You can have your metaphorical cake and eat it too with this Rosemary Orange Green Smoothie!  The blend of vegetables, fruits, herbs and nuts is full of deliciousness and nutritiousness that will surprise and delight your senses. It may look healthy, but it tastes more like a dessert in a glass. It’s too good to resist. Check it out.

Spinach

Spinach is one of the most nutrient-rich superfoods.  This dark green leafy vegetable is loaded with high amounts of carotenoids, vitamin C, vitamin K, folic acid, iron, and calcium. It’s packed with powerful anti-inflammatory and anti-oxidant compounds that help fight many diseases including cancer and heart disease. It’s a powerhouse food that helps support a healthy immune system, bone health and much more.

Avocado

Avocados contains 20 vitamins and minerals which put it on the list of healthiest foods to eat every day! They have so many health benefits that some call avocados Earth’s most perfect food.  The primary benefit of avocados come from their high Omega3 fats that keep our hearts healthy and our blood sugar levels stable. In addition, avocados help strengthen the immune system, maintain a healthy digestive system, and much more.

Rosemary

Rosemary is known to help improve digestion, enhance concentration and improve memory.  Further, rosemary helps slow down brain aging, and may offer other forms of brain protection. Rosemary contains anti-oxidant compounds that help fight free radicals, protect against cancer and macular degeneration, a serious eye disease in older adults.

Mulberries

Mulberries contain high amounts of iron and vitamin C, as well as potassium and vitamins E and K.  Rich in plant compounds such as anthocyanins, mulberries have anti-oxidant and anti-inflammatory properties which help fight and reduce the risk of many diseases.

Cashews

Cashews are a good source of potassium, folic acid, and vitamin E, vitamin K and vitamin B6. They are rich in minerals such as copper, phosphorous, zinc, magnesium, iron, and selenium, all necessary for normal bodily functions. Heart healthy cashews help reduce cholesterol and lower blood pressure. Packed with antioxidants, cashews help fight and lower risk of many diseases.

Mushroom Powder

Mushrooms, one of Nature’s premier superfoods are loaded with nutrients, anti-oxidants, and more. These mighty fungi are rich in B vitamins such as riboflavin (B2), folate (B9), thiamine (B1), pantothenic acid (B5) and niacin (B3) and Vitamin D. Mushrooms are an excellent source of many essential minerals such as selenium, potassium, copper, iron, and phosphorous. They also contain Choline, an important nutrient that helps with sleep, muscle movement, learning and memory.

MCT Oil

MCT oil is a supplement that contains fat with medium-chain triglycerides with many potential health benefits. Some of these health benefits include better brain and memory function, lowered blood sugar levels, and lowered cholesterol levels. MCT oil can also help provide sustained energy, reduce food cravings and help with weight management.

Orange Juice

Orange juice, rich in vitamin C, provides the citrus flavor that gives this smoothie its tangy punch. The spinach, raw cashews, avocado, white mulberries, and mushroom powder blend perfectly with the orange juice resulting in zesty burst of harmonious flavors.

Coconut Water

Coconut water is both an extremely healthy and a delicious natural source of hydration, based on extensive research in animal studies.  It’s possible that coconut water has anti-oxidant properties that may help prevent diabetes, prevent kidney stones, and support heart health. Further research on the benefits of coconut water is ongoing.

 Zesty Energy Boost Full of Deliciousness and Goodness

This Rosemary Orange Green Smoothie is an energy boost full of deliciousness and goodness that is irritable. It’s loaded with dense superfoods, mixed into a luscious silky smooth texture that’s bursting with zesty citrus flavors. It’s ideal for a quick and easy breakfast, an energy boosting snack or anytime treat. I hope you give it a try– it’s good food that is good for you.

Grace Notes

Smoothies are great companions for getting our daily requirements of healthy fruits and vegetables.  Nutrition experts around the world agree that consuming liquid food helps improve overall digestion and nutrient absorption. So drinking smoothies makes it easier to break down and more readily absorb nutrients.

Enjoy and Live Well with Zest!

Bev  xo

Written by Bev Hope

Reviewed by Board Certified MD

Rosemary Orange Green Smoothie

• Author: Bev Hope
• Yield: 2 16 oz servings
• Category: Drink
• Method: Vitamix/Blender
• Cuisine: Smoothie

Ingredients

• dried white mulberries 1/4 cup⠀
• raw cashews⠀1/4 cup
• baby spinach⠀3 cups
• mashed avocado 2 Tablespoons
• orange zest⠀1 teaspoon
• minced fresh rosemary⠀1 1/2 teaspoons
• mushroom powder 1 Tablespoon
• fresh orange juice⠀1 1/2 cups
• MCT Oil⠀1 Tablespoon
• coconut water ice⠀2 cups

Instructions

1. Add everything but the ice to the Vitamix.

2. Blend until smooth. ⠀

3. Add the ice and blend until frosty and smooth.

3. Pour into glasses. Garnish with rosemary, and orange zest. Don’t forget to save some rosemary for the garnish. ⠀

Notes

OPTIONS

Experiment with a variety of oranges, choose organic.

ADD-INS

Can also add a cup of fresh organic mushrooms.

Keywords: Smoothie, Green Smoothie, Orange, Rosemary, Vitamix, Blender,

⠀

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When I think of what fruit makes me feel the happiest, I would put lemons on the top of the list. One reason is obvious. They have a happy bright yellow color like the sun. The other is I have many happy childhood memories I associate with lemons. Whenever I saw a big pile of lemons on the kitchen counter, I knew my mother was going to let me put out my lemonade stand! We had fun getting out my arts and crafts and poster board material to make my “lemonade for sale” sign. Then my mom would help me get my lemonade inventory prepared in a big pitcher. We would set up my stand and the best part was serving my curb side customers a cup of fresh lemonade and receiving a nickel in return! I felt like I was making them happy and they were certainly making me happy with each additional nickel I added to my money jar.

Then later when I was in college, I worked as a waitress at the Jordan Pond House in Acadia National Park. One of our customers’ favorite items on the menu was fresh lemonade served with a sprig of fresh mint. Hundreds of people ordered it every day. I learned that everyone loves fresh squeezed lemonade, especially served with a pretty garnish!

Lemon Water Makes Us HAPPY

As a mom, my sons’ go-to drink when we went out to eat at a nice restaurant was always lemonade— and it had to be fresh!  Happy sons make happy moms! So, lemons bring me so many happy memories that I like to keep a big bowl of them on my kitchen counter. I often see a bowl of lemons in decorating magazines or even in classic still life paintings. No wonder they are there—artists and designers know lemons make us happy.  But now I’m learning much more about lemons—their amazing health benefits! I’ve begun making a habit of adding a lemon to my first glass of water each day. Here’s why.

Lemon Water Makes Us HEALTHY

Here are some of the top 10 lemon water health benefits I’ve discovered that keep me motivated to start each day with a glass of lemon water.

1. Provides an Immune System Boost

Lemons have plenty of vitamin C, antioxidants and other nutrients that improve immune system function. This helps avoid colds and the flu, and it helps fight infection in general. It also protects against oxidative stress that promotes a host of diseases.

2. Helps Dental Health

Along with good oral hygiene, lemon water prevents gingivitis from setting in or becoming worse. Gingivitis is one of those nasty dental problems that can come with aging if we don’t take proper oral care.

3. Helps with Cleansing the Kidneys

Good hydration is good for the kidneys and adding lemon to water makes this effect even more powerful. Apparently, this is because lemon water has a diuretic effect. The citric acid in lemon water helps prevent or flush out kidney stones.

4. Keeps Body Hydrated

If you don’t like the taste of plain water, adding a lemon to it makes it tasty and fun to drink. This helps you stay hydrated because if you enjoy it, you’ll keep drinking more of it.

5. Helps with Weight Loss or Reduce Weight Gain Can Help

A study shows that mice given lemon water, along with a high-calorie diet, didn’t gain as much weight as mice that were fed just plain water with the same food. This study implies that it will make your weight-control efforts easier.

6. Makes Skin Look Better

Good hydration is very important for keeping your skin healthy. By chugging a glass of lemon water first thing in the morning, I know I’m helping my skin, and making it part of my daily anti-aging regimen.

7. Helps with Digestion

Lemon water can improve bowel motion, thereby reducing constipation. Keeping normal movement is important to feeling good, and lemon water is more convenient and appetizing than other things that are often recommended for gastrointestinal health.

8. Improves the Breath

Lemons have a strong, natural deodorant effect, so drinking some lemon juice with water improves the smell of the breath.

9. Supports Heart Health and Nerve Communication

Lemons have plenty of essential nutrients. Along with vitamin C,  lemons provides electrolytes like magnesium and potassium, critical for heart health and nerve communication. This makes lemon water almost like a sports drink, but without all the calories.

10. Helps Fight Inflammation 

The anti-inflammatory properties of lemons are obtained when drinking lemon water each day. The natural ingredients in lemon water help reduce joint and muscle pain, inflammation in general, irritation from gingivitis, and more.

Lemon Water is a Fun and Happy Way to Improve Health

Lemon water is simple to prepare. You can have fun with it. You can mix it up and be creative— adding other fresh sweet, spicy or savory ingredients such as mint, basil, cinnamon, ginger, turmeric.

Lemon Water Recipe

Ingredients

• Organic fresh lemon
• Natural spring water
• Optional add-ons: mint, cinnamon, ginger, turmeric, basil

Directions

• Pour warm water into a glass.
• Squeeze half a lemon for each 8-ounce glass
• Add favorite garnish.

Suggestions 

Some experts mention that the lemon water should be warm, and that it is the warmth that produces much of the digestive system benefits of the mixture. It is also noted that the lemon juice should come from fresh, real lemons, ideally organic lemons. Lemon water made with fresh lemon is better for boosting the immune system function because some phytonutrients in lemons degrade with processing. Some people caution that too much citric acid from lemons can harm the enamel on teeth. But as long as you don’t suck on lemons every day, that should not be a problem.

Grace Notes

Try sipping lemon water with a colorful paper straw and feel like a kid again.

Good luck trying lemon water as a daily habit! You can turn lemons into more than lemonade! Turn lemons into lemon-AID and enjoy the health benefits and happy feelings they can bring.  Let me know how it works for you!

Enjoy and Live Well with Zest!

Bev xo

Written by Bev Hope

Reviewed by Board Certified MD

The post 10 Reasons to Drink Lemon Water Every Morning appeared first on Well with Zest.