Smoothie Etiquette

Just when I thought I couldn’t get any crazier about what I eat and how I eat it, I started reading about this:

Fruits can generally be grouped into 4 categories. Sweet, sub-acid, acid, and melons. Sweet fruits should only be mixed with sweet or sub-acid fruits, sub-acid fruits should only be mixed with sub-acid or acid fruits, or acid with acid (this is starting to sound pretty trippy, I know :) ). Melons are in their own category and should be eaten alone. Usually, this is not an issue. I usually don’t mix fruits at all. I usually will eat, for example, an apple in the morning, followed 30 minutes later by some strawberries. Usually. However, I have been wont to enjoy the occasional smoothie, maybe for breakfast or a snack or a late night dessert. Unbeknownst to me, though, I have been committing gastrointestinal sins!! What I learned sure explains a lot of things. This smoothie I really enjoy from a favorite cafe of mine, is a melon-berry-mint concoction. It is oh-so-sweet and yummy but I always felt a little funny after eating it. Now I know why. The specific combinations of fruits are very important to prevent the “melon belly” I was feeling after these delicious beverages. So I made a little guide to stick on the fridge to help make smoothies delicious and digestable…. There are some variances in this list based on which website  you check. This is what I have been able to figure out based on my research. This website was very helpful, along with a few others.

Sweet

Bananas, dried fruits (figs, prunes, raisins, dates, apricots, etc), litchi, persimmon, durian, longan, sugar apple, grapes

↓        ↓        ↓

Sub-Acid (Low Acid)

Mango, apricot, nectarine, peach, pear, guava, cherry, fresh figs, blueberries, raspberry, huckleberry, mulberry (most berries) avocado, pomegranate, plum, grapes, papaya, strawberry, blackberry

↑         ↑         ↑

Acid

Orange, tangerine, lemon, lime, tangelo (all citrus fruits), kiwi, cranberry, grapefruit, pineapple, tomato, passion fruit

Melons

Honeydew, watermelon, cantaloupe, galia etc.

Here are some smoothie combinations that I really enjoy. You can really put whatever you want. Sometimes, I will add some chlorophyll, or e3 live, or a tbsp flax oil or coconut oil.

1. Strawberries + Lemon juice + ice + agave

2. Blackberries + Blueberries + spirulina + agave +ice

3. Bananas + Hemp protein + ice

4. Bananas + Coconut water + coconut meat and flakes + ice + agave

5. This one used to be my favorite but apparently it is a major no-no: Bananas + orange juice + ice. Soooooo gooood……

:::::::::::::Liquid Sunshine::::::::::::::

Sometimes life hands you lemons. Sometimes, my mom hands me several pounds of lemons from her lemon tree. When that happens, I definitely know what to do…

1 cup fresh squeezed lemon juice
3 cups filtered water
1/2 cup light raw agave syrup
ice

Mix ingredients. Taste. Add more or less lemon, water or agave if you like yours different than mine.

If you are feeling sassy, add some mint, or use sparkling water instead of filtered for a bubbly effect.

Put on a bathing suit, pour liquid sunshine over ice, and go lay in the sun. Enjoy!