You know I love my green smoothies however, at this time of year (even with the warmer than usual weather) I don’t feel the pull of my usual daily icy glass of goodness. Unfortunately, I think my body really misses the greens and the added superfoods I often add to smoothies. I try and keep up my greens intake with greens drinks like my fave Lean Greens, but nothing can really beat the fresh stuff, hence this pear and ginger green smoothie recipe!
The problem with really cold smoothies at this time of year, whether you fancy them or not, is that they don’t work well with your digestion and energy. Although I certainly don’t follow the principles in much detail, I think Chinese medicine has it right when they talk about eating too many cold foods increasing ‘damp’ and mucus in the body. I often wonder if part of my hormonal issues were compounded by the amount of raw food I ate over the autumn and winter in 2011 when I was really into the raw food movement. I laugh now when I used to complain of feeling the cold! Is it any wonder!
I’m not saying that all raw or cold foods should be avoided at this time of year, eating some raw foods provides vital enzymes which are lost when a food is cooked. Rather I think we should all be listening to our bodies, and not doing what I did; eating certain foods because I believed they were healthier and drowning out the screaming voice of my poor body. Listening to your body is the takeaway here.
Now I eat a more moderate and balanced diet and have gained weight I very rarely feel the bone aching cold that I used to. My hormones have normalised so I don’t get reynaulds type symptoms in my hands and other parts of my body anymore like I used to either.
But now on to this smoothie recipe, as I said sometimes I feel like my body does miss the fresh greens and other goodness you can pack into a smoothie. Let’s face it, they are also more convenient, appetising and easier to make than cooking up a bowl of greens to tuck into on their own!
This smoothie isn’t icy and is served at room temperature or slightly warm. If you have a high powered blender like a Froothie, Vitamix or perhaps even a NutriBullet, you can warm things up by running the motor a little bit longer than usual. It contains one of my favourite combos; pear and ginger. Ginger is a great smoothie ingredient at this time of year for it’s immune boosting properties and it even has a delicate warming effect due to it’s natural spiciness. The smoothie also contains avocado for healthy fats and plain yoghurt for pro-biotics.
- Handful of spinach
- 1 ripe pear
- 1/2 avocado
- thumb tip sized piece of fresh ginger root
- 2 tbsp natural full fat yoghurt
- 1-2 cups water or almond milk
- 1. Whack everything into a blender and blitz! Drink immediately.
- Choose a super ripe juicy pear for a sweeter smoothie. If you're a green smoothie newbie and prefer more sweetness add another pear or a banana.
“Listening to your body is the takeaway here” – yes, yes, yes – could not agree more :)
This smoothie looks lovely – I love pears in smoothies!
Haha I know we are on the same page with listening to our bodies!
I couldn’t do a raw diet. Noooo way. Nothing more comforting than a hot bowl of soup or porridge.
I’m not a great smoothie lover…I prefer to eat the different constituents. If I do drink smoothies, I tend to go for the super sweet smoothies which probably isn’t that good for me. This sounds lovely and filling and not too sweet!
I did really miss porridge!
This sounds so good, I love ginger in things at this time of year! I definitely couldn’t do a raw diet – I used to eat a lot of salads and raw veg but these days I find hot food so much more satisfying, especially in this weather! x
It really is so much more satisfying isn’t it!
Delish! Raw foods don’t really agree with me, I always tend to get rather bloated and uncomfortable when I have some raw foods/meals. You almost have to treat your body like you do with the seasons, and in A/W I think most cold, raw foods are just no go areas! My body isn’t enjoying bowls of yoghurt, berries and granola in the mornings anymore and instead, cooked breakfasts or porridge is top of the list. The smoothie sounds totally delicious, I seriously need to incorporate more ginger into my diet.
She’s So Lucy
Absolutely, I think eating seasonally is so important! Ginger is so good right now, I’m addicted!
I’ve barely made any smoothies over the last few months, my body doesn’t seem to want them of late. Definitely crave something warmer over the winter time too.
i am with you on the raw food things – I still have green smoothie over winter but I have more warming ones with ginger turmeric and other good stuff and ditch the ice. I use for cacao as I find that quite warming and cayenne too as i love me some chilli choice smoothies!!
Pear and ginger is a lovely combination- I think ginger is so warming that it is perfect for this time of year. I don’t tend to choose smoothies or juices at this time of year, but on Sunday I was buying a hot drink and the guy was making a juice, and gave me some extra while I waited- it was carrot, lemon, something and ginger, and really tasty.