I feel like I've been in a kitchen slump lately. I'm just not motivated at the moment to whip up meals for the family or even little things for myself.
I think balancing the tastes and whims of a picky husband, a 6 year old, the baby (who now eats what we are eating for the most part) and myself, has sucked all my creative juices dry. I want healthy, Husband wants junk, Little Guy for the most part is game if everything is separate and the baby needs easy to pick up, non-messy, finger food options.
Just thinking about it makes my head explode but I choose to accept the challenge. I just need time to ponder some ideas. Bear with me, I had to vent to someone!
That being said, this morning I decided I needed something simple, fun, tasty and light for breakfast. I was coming off quite the indulgent weekend. Honestly, that's an understatement. Let's just say it involved a lot of cheese, Häagen-Dazs and Ghirardelli, and leave it that.
I went with a smoothie and it was exactly what I needed to kick start my day. Here's what I did…
Ingredients
- ½ ripe banana
- 1 small ripe pear
- 2 oz Fat Free Yogurt (56g) (I used Greek)
- ¼ teaspoon ground ginger
- 1-2 cups raw spinach (I used about 45 g)
- 2 oz of water (¼ cup)
- 5 ice cubes
Instructions
Put everything except the ice in the blender and blend until smooth.
Add the ice and blend again.
The flavor combo was awesome. There was just the hint of ginger, the banana made it smooth, the pear was that awesome sweet gritty and the spinach made the prettiest color.
Hope you like it!
I based Weight Watcher points on nutritional information. Would love to know how you'd count in comments.
P.S. The winner fo the Book Giveaway: My Two Year Old Eats Octopus was Bridget.
📖 Recipe
Pear Ginger Smoothie
Ingredients
- ½ ripe banana
- 1 small ripe pear
- 2 oz Fat Free Yogurt 56g (I used Greek)
- ¼ teaspoon ground ginger
- 1-2 cups raw spinach I used about 45 g
- 2 oz of water ¼ cup
- 5 ice cubes
Instructions
- Put everything except the ice in the blender and blend until smooth.½ ripe banana, 1 small ripe pear, 2 oz Fat Free Yogurt, ¼ teaspoon ground ginger, 1-2 cups raw spinach, 2 oz of water
- Add the ice and blend again.5 ice cubes
April
Just made this smoothie and used an entire small carton of Activia as there is no Greek yogurt in the fridge. I also forgot to write on the recipe to put ginger. Just noticed it when I went back to your site. Lack of ginger nor Activia did not hurt this recipe. The smoothie was excellent and I am so excited to have another way to eat a pear besides just, well, eating a pear. Thank you. April
Marloes
Made it with fresh ginger and an egg in stead of yogurt. Great smoothie, one of my favorites!
Carolyn Donovan
I got my Magic Bullet THREE DAYS AGO and already I'm smitten.
I went to the market today just so I could make this smoothie. Of course I didn't bring a list so ended up with kale instead of spinach, but even with the substitution this was lovely. I'm slurpin' it down right now!
I would like to suggest getting your spices (especially the ground ginger for this) from the online shop Spice Barn (www.SpiceBarn.com).
Their prices are great, but more importantly their spices are really really good. They had me at "Dill Weed" but their ginger is the spiciest, most pungent ground ginger I've ever used. Knocks the socks right off the supermarket variety.
AND they're family owned (not my family).
Frank
This smoothie looks so great. All the ingredients used in this cocktail are healthy, there is no question. I would prefer fresh ginger, you'll get all the antioxidants and I think the taste is more pungent. I'll try it on the weekend since I should eat a little bit healthier. Great post.
roni
I've used both in smoothies but this time it was ground.
giselle
Quick question - did you use fresh ginger or ground ginger from the spice aisle?
roni
Lina - I'm not an expert so take everything I say with a grain of salt. This is just my OPINION and nothing more...
1. Is ginger good for 1 year old baby? - I don't see why not.
2. I usually steam pear and apply for my baby. Can one year old baby eat raw pear? Yes - there's not reason to cook fruit in my opinion.
3. This question does not relate to pear ginger smoothy, but I think you can answer me. Can baby drink raw almond milk after formular? - I've given my baby almost milk but it's not a replacement for formula or even whole milk. There's no fat in it and babies need fat.
Again.. just my opinions. 🙂
Lina
Thank you for sharing. I have a few questions:
1. Is ginger good for 1 year old baby?
2. I usually steam pear and apply for my baby. Can one year old baby eat raw pear?
3. This question does not relate to pear ginger smoothy, but I think you can anwser me. Can baby drink raw almond milk after formular?
Kelly Bolduc
If you're in a slump, then I'm speeding. I got some awesome inspiration for food, over at http://thebittenword.typepad.com/thebittenword/
A follower suggested they don't buy groceries for 1-2 weeks and use whats in the pantry (excluding milk, eggs, bread, cheese and a few other items everyone needs on hand). It kicked my butt in gear and I've been hauling ass, I'm making 3-4 recipes a day. I saved about $100 so far and I've been having to get really creative and out of my comfort zone. Give it a shot it's really fun! I made sugar cookies with out milk or eggs last night, now they were so flat they only had one side, but I crumbled them up into some yogurt for crunch it was fantastic.
roni
As I said, I based Weight Watcher points on nutritional information. It's the safest bet then you can decide. See Andrea's comment above.
Lara Gustafson
PS. I am making this afternoon this smoothie.
Lara Gustafson
Hi Roni. I am still using the new points system and trying to figure out where you got new points as 5? Was it the fat free greek yogurt? All other fruits and veggies listed are free points.
Thanks, LAra
Andrea
Mmmm--that was a nice treat for myself while unloading/loading up the dishwasher (even if it did create more dishes). I left out the spinach since I'm not big on the "green" flavor in my smoothie. The ginger totally MADE the smoothie though. I'm only gonna count it as 1 WWPP for the yogurt. I'm with you on just putting it out there with the nutrition values though. I'm sure WW meant the "free fresh fruit" to be simple but it is things like this that get sorta blurry. I am a fresh fruit maniac--but I do try and keep track of how many servings I am gobbling down.
Marla
Okay, so after I commented I realized, "Hey, I have a huge container of baby spinach." I made this with a small apple instead since I didn't have a pear. The hubby and I split it. It was good. More tasty than I thought it would be. Thanks for the recipe. Now I know what I'm going to do with extra spinach.
Marla
So, the spinach will blend that smoothly? I need to try this out on my new Ninja.
Andi
I'm the same way as you Roni, I get meal boredom easily and need inspiration. I mean, duh! That's why I subscribe to you for new ideas!! If I get in a funk, I just come to greenlitebites or any of my other usual sources for a "fix". I always do a menu plan on a Thursday before I do my weekly shopping. That means everything's already planned for the week, so that cuts out the daily guess-work and in turn helps with the getting bored bit! My breakfasts are a little more relaxed, and my lunches are mostly soup based, because I'm doing the weight loss thing at the moment!
I highly recommend staying organized with a weekly menu plan (excel spreadsheet of course:one row for me +one for my hubby=one meal but 2 different styles) and it takes the stress out of the phrase "what's for dinner?" and knowing that you have 7 different dinners planned makes it less boring somehow. If I come across a meal I'd like to try, I keep it handy and fit it into the plan the next week! I'm always mixing it up, old faves and new experiments! I'm telling you, organization is the key to curbing your boredom! I'll even send you my spreadsheet if you want to try a week!
Frances
Aw chickadee. I hope your funk cloud goes far away.
I get into ruts too - but I'm just cooking for one! My favourite thing to eat at the moment is polenta. (I guess like grits?) It's like oatmeal for supper - the instant stuff takes 10 minutes and then you can top it with roasted peppers, cheese, bacon bits... Or smooth it out and let it cool in a tray, cut it up and bake it with tomato sauce for mini pizza bites.
Your smoothie looks pretty awesome. SO GREEN. It must be good for you 🙂
roni
I would never. Well, maybe. lol
I just get defensive of the people I love. He has his faults as do I but we compromise. You have to remember he didn't marry a blogging, green smoothie loving, runner. I'm the one who changed. I try to remember that.
Emily
Aw, the "Thank you Mommy for dinner" is very sweet. OK, husband, you're forgiven! Sorry for prejudging you! You can give me a secret middle finger in return.
roni
Now, now... no husband bashing.. that's my job. 😉
Like I said.. was just venting. He doesn't ask me to cook, I choose to. He eats what I cook and does buy his own junk for the most part. He's also won't start eating until him and Ryan say, "Thank you Mommy for dinner." Which he started when Ryan was little. It's the cutest and makes me smile nightly.
I'm just in a creative funk and I have a weird disease that forces me to make new stuff up all the time. I get bored easy.
Emily
Why doesn't your husband make his own damn dinner? You're trying to feed the family healthy meals, which is good for everyone, especially the kids. Your husband should accept some responsibility for setting a good example for the kids. And if he doesn't care to, he can pick up some junk for himself.
roni
Jessica - You're right. I just need to get inspired. I know all those sites you listed well. Feel free to share links. It makes the blog world go round. 😉
I hear you on the fullness factor too but I must admit I feel more energetic when I have one for breakfast. It's weird. I couldn't do it every day though. I need my eggs and oatmeal. 🙂
Jessica
How about heading to the library and checking out a new cookbook? That almost always cures my funks. So does checking out new blogs. Am I allowed to link to other blogs on here? If so, some of my other favorites (besides yours of course) is Peas And Thank You, The Fitnessista, and The Daily Garnish. Like you, they have lots of healthy recipe options.
I am not willing to make junk very often for my husband. If he wants the heavy, fat-loaded alfredo sauce, he can make it himself.
This smoothie looks DELICIOUS. I wish smoothies kept me fuller for longer 🙁 I have tried all the tricks: added a little oatmeal, protein powder, etc. But I am still always hungry much sooner than I would have been if I would have eaten all the ingredients in their whole form.
Bridget
Funks happen. You have a busy life, and three other humans besides your self to tend to and cook for. That's HARD! Many people just turn to the drive through in your situation. The fact that you attempt to make nutritious meals is, in and of itself, impressive. Sometimes you can be creative. Other times, there are distractions. Now that little Bean is eating food, what little spare time you had is now being sucked up by prepping his little meals. At some point, inspiration will strike again. In the meantime, you are doing a great job! =-)
Cheers- Bridget
sarah
oh I can soooo relate to your being in a funk when it comes to the kitchen. HOWEVER I am not even close to being like you when it comes to the cooking portion - I am so OVER trying to think of different things to make during the week that are somewhat healthy and everyone will like. I often refer to myself as the short order cook!
If I had my way and my ass wouldn't be the size of a semi I would eat out 7 days as week 3 times a day! 🙂
You will get you groove back in no time!