Nutrient Packed Blueberry Spinach Smoothie Recipe That Kids Love!

This post is from contributing writer Mary Voogt of Just Take A Bite.

School is under way. That means two things.

1. Mornings are busy.
2. The germs are spreading.

That doesn’t mean throw in the towel, buy boxes of cereal and say a prayer your child stays healthy.

No way! That means it’s time to get smart and start the day with a nutrient boost that supports the immune system and provides critical vitamins and minerals for focus and energy.

This post is sponsored by Vital Proteins, huge supporters of filling our kids with nourishing foods at breakfast, lunch or dinner!

Nutrition In A Blender

I serve smoothies for breakfast several times a week. They are easy. And you’d be amazed how much good stuff I pack in there. This blueberry spinach smoothie is no exception.

I’m sure you’ve seen (and made) smoothies with blueberries and spinach before, but I think you’ll be amazed at how much we can pack in there and still be palatable for the kids!

What makes it so nutritious? It’s loaded with:

• Desiccated Liver – provides vitamin A and protein
• Grass-Fed Collagen – provides easy-to-digest protein and amino acids. Vital Proteins collagen (use the coupon KS10 for 10% off!) also gives the smoothie great texture since it does not have any dairy or dairy substitutes. (Use the code VPKS10 for 10% off your order, good through all of 2016! Include those liver caps, collagen and gelatin (use the coupon KS10 for 10% off!).)
• Bone Broth – provides vitamins, minerals and protein (You can add additional gelatin to your bone broth, whether you make it homemade or buy high quality broth online)
• Unrefined Sea Salt – provides trace minerals and sodium
• Camu Camu – provides vitamin C and helps boost the immune system
• Moringa – provides B vitamins, vitamin A, vitamin C, calcium, iron and amino acids
• Probiotics – helps digestion and overall gut health
• Fruits – blueberries provide vitamin C and antioxidants. They are also great for energy.
• Vegetables – spinach provides calcium, vitamin A and vitamin C. It is great for bones and teeth.
• Lard – provides healthy fat and vitamin D (truly – lard is good for you, but it’s hard to find quality lard unless you render it yourself)

Want to know what it doesn’t have?

• Processed food
• Preservatives
• Allergens
• Artificial flavors
• Food dyes
• High fructose corn syrup

But that’s not even the best part. The really great thing is that you prepare it the night before. Just toss it all in the blender. Then in the morning blend for 60 seconds and pour.

Breakfast is served.

Yes, it is really that easy. Even faster than pouring cereal and milk! And you can let your kids do it themselves.

I know what you’re thinking. How can all of that taste good? And how am I going to get my child to drink it?

Trust me, they will. It really just tastes like blueberries. I add a little bit of maple syrup to bump up the sweetness. Then there are no traces of liver or spinach flavor. My five year old literally drinks a huge glass of this before I can even finish getting the rest of breakfast on the table. And my two year old loves it too!

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Nutrient Packed Blueberry Spinach Smoothie Recipe

 

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Prep time

10 mins

Total time

10 mins

 

A simple smoothie packed with fruits, vegetables and lots of nutrients.

Author: Mary Voogt

Recipe type: Breakfast

Serves: 2 - 3

Ingredients

• 1½ cups frozen chopped spinach
• ¼ cup bone broth
• 1/ tsp. unrefined sea salt
• 2 tsp. lard (optional)
• 1 cup frozen blueberries
• 1 - 2 Tbsp. maple syrup
• 2 Tbsp. Vital Proteins grassfed collagen
• 1 tsp. camu camu powder
• 2 capsules Vital Proteins desiccated liver (open capsules to use powder)
• 2 capsules moringa (about ½ tsp., open capsules to use powder)
• 1 capsule probiotics (open capsule to use powder), or 1 tsp. Miessence probiotics
• ¾ cups water

Instructions

1. Cook spinach in broth with salt and lard 3 - 4 minutes.
2. Add the spinach mixture to a blender.
3. Add the blueberries, syrup, camu camu, liver (use the coupon KS10 for 10% off!), moringa, probiotics and water.
4. Cover and refrigerate until ready to use/the next morning (do not blend at this point).
5. Add the collagen (use the coupon KS10 for 10% off!) to the blender. Blend on high until well mixed.
6. Pour and serve.

Notes

* You can skip the spinach cooking step and simply add the frozen spinach, broth and salt to the blender with the other ingredients. Leave out the lard if preparing the smoothie with this method. However, cooking the spinach does reduce the oxalates present in spinach, which are tough on our systems. Try cooking the spinach as you're prepping for dinner anyway and use that pot for dinner so you don't make extra dishes!
* Be sure to use frozen fruit or the smoothie texture will be mushy. (It will only thaw a tiny bit in the fridge overnight - trust me, use frozen.)
* Keep any extra smoothie in the blender for use later in the day. Simply blend for 30 seconds again before serving.
* I add the collagen in the morning only because it gets sticky and sticks to the sides of the blender, but if you need a one-and-done solution, feel free to add it during your evening prep.

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Turn A Smoothie Into A Lesson

I recently read a book with my kids called Give It A Go Eat A Rainbow. The book teaches what each color of fruits and vegetables does for your body. For example, blue and purple give you energy.

So now when my kids ask what is in their smoothie I tell them what colors. And they get excited! The more colors the better.

Instead of cringing at the word spinach my children are happy that they start the day with some green for strong bones and teeth.

Change It Up

Maybe your child just is not a fan of spinach no matter what you do to it. No problem. Change up the combination. One of our favorites is a squash cherry smoothie. The squash is naturally sweet and gives a great flavor. Kale can be swapped for spinach. Strawberries and raspberries have a strong flavor to cover up veggies. Peaches are great too! Use whatever you have that your kids like.

If you do not have allergies to contend with you can add even more nutrition to the smoothie with raw egg yolk and avocado. They add extra creaminess without changing the flavor.

Smoothies can be used for breakfast, lunch or a snack any day of the week.  This blueberry spinach smoothie is bursting with both nutrients and flavor. Your kids are sure to love it.

Disclosure: This is a sponsored post, but we use these ingredients from Vital Proteins anyway to pump up our family’s nutrition (plus you get the coupon code) – so it’s a win-win!

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