From Smoothies to Popsicle Recipes: The No Veggie Left Behind Act

You know what gets me? How I used to throw away the tops and ends of carrots, the cores for tomatoes (and the skins of the tomatoes I just blanched and peeled for canning), the uneaten HALVES of apricots, the peels of apples, or very ripe (but not rotten) fruit because let’s face it who wants to eat it? Not me … but I will drink it and so will my family.

We bought a Vita-Mix, about 4 years ago, after many years of seeing the demos at Costco and always loving the samples. The great thing is you can use more of your fruits and vegetables such as the hard fiber core of pineapples — you won’t eat it, but you can drink it!

The Vita-Mix is versatile and can make ice creams, smoothies, salsas, sauces, and soups. There is also a Dry Grains Container (which I don’t own yet) but the blade is specially designed to process grains into flours; the baker in me LONGS for this attachment I just haven’t taken the plunge yet.

In our family we use the Vita-Mix most for smoothies and popsicles, which are actually the same thing but one liquid is in a cup and one is frozen on a stick. Having a Vita-Mix though has helped us eat healthier and as you can see we waste less too which saves us money and gives us health.

In your freezer start saving your leftovers in a freezer-burn proof container so no fruits and veggies are left behind. If you start doing this you might find yourself making more than one container – (1) fruits, (2) veggies for smoothies, (3) veggies for pureeing into soups. You might not want to combine your fruits and veggies for smoothies so you can make the right ratio.

Your recipe might be different each time, but in mine I tend to have:

1 cup veggies to 2 cups fruit

This makes the mixture sweet and “hides” the vegetables which typically aren’t as sweet. Use your discretion on the vegetables you save from smoothies versus soups such as cabbages which are bitter (this includes broccoli and cauliflower) and bulbs are STRONG (think onions and garlic); you can include cabbages and bulbs in a smoothie but you might not want as much.

So my trick besides the veggie to fruit ratio is not to add water or dairy. I make my mixtures all fruits and veggies, you just include:

½ fresh and ½ frozen

The mixture comes out smooth and frosty. If the mixture is too fresh it will be watery and if the mixture is too frozen it won’t blend well because it’ll be too solid. The half-and-half mixture is perfect for now or later; I try to make popsicles first in all my available molds then the kids (and DH) can enjoy some now and some later snacking. If you don’t yet own popsicle molds GET SOME!

I saw a set of 4 molds at Bed Bath and Beyond today that have a straw in the cup like base so you don’t lose any of the goods you made. I found my set of 6 rocket pop molds at our local Ross store recently. You can get the same “Tovolo Rocket Pop Molds” I bought from Amazon [] for about $9. These molds are not only BPA free, but they are dishwasher safe with is a big AWESOME in my kitchen as I don’t need any extra work. And by the way, this makes me the COOLEST MOM EVER because I let my kids have popsicles before or after breakfast when they’re available because it’s just fruits and vegetables and they think they’re getting a treat.

DISCLAIMER: I was not approached by Vita-Mix or Tovolo to write this review. I simply own a Vita-Mix and love it. I feel the Vita-Mix is superior to other blender machines. Tovolo just happens to make the rocket shapes which I use as molds, and my sons love to play with and eat the rocket popsicles.

About Summer:

Summer is very active in our Local MOMS Club chapter, she is the mother of two adorable active boys, and is always thinking of ways to help others. She is a friend, a wife, and always busy as all mommies are. She is very active on Facebook, addicted to Geocaching and very interested in organic and green living while cooking up a storm.

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