Zucchini Sunshine Pancakes

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“Zucchini—it isn’t just for dinner anymore!”

As I whipped up our breakfast this past weekend, I kept imagining this as a useful advertising slogan for anyone who is, like me, trying to use up an explosion of squash coming out of the garden this time of year. It’s easy to get bored with eating it the same few ways, and it occurred to me this week that I had not tried many ways to incorporate zucchini into a breakfast dish. Sure, I have occasionally tucked leftover sauteed zucchini into an omelet, but I wanted something more interesting—something new. The weekend is the only time I venture beyond the most basic of breakfasts, and though I considered making a version of morning glory muffins (subbing zucchini for the usual shredded carrots), I wanted something simpler, and that’s what made me think of pancakes.

Shredded zucchini would cook quickly inside a pancake batter, I figured, and I could use up a decent amount of this summer vegetable (which is technically a fruit) that has overtaken my countertop and refrigerator. Fresh citrus—in the form of juice and zest from a lemon and an orange—would make the overall flavor of my zucchini pancakes bright and sunny, just like the Saturday morning we would enjoy them.

The bright citrus was like a shot of sunshine in my zucchini pancakes!

For the body of my pancakes, I used a tried-and-true recipe that already has its own health benefits. Unlike typical, carb-heavy pancakes, these are packed with protein, thanks to Greek yogurt, ricotta and whole eggs (which also offer an assist in leavening the batter). The only flour in the mix is white whole wheat (King Arthur brand), and I added a few quick shakes of ground cinnamon to spice things up.   

Triple protein going on here. Love the color of my free range eggs!
White whole wheat provides complex carbs with a gentle flavor; it’s a win-win!

What I love about these pancakes, other than the fact that they have lots of good-for-me ingredients, is that I don’t suffer any sugar shock effect a few hours after breakfast. Whole grains provide complex carbohydrates, which help keep blood sugar levels stable longer than highly processed white flours. And the protein from the yogurt, ricotta and eggs keeps my hunger at bay for hours. I have made these pancakes dozens of times, and this is the first time I’ve jazzed them up with extra ingredients, though it surely won’t be the last.

Grab an apron, and I’ll show you how easily I whipped them up!

I couldn’t find my citrus reamer, so I squeezed the orange by hand!
The juices and zest added a lovely citrus aroma to my batter.
Use a whisk or electric mixer to be sure the wet ingredients are fully blended.

The first step is to get the wet ingredients blended really well. A whisk is the best tool for this, or you could use an electric mixer. Get the mixture smooth and even, and then squeeze in the orange and lemon juices. Whisk it again to incorporate the juice and zest of the citrus fruits.

Next, blend in the shredded zucchini and flour mixture. I did this in stages, the same as I did recently for my Healthy-ish Zucchini Bread with Drunken Raisins recipe. You want to avoid overworking the mixture once the flour hits the batter, because excess stirring causes gluten to develop, and that results in a tough pancake. Stir or whisk in about half of the shredded zucchini first, then fold in half of the flour mixture, then the remaining zucchini and then the remaining flour ingredients. Folding is easy—use a wooden spoon or silicone spatula to circle the bowl, turning the batter over onto itself. I did this “folding” action about 10 times, until I couldn’t see any unincorporated pockets of dry ingredients.

Whisk in half the zucchini before adding any flour.
It’s easier to incorporate the dry ingredients in stages. Over-stirring will result in tough pancakes.
A silicone spatula or wooden spoon works nicely for folding in the remaining ingredients.

Any pancake or waffle batter performs best when it has a chance to rest several minutes after mixing, so I waited until the batter was ready before I began heating my range-top skillet. You can use a large cast iron pan or an electric skillet if that’s what you have. Heat the cooking surface over medium heat, leaning a little toward medium-low. This is a tricky thing, because every stove is different, and even different burners on the same stove can have a different heat output. I have found that the best way to ensure the temperature is right is to make a couple of small “test” pancakes. Your heat should be at the point that the first side of the pancake is golden brown at about the point that the edges begin to look dry on top. If it’s too brown, reduce your heat slightly and try another test pancake. If it’s too pale, increase the heat slightly and try again. It’s nice to have a test pancake for another reason as well—you get to sample the goods!

Itty bitty test pancake.
Nilla always wants to be a taste tester. 🙂

When you’ve confirmed the griddle temperature, carefully spoon or ladle out your pancakes onto the heated skillet or griddle, about 1/4 cup per pancake. Keep some distance between them for easy turning, and keep them relatively small to ensure the middle cooks through. Mine were no larger than the palm area of my hand, and I didn’t bother trying to make them in perfect rounds. The yogurt and ricotta make for a heavier batter than is typical for regular pancakes, so the visual cues for doneness are also different. You may not see large bubbles form and pop on the surface; watch for the edges to appear slightly dried out, and a little bit of swelling in the center of the batter. It should take about four minutes for the first side, and two more to finish them.

You can see all the delicious zucchini shreds in the thick batter.
Don’t expect to see bubbles; watch for puffiness and dry edges as visual cues for turning them.

My camera angle didn’t quite capture the rising action of the pancakes after they were turned, but when you make them, you’ll see that they puff up quite a bit on the griddle. Every bite was fluffy, tender and satisfying, with the fiber goodness of zucchini and the light, sunshine-y citrus.  

Every bite of these zucchini pancakes had a bright, citrus-y flavor, like sunshine on a fork!

Serve these with real maple syrup or switch it up with a spoonful of warmed marmalade or tangy lemon curd.

Zucchini Sunshine Pancakes

  • Servings: about 10 pancakes
  • Difficulty: average
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Shredded zucchini and citrus provide a fresh burst of summer flavor in these protein-packed pancakes. For best results, let yogurt, ricotta and eggs stand at room temperature for 20 minutes before mixing.

Ingredients

  • 1 cup plain, Greek-style yogurt (stir well before measuring)
  • 1 cup ricotta cheese
  • 3 large eggs (or 2 extra large)
  • Juice and zest of 1/2 lemon
  • Juice and zest of 1/2 navel orange
  • 3/4 cup shredded fresh zucchini, blotted dry with paper towels
  • 1 cup white whole wheat flour (I like King Arthur brand)
  • 3/4 tsp. baking soda
  • 1/4 tsp. ground cinnamon
  • Pinch of kosher salt
  • Real maple syrup or warm marmalade, for serving

Directions

  1. Whisk together (or mix with electric mixer) the yogurt, ricotta and eggs until the mixture is smooth and even.
  2. Stir in juice and zest of lemon and orange.
  3. In a separate bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, cinnamon and salt.
  4. Whisk or stir half of the shredded zucchini into the yogurt mixture. Add half of the flour ingredients to the bowl and fold gently with a wooden spoon or silicone spatula to combine. Fold in the remaining zucchini, and then fold in the remaining flour ingredients, folding about 10 times to ensure all the flour is fully incorporated.
  5. Preheat griddle or skillet to medium/medium-low temperature. Allow pancake batter to rest during this time.
  6. Cook a test pancake to ensure heat is correct; the pancake should be golden brown on the first side when the edges appear dry on the top. Spoon or ladle about 1/4 cup of batter per pancake onto the skillet; the batter will be thick, but resist the temptation to thin it or spread it out into flatter rounds. Pancakes should be ready to turn after about 3 minutes. Stack them on a platter to keep them warm until all pancakes are cooked.
  7. Serve hot with real maple syrup or warmed marmalade.

Zucchini Tzatziki

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Remember that song from long ago—“Anything you can do, I can do better?” I believe it was from the musical, Annie, Get Your Gun, and I had it on repeat in my mind as I was putting shredded zucchini in the starring role for this popular Greek condiment. A typical tzatziki would be made with grated cucumber, but the sheer volume of zucchini coming from my garden has me changing up everything these days. I thought there was a good chance zucchini could stand in for the cucumber—alongside the Greek yogurt, minced garlic and fresh herbs—and it really worked!

We enjoyed this zucchini tzatziki over July 4th weekend, with grilled chicken souvlaki and grilled shrimp. And it was just as delicious last night with the leftovers!

Zucchini was an excellent understudy to the usual cucumber in my tzatziki!

If you find yourself with an over-abundance of zucchini, as I expect is probably the case for everyone who has planted it, then give this a try.

As with cucumber, the zucchini needs to be salted generously and rested in layered towels so that the excess moisture can be released. The amount of salt used to draw out the moisture is almost exactly the amount needed to season the dish, so it works out well.

Sprinkle a generous teaspoon of salt on the zucchini shreds.
Wrap it up in layers of paper towel and tuck it in the fridge for a couple hours.
Press the salted zucchini with fresh towels to wick away as much moisture as possible.

Next, stir and measure out the Greek yogurt into a small bowl. Add the drained zucchini, finely chopped fresh garlic, black pepper and fresh herbs—dill and mint are traditional, so that’s what I used—and give the whole thing a big stir. Adjust the salt to your liking; it may not need any extra at all. Cover and refrigerate the tzatziki until you’re ready to use it. Stir it well just before serving.

Measure out a cup of plain Greek yogurt. Add the zucchini, garlic, herbs and pepper.
Keeping the skin on the zucchini gave the tzatziki more visual appeal. This was delicious!

Tzatziki is so flavorful, with a garlic bite and the cooling nature of the mint and dill. I could eat it all summer, and now that I know how well zucchini works in this recipe, I’ll be doing it this way again. Below is a printable version of the recipe, and keep scrolling to find a few more delicious ways to enjoy tzatziki. 🙂

Zucchini Tzatziki

  • Servings: 1 cup
  • Difficulty: so easy!
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This recipe is an easy way to use up an extra zucchini squash, and it was a fun twist on a classic Greek tzatziki sauce.

Ingredients

  • 1 smallish unpeeled zucchini, shredded (about 1 cup)
  • 1 tsp. kosher salt (for drawing moisture from the squash)
  • 1 cup plain Greek yogurt (I used 2% milkfat)
  • 2 or 3 cloves fresh garlic, finely minced
  • 1 Tbsp. fresh dill, chopped
  • 1 Tbsp. fresh mint leaves, chopped
  • 1/4 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
  • additional salt, to taste

Directions

  1. Spread zucchini shreds evenly across a double layer of paper towels, or on a clean kitchen towel (choose one that is lint-free and not washed with fragrance or fabric softener). Sprinkle salt all over the shreds, tossing them a bit to ensure even coverage. Fold the towel up to contain the zucchini in a “packet,” and put it in the fridge for a couple of hours. I placed my zucchini packet in a shallow glass dish to prevent drips.
  2. Transfer salted zucchini to fresh layers of paper towel and blot well to wick away lingering moisture. You may be surprised how wet the original paper towels are, and a great deal of the salt will be soaked into them as well.
  3. Stir the Greek yogurt and measure it out into a small bowl. Add the zucchini shreds, garlic, herbs and black pepper. Stir to combine. Adjust salt to your liking.


Keep the tzatziki refrigerated until ready to serve. It will keep in the fridge for several days, but may separate over time. Give it a good stir just before serving.

Roasted Garlic Ranch Dip

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There was a time (in the not-so-distant past) that we didn’t rely on overly processed food from the supermarket for every little thing. Before the grocery aisles were jam-packed with 173 kinds of salad dressing, there was oil and vinegar, and people spiced those up by whisking in a handful of other common items to create dressings far tastier than the pre-made stuff. Vinaigrette is one of the simplest dressings to make from scratch, and creamy dressings are equally simple with a few basic ingredients.

You might be amazed at how much flavor you will be able to create at home with nothing more than simple fridge items, a few spices and a whisk (or, as I’ll show you today, a food processor). On the economic side, it costs pennies on the dollar to make your own dips and dressings, and it only takes a few minutes to pull them together.

The other benefit of making your own dressing—besides the savings and the flavor factor—is that you will know exactly what is in it. Commercial dressings contain so many stabilizing and preservative ingredients that aren’t necessary. And if it seems a healthier bet to buy the packets of ranch dressing mix and “make it yourself” with fresh buttermilk, all I can suggest is to take a closer look:

As soon as I see maltodextrin and monosodium glutamate (MSG), I’m gone!

I suppose these ingredients might be perfectly harmless (remember when they said that about partially hydrogenated vegetable oil?), but it’s a fair assumption that the fresh herbs and minimal spices you add to a real homemade dressing will present a lesser concern. And your dressing will taste better, which might even lead you to enjoying more salads and vegetables.

For this creamy ranch dressing dip, I have used a whole bulb of roasted garlic to add a mellow flavor to plain Greek yogurt, buttermilk, olive oil-based mayo and a bunch of fresh herbs. A little salt and pepper, a squeeze of lemon, and that’s all there was to it. If you prefer a bit more zing, use fresh garlic, but only a fraction of what is called for here. If you don’t have the same fresh herbs, substitute what you have or what you like. If you want to add half of a ripe avocado in place of some of the mayonnaise, go for it.

Nice to have something a little healthy for a game day snack!

My homemade roasted garlic ranch dip was intended for dipping fresh veggies as a game day snack, but if you prefer a more pourable dressing for salads, simply ease up on the mayo and use more buttermilk.

This recipe makes about 1 1/4 cups.

Ingredients

2 scallions, white and green parts

1 small handful fresh parsley

1 small handful fresh dill

1 tsp. Dijon mustard

2 Tbsp. freshly squeezed lemon juice (about 1/2 an average-sized fruit)

1 Tbsp. olive oil

Kosher salt and black pepper

1/2 cup mayonnaise* (see notes)

1 bulb roasted garlic*

1/4 cup thick, cultured buttermilk*

1/4 cup stirred Greek yogurt (whole fat or 2% recommended)

1/4 tsp. onion powder

1/4 tsp. carboxymethylcellulose (just kidding—I’ve never heard of this, but it’s in the store-bought ranch mix!)

*Notes

Choose a mayonnaise that you trust, bearing in mind that labels can be misleading. The front of the jar may suggest that your mayo is made with olive oil, but on further inspection, soybean oil could be listed as the first (most prominent) ingredient, with the healthier oil listed much later. Learning what your food is made of can be an eye-opener, and when you do find a product that meets your health standards, you will be able to build on it to make a lot of other foods serve you better.

Thick buttermilk works especially well for dip-style dressings. Look for a brand that doesn’t have a lot of “gum” ingredients, which are unnecessary stabilizers. Bacterial cultures should be present in good buttermilk as well. And for this dip, I do not recommend making a buttermilk substitute using regular milk and lemon juice or vinegar. That works for some baking recipes, but not in this instance, as you will miss the smooth textural element that buttermilk lends to your dip or dressing.

I love roasting garlic for use in many things, and it is easy to do. If you have never made your own, you may find some helpful tips in my previous post for making your own roasted garlic. When roasted, the garlic takes on a mellow, somewhat nutty flavor that lends a lot of depth to foods. If you prefer fresh, or simply don’t have the time or patience to roast it, I would recommend only using one or two segments of the garlic rather than a whole bulb (unless you’re battling vampires, obviously).

Instructions

  • Mix and match your herbs as desired. I used two scallions, flat-leaf parsley and fresh dill.
  • Roasted garlic has a mellow flavor and I love the depth of it in a dressing. Use only a clove or two if you’re using fresh!
  • Combine the herbs, Dijon, salt and pepper in the small bowl of a food processor. Squeeze in the fresh lemon juice.
  • Drizzle about a tablespoon of olive oil into the mixture to assist with blending. Pulse a few times, just to knock down the bulk of the herbs.
  • Add mayo to the pulsed herb mixture and pulse again, then process continuously until the mixture is smooth and even.
  • Add roasted garlic and pulse again. If you are leery about so much garlic, start with half and give it a taste before adding more. I used a whole bulb!
  • Transfer the mixture to a bowl and add the yogurt and buttermilk.
  • Whisk to blend the dairy ingredients into the dip. Adjust seasonings to taste.
  • This is a thick mixture, perfect for a veggie tray. If you prefer a more pourable dressing for salads, use less mayo and more buttermilk.
  • It’s fresh, creamy and full of flavor.
  1. Begin by chopping up your fresh herbs, together with the Dijon, salt, pepper, lemon juice and olive oil. I made a small batch this time, and my processor only rough-chopped these ingredients, even in the small insert bowl. As long as the volume reduces to make room for the other ingredients, it’s fine.
  2. Add the mayo and pulse to combine. Add the roasted garlic and process until you no longer see visible bits of the garlic.
  3. Transfer the mixture to a bowl. Add yogurt, buttermilk and onion powder, and whisk until smooth. Adjust seasoning to taste (remember that additional salt will need time to dissolve, so you may want to let it rest a few minutes before final taste adjustments).
  4. Chill the dip at least one hour before serving. Enjoy within a few days for best freshness and give it a good stir when you take it out of the fridge.
Roasted Garlic Ranch DipPrint it!

Tzatziki Potato Salad

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There are as many ways to make potato salad as there are grandmothers, and although my own Gram never made this version, I know she would have liked it. Gram introduced me to yogurt when I was a young girl, and it’s a good thing she did, for a couple of reasons. First, I love it in all its forms—plain, Greek, drinkable, etc.—and second, I likely would not have tried yogurt at all because my mother hates it.

If the passion for food and cooking is passed down genetically, then all I can say is that it skipped a generation in my branch of the family tree. My mom is not a bad cook, just a basic (and infrequent) cook, and the meals she served when I was young never strayed from what she herself liked to eat. My friends, that was a short list. On the good side of things, this allowed me to experience Mexican food at an early age, and it is still a favorite. On the flip side, I nearly missed out growing up on so many things I love today, including cream cheese, eggplant, bleu cheese and, well, I could go on for days. Not only did my mom not enjoy those foods, but she would make disgusted faces about the very idea of them, and I might have grown up believing they were poisonous, if not for my grandmother’s influence.

Yogurt is about as far from poison as you can get; it’s rich with protein and gut-nourishing probiotics, and I learned to love the little cups of it that my grandmother always seemed to have in the fridge when I visited. My favorite flavors, as I recall, were lemon and the ones with blueberry or peaches that you stirred up from the bottom. These tasty treats paved the way for me to love Greek yogurt in my adult years, and most often with no fruit or sugar added. This powerhouse food is strained to a thicker texture than regular yogurt, so that the protein is concentrated, making it a fantastic base for healthy breakfast smoothies. In our house, we regularly reach for Greek yogurt as an even exchange for sour cream, and we whip it into our scallion cream cheese to make it more spreadable.

As summer inches toward its end this year, I had been considering ways to liven up my basic potato salad recipe, and it occurred to me that tzatziki—the bold and zesty, Greek yogurt and cucumber sauce—could be a terrific addition to a potato salad. I am not crazy about having a lot of mayonnaise in my salads, and the idea of refreshing tzatziki sounded pretty darn good. I was right.

Cool, creamy, refreshing!

While you cook the potatoes, make the tzatziki. Begin by chopping or shredding a peeled and seeded cucumber, then use salt to strip it of excess moisture and blend it together with a healthy dose of Greek yogurt, garlic and dill. Combine that with a touch of mayonnaise and fold it into cold, boiled potatoes, and you will have a side salad that’s perfectly cool and fresh, served with burgers or any kind of meat kebab on the grill.

Ingredients

About 1 1/2 pounds red or yellow potatoes

1/2 good sized slicing cucumber, peeled

Kosher salt and black pepper

2 cloves fresh garlic, finely minced

2/3 cup Greek yogurt

Fresh or dried dill leaves

1/4 cup mayonnaise (I used canola mayo from Trader Joe’s)

Instructions

  • This is my method for prepping the cucumber: Cut it into spears, remove seeds, then cut into strips, then dice.
  • Removing the seeds ensures the tzatziki dressing doesn’t get watery.
  • Sprinkle a couple of generous pinches of kosher salt on the diced cucumber, and wrap in paper towels to absorb excess moisture.
  • For the base tzatziki, combine Greek yogurt, garlic, dill and pepper. Salt will be covered by the cucumber.
  • Fold in the cucumber bits until the mixture is even.
  • In a larger bowl, combine the tzatziki with a dollop of mayo and blend.
  • Give it a taste and adjust seasonings to your liking. I did not have fresh dill, but dried works just as well.
  • Fold in the chilled, cooked potatoes. As you can see, I left the skin on my baby reds because they remain nice and tender. I hate to miss that extra fiber!
  • To serve, sprinkle a little more dill on top and garnish with cucumber wheels.
  1. Scrub the potatoes but leave the peel on. Cut the potatoes into large chunks and cook them in salted water at a low boil until they are just tender enough to pierce with a knife. Drain, cool and chill them at least two hours.
  2. Cut the cucumber lengthwise into quarters (like pickle spears). Use a paring knife to carefully slice off the center strip that contains the seeds. Discard them. Slice, then dice the remaining parts of cucumber into very small bits. Alternatively, you may cut the cuke in half lengthwise, use a spoon to scoop/scrape out the seeds, and then grate it on the large holes of a box grater.
  3. Transfer the cucumber bits or shreds to a paper towel-lined bowl and sprinkle with two generous pinches of kosher salt. Toss the cucumber in the salt, fold the paper towel over it and put the bowl in the refrigerator. After about 30 minutes, gently press the cucumber between layers of clean paper towel to remove the excess moisture.
  4. In a medium bowl, combine the Greek yogurt, minced garlic, black pepper and dill. It is unlikely that you will need additional salt, as the cucumber will bring that flavor to the dip. Fold in the salted, drained cucumber bits.
  5. Combine the tzatziki with mayonnaise. Adjust pepper and dill to taste.
  6. Fold the dressing into the chilled cut-up potatoes. Garnish salad with additional sprinkles of dill and a few cucumber slices.
Tzatziki Potato SaladPrint it!

Healthy Breakfast Fruit Smoothies

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We all need options when it comes to breakfast, and so I’m sharing my tips for making a quick and healthy smoothie, regardless of the fruit and other fixings you have on hand.

What makes these smoothies “better” for better breakfast month?

  • They work two servings of fruit into the most important meal of the day.
  • They bend and flex to accommodate your favorite fruit, fresh or frozen.
  • You can easily swap out dairy for plant-based milk.
  • Your favorite protein powder will feel right at home in them.
  • They are quick, easy and portable for rushed-out-the-door mornings.
  • They satisfy your morning hunger and are friendly to a weight-loss diet.
  • They are super kid-friendly.

My magic formula for delicious and healthy fruit smoothies goes like this—something creamy, something packed with protein, some kind of fruit, maybe a juice, and optional special touches, such as coconut or spices. See what I mean? Flexible! I’ll give the full rundown of how I mix and match ingredients (and in what quantity), then I’ll share specifics of my favorites. Here we go!

Something Creamy

about 3/4 cup

I usually choose plain Greek yogurt or kefir, a cultured dairy drink that is similar to buttermilk but tastes more like a drinkable yogurt. Regular yogurt is also an option, but I avoid the flavored ones and their crazy-high sugar content. Skyr is another good option—a yogurt-like product from Scandinavia. Two popular brands are Siggi’s and Icelandic Provisions. For a plant-based option, choose your favorite non-dairy yogurt substitute, but lean into the low-sugar or plain options. The fruit you add will bring plenty of sweetness to the party.

Something Protein-y

about 1/2 “scoop,” or approximately 1 heaping tablespoon

Choose your favorite powdered form—I like soy protein, but whey works very well in smoothies, and so does hemp or pea protein. Almost every protein powder I’ve purchased comes with a small scoop that is roughly 2 tablespoons, and I fill it halfway for a smoothie. I recommend a plain or unsweetened vanilla option. My husband, Les, likes the chocolate protein powder, but we have found it can be less versatile for matching with fruit. Chocolate and raspberry is great, but chocolate and peaches?—not so much. Vanilla helps us keep our options open.

Something Fruity

total of about 1 cup

Yay—my favorite part! I like my smoothies to be icy cold and shake-like, so I almost always use frozen fruit, and especially bananas because of the creamy texture they provide. The greatest benefit to using frozen is that I don’t have to wait until the fruit is in season. It also saves multiple trips to the market for fresh fruit, or throwing away fruit that has gone bad. The fruits that work best for my homemade smoothies are peaches, bananas, pineapple, mango, cherries and any kind of berry (as long as you don’t mind their seeds). Fresh fruit works fine, of course. I don’t recommend citrus fruits, apples, melons or grapes, as their texture and water content would prevent them from blending well.

Juice or other liquid

1/4 to 1/2 cup, depending on other ingredients

This is helpful for blending the smoothie, but it may not be necessary if you use kefir, which is pourable. Greek yogurt is much thicker and would benefit from addition of juice, especially if you are using mostly frozen fruit in the smoothie. Other suitable liquids include milk, almond milk, coconut water or coconut milk.

Special mix-ins

small amounts of each

The mix-ins can be anything you like, but my favorites are unsweetened coconut (for texture and fiber), chia seed (for fiber and additional protein) and ginger (good for digestion) or another powdered spice, such as cinnamon. Sweeteners are not necessary, but if you must, may I recommend a teaspoon of honey or maple syrup? Anything but sugar, if you are aiming to keep them in the healthy column.

Ordering the layers:

It may seem inconsequential, given that the ingredients will be whirred into one mixture in the blender, but your smoothies will come together faster and more evenly if you layer the ingredients in a way that your blender can best mix them. You want the liquids and powders closest to the blender blade, so they can get a head start on mixing before the frozen stuff enters the game. The heavier ingredients, such as frozen fruit or ice, should be at the top, providing weight to keep the mixture moving downward for thorough blending. For a standard base blender, it might look like this:

My smoothie appliance is a bullet blender, which of course goes upside-down for mixing. So I layer my ingredients in reverse order, beginning with frozen fruit. When I flip the sealed blender cup onto the machine, I give it a minute to allow the liquids to run back to the blade area for more even mixing, leaving the frozen fruit at the top, where it should be.

Enough talk—let’s make a smoothie! Below are some of my favorite blends, and a list of ingredients I use for each of them. I’ve given the ingredients in order for a conventional blender. If you use a bullet-style blender, reverse the list order. Each combination yields a 12 oz. (340 g) smoothie.

Kefir, pineapple and spinach

I think of this smoothie as a power breakfast for all the nutritional benefit I get from it. Plus, the flavor is so delicious, it is a treat at the same time.

  • Wholesome ingredients make a better breakfast!
  • I’m pushing the boundaries on the maximum volume, but I know the spinach will blend down a lot.
  • It ain’t easy being green.
  • Unsweetened coconut, chia seed and ginger are my favorite add-ins, and all three have nutritional benefit.

Ingredients: 3/4 cup kefir, 1/4 cup orange juice, 1/2 scoop soy protein powder, 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger, 1 tablespoon chia seed, 2 tablespoons unsweetened coconut, 1 medium handful baby spinach leaves, 1/2 cup banana chunks, 1/2 cup frozen pineapple bits.

Yogurt and banana-berry blend

This one feels very protective, with lots of antioxidant benefit in the red and blue berries.

  • Skyr is very similar to yogurt. It’s cultured and thick like Greek yogurt, and most brands I’ve seen are low on added sugar, which I love!
  • Frozen berries on the bottom will be on top when I put my bullet blender together.
  • It’s thick, but pourable.
  • Blueberries are loaded with antioxidants, and I love the flavor with the coconut skyr.

Ingredients: 1 serving cup yogurt (I used coconut flavor skyr for this one), 1/4 cup blueberry juice (any juice or milk will do), 1/2 scoop protein powder, 1 tablespoon chia seed, 2 tablespoons unsweetened coconut, 1/2 cup frozen banana chunks, 1/2 cup frozen berry blend (with blueberry, raspberry, strawberry and blackberry).

Plant-based yogurt and mango

There are many great flavors of plant-based yogurt available, and this one was mango, so I played up the tropical flavors throughout the smoothie.

  • The lineup is the same, except that the “yogurt” is plant-based.
  • Upside-down, the juice has returned to its place nearest the blender blade.
  • Full of fruit, and every bit as creamy as a dairy-based smoothie.

Ingredients: 1 serving cup plant-based yogurt, 1/4 cup orange juice, 1/2 scoop protein powder, 1 tablespoon chia seed, 2 tablespoons unsweetened coconut, 1/2 cup frozen banana chunks, 1/2 cup frozen mango chunks.

Peach cobbler smoothie

For this one, I soaked 1/4 cup rolled oats in 1/2 cup kefir overnight (in the fridge) and then built the smoothie in the morning. It’s an easy way to work some whole grains into your breakfast drink (because September is also “whole grains month”). From that point, the process was the same for layering and blending. You get the idea, right?

Ingredients: 1/2 cup almond milk, 1/2 scoop protein powder, 1 tablespoon chia seed, kefir-soaked oats, 1 tablespoon almond flour, 1 tablespoon unsweetened coconut, 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon, 1/4 cup frozen banana chunks, 1/2 cup frozen peaches.

Want to print these “better breakfast” recipes?

Healthy Breakfast Fruit SmoothiesDownload