste of lemonade, kvass, and prepare aromatic herbal tea.

For example, I especially like blackcurrant leaves. They have a very delicate and aromatic taste, without bitterness or astringency. Drinks made from them are rich and perfectly quench your thirst. If you use fermented blackcurrant leaves to brew tea, it will seem that you are drinking not just herbal tea, but real black tea with the addition of blackcurrant leaves.

The leaves from the garden can be boiled, baked or used in cooking (for example, as a filling for pies or dolma). They are often added to marinades for pickling cucumbers, mushrooms, tomatoes and other vegetables.

Summer smoothies and salads made from the tops of root vegetables (for example, beets, carrots, radishes) and the same leaves of berry bushes and wild herbs are very tasty and healthy. They improve the body, increase slimness and improve the condition of hair and nails. They also strengthen the immune system and help protect against sun rays.

Fresh greens from the garden can be an excellent supplier of almost all vitamins (C, E, A, PP, D, group B), as well as many minerals that are deficient in modern humans (selenium, zinc, iron, magnesium, iodine , potassium and others). They contain many antioxidants, essential oils, phytoncides and tannins, which are beneficial for health and youth. And even amino acids for building proteins. They are used by herbivorous animals (for example, cows) that eat only grass to build muscle mass and all other tissues.

There are almost no calories in greens, but there is a lot of valuable fiber, which activates the intestines, absorbs and removes unnecessary waste, dangerous toxins and heavy metals. Fiber also feeds beneficial microflora and improves digestive processes. Healthy greens from the garden help relieve bloating, improve cell metabolism and defeat diseases.

Having antiseptic, anti-inflammatory and diuretic effects, it will help you quickly get rid of colds, kidney diseases and digestive problems. Due to its high antioxidant properties, it will help preserve youth for a long time. Somehow, the greenery in the garden magically affects our mood, improves it and also increases our level of vitality.

Dear readers, save and remember five simple and delicious smoothie recipes that you can make using seasonal produce from your garden.

You can use your favorite juicy vegetables, adding fruits of the same color (or lemon juice) and any greens you have available.

Smoothie with beet tops

Cut two young beets into pieces, add four to six beet leaves, a glass of black currants and a few young currant leaves from the bush (you can also take cherries or sour cherries).

Whisk everything in a blender.

By the way, you can add spring water or mineral water and/or freshly squeezed vegetable juice from the same vegetable to bring the smoothie to the desired consistency.

Carrot smoothie

Two small carrots with tops, a bunch of lettuce, the juice of half a lemon and a few ripe apricots. Also mix in a blender.

Smoothie with radish tops

Top with three or four radishes, a bunch of spinach (you can use any greens available: dill, parsley, cilantro, celery), cucumber, a green apple or green banana.

Smoothie made from sweet pepper, raspberry and a few young leaves of the bush

Instead of raspberries, you can add grapefruit, basil leaves (any available medicinal herb or wild plant), ground cumin (or its essential oil).

Smoothie made from pumpkin, carrot and wild herb pulp

Add coconut or almond milk, ground cinnamon or vanilla. You can use concentrates (natural therapeutic grade essential oils with food grade certification) to increase antioxidant protection.

If you want your smoothie to be sweeter, you can add a few dates or a spoon of honey. Just try to choose high-quality honey.

If desired (and also to boost the immune system), you can add a few cloves of garlic to vegetable smoothies. To make the dish more nutritious, you can use pre-soaked nuts, seeds, your favorite raw vegetable oil or avocados instead of fruits and berries.

These wonderful drinks will help you lose weight and become healthier, properly conduct a detox or fasting day, satisfy hunger and cool down on a hot summer day. In addition, such dishes can add variety, flavor and exoticism to your daily diet. And they will pleasantly surprise your guests with unusual and healthy food from the garden.

My dear readers, make the most of your writing. Enrich your diet with fresh produce and herbs from the garden every day. It is not for nothing that they say: “Greenery on the table means 100 years of health.”