Tropical Kale-Avocado Smoothie

First things first today, if you check out the upper right-hand part of this page you'll see a new link, called Recipes. It is exactly what it sounds like, a whole page devoted just to cataloging and organizing the recipes from this blog into different categories. There's something for everyone, from appetizers to desserts, bacon, chocolate, kale, there's even a paleo section. 

This smoothie recipe, for instance, would be found in the breakfast, beverage, fruit, kale, and Paleo sections. But don't feel your smoothie intake should be limited to breakfast, I love smoothie lunches, smoothie afternoon treats, and smoothies for dessert too. This one is packed with good things, including so many fruits and veggies they barely all fit in my blender.

This smoothie is my attempt at a copying the Solar Power smoothie from a lovely little cafe S and I sometimes walk to for brunch on the weekends, The Butchers Daughter. We originally discovered the Solar Power smoothie because the barista momentarily forgot about S's coffee order, so when he remembered he poured him a coffee, and whipped up a smoothie, I suppose as a bit of a liquid apology. We shared it and agreed it was heavenly, and very filling. 

Now the Solar Power is my go-to smoothie when I find myself hungry in that part of SoHo. This rendition of the smoothie is pretty darn spot on, flavor wise. Don't concern yourself about the uneven ratio of vegetable to fruit. When you pile it all in the blender a whole avocado and 4-5 stalks of kale may seem like a lot, but once it's all blended together you won't taste the kale at all (or at least, you won't realize you're tasting it), and the avocado will just be a silky, heavenly richness perfectly rounding out the tangy fruits. 

This smoothie is very filling, a perfect and very portable meal or snack. The original Solar Power doesn't call for banana but I find that a banana helps my 6-year-old blender really process everything more smoothly, and it added an extra bit of sweetness to the final product that I really appreciated. This smoothie makes an excellent breakfast or lunch, or a really healthy dessert! 

Tropical Kale-Avocado Smoothie

Makes 2 14oz smoothies

1 Avocado

1 Banana

1 Small bunch kale (about 4 stalks)

1/2 C Pineapple

1/2 C Mango

8 oz Coconut Water

Dried Coconut Flakes for topping (optional)

Pour the coconut water in your blender. 

Peel the banana and break it up into smaller pieces, add to the blender. Halve the avocado, remove the pit, and scoop out the flesh, add to the blender.

Rip up the kale leaves, add them to the blender. Top with the frozen pineapple and mango, put on the lid, then blend until smooth. 

If, like me, you do not have a high powered blender you may end up with some teeny tiny flecks of kale leaf. I could see mine, but couldn't discern them from the rest of the smoothie in my mouth. If you have a high powered blender, good for you. Your fancy-schmancy blender should make the kale totally smooth. Flavorwise there shouldn't be any difference though.