Healthy Anti-Inflammatory Mango Ginger Smoothie Recipe Video

It’s important to keep our bodies healthy, strong, and working to ward off illnesses.  More and more research is coming to the surface indicating that while exercise and healthy habits like maintaining adequate sleep, stress reduction, and zero to moderate alcohol intake are important, what you put in your body is just as, if not more important in order to feel our best.

Here we have crafted a delicious Mango Ginger Smoothie recipe that not only tastes great, but has all sorts of benefits for your health and well-being.  

Ingredients:

Banana – providing a great source of: Vitamin B6, potassium, fiber, and even Vitamin C bananas allow for a smooth base and bring a classic smoothie consistency that many enjoy.  

Mango – The star of the show – Mangos are low in fat, and give their fans everything from Potassium and B6 to a concentrated infusion of Vitamin C.  

Spinach – classified as a ‘Super Food’; Spinach is high in Vitamin E, and also provides Iron, Magnesium, Folate, and antioxidants among others.  All of which adds up to a natural food that can protect your body from diseases, assist with hydration, and help you feel full longer.

Coconut Water – long revered for its electrolytes and hydrating abilities; Coconut Water may also help your heart and kidneys continue functioning normally.

Ginger – provides a number of beneficial health assists including –  moderating blood sugar, relief for arthritis, indigestion, and even nausea. Some studies have even indicated that ginger may help improve brain function and protect against things like cancer and Alzheimer’s. Thanks to Ginger’s natural antioxidants and anti-inflammatory components – it has become a popular form of alternative medicene.

Lemon Juice – though we only use a 1 tsp in our smoothie – lemon juice is very complimentary of the other ingredients. Lemon juice has been reported to – aid in digestion, assist with skin clarity, help with weight loss, and provide immune support in the form of Vitamin C.

Making Your Smoothie: 

This couldn’t be easier and you will thank us for laying it out as clearly as we have.  While you can use fresh fruit + ice (as we do in our video), it’s just as easy to make with frozen fruit and omit the ice! 

In fact you might even save some time and mess – raise your hand if you love peeling and slicing mango…. – anyone??

1. Start by putting your fruit in your blender – make sure your mango and banana are both sliced in small chunks to make blending easier. 
2. Add your spinach leaves to the top – again feel free to use frozen spinach
3. Add your ginger
   1. While we use fresh sliced ginger, grated, slivered, or even squeezable ginger are all fine. 
4. Squeeze in your lemon juice.  Feel free to adjust the amount you use depending upon taste. 
   1. Like our ginger this does not necessarily have to be fresh squeezed. 
5. Add your Ice – Required if you are using fresh fruit, optional if your fruit is frozen.
6. Pour in your coconut water
7. Blend baby blend! – your blender may need to work for 1-3 minutes depending upon your ingredient choices and desired consistency. 

Recipe:

• 5oz (or about 1 whole) mango – sliced into small chunks
• 1 banana – peeled and sliced into ½” slices 
• 1 cup fresh spinach leaves
• 1 cup Coconut Water
• 1 tsp Ginger
• 1 tsp lemon juice
• ½ cup ice – if using fresh fruit
• (optional) 1-2 tsp honey
• (if necc) ¼ cup fresh water

Add all ingredients in order to blender except the water.  Blend for 2-3 minutes until smooth and bright green.  Add the water only if you find your blender needs some additional liquid to incorporate everything.

PRO – TIPS:

• Add water only if you notice your blender needs it – otherwise you may end up with a thinner smoothie than desired. Add in no more than ¼ cup increments at a time.

• Make sure you are using fruit at the height of its ripeness.  Not only does overripe fruit become messy quite easily, it will change the flavor profile and may result in a smoothie that is simply too sweet. You may also find your smoothie to be more of a brownish-green color than the bright, vibrant green we are going for.

• Crushed Ice – Only add ice if your fruit is of the fresh variety. While cubes work just fine, if you have access to crushed or shaved ice, this will speed your blend time and be a tad easier on your blender blades.

• Consider Frozen Fruit – Using frozen fruit can not only eliminate the need for ice, it may be more convenient and potentially allow for some cost savings, particuarly if bought in larger quantities.

• Use Fresh Spinach – While some frozen spinach is fine and will provide similar nutrient levels as fresh, make sure what you use has not been pre-cooked, blanched or otherwise heated as these options will not give near the health benefits as its fresh brethren.

• Pre-Portion for Convenience – This smoothie is ideal for portioning out and freezing to allow for fast weekday breakfasts or post-work out refuels.  If you’d rather not buy pre-packaged frozen, simply portion out all of your fresh ingredients (banana, mango, spinach), and then freeze them in single serve packs. You can do the same with your liquids – coconut water, ginger, and lemon juice – leaving them in your fridge until needed. That way it’s just a matter of emptying two containers into your blender and hitting ‘GO!’ 

NOTE – due to how honey behaves in cold environments, we do not recommend freezing or refrigerating your honey.  Rather spoon or squeeze it into the blender just prior to blending no matter what method you choose for preparing the other ingredients.

Enjoy!

• Your Friends @ the Kookist!

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