The Heart Healthy Smoothie: How to make, its Recipe and Health Benefits

Healthful Vitality | 05/17/2021 | By NP Team | The Heart Healthy Smoothie

Smoothies are a fast and easy way of nourishing your body with all it needs to stay healthy and energized throughout the day. The ingredients you chose can also reward you with exciting health benefits, of course, smoothies are tasty, too, so what’s not to love?

Not all smoothies are created equal. You can tailor these amazing vehicles of nutrients and wellness to your every health need. The Heart Healthy Smoothie, as you’ll soon discover, is amongst the creamiest, most fragrant and healthy smoothies in our repertoire. Learn how to make it and discover its fantastic health benefits!

The Ingredients

You only need eight ingredients to craft the delightful Heart Healthy Smoothie, and one of them is water, so chances are you already have all you need at home. Here’s what you’ll need.

The ‘Balancer,’ as we call it, is the base of the smoothie and provides the most health benefits and nutrition. For the Heart Healthy Smoothie, it’s made of avocado, ginger and lemon juice.

Then you have the add-ons, tasty ingredients that add their own flavors, texture and nutrition, in this case, baby spinach, kale and mint. A pinch of salt rounds the smoothie nicely, and one glass of water gives the smoothie the right texture.

Read on and discover all the nutrition and health benefits that make Heart Healthy Smoothie’s ingredients so special.

Avocado. Creamy, fatty, and incredibly healthy

Avocados are fruits, believe it or not. And although they’re not sweet at all, they have an extraordinary nutritional value.

• A 100-grams serving provides you with 26% of the vitamin K you need for the day, 20% of folate and 17% of Vitamin C. By the way, avocados have more potassium than bananas!
• Avocados are an excellent source of monounsaturated fats that can lower your ‘bad’ cholesterol and triglyceride levels while reducing inflammation.
• Avocados have tremendous amounts of soluble dietary fiber, which aids the digestive and circulatory systems.
• The healthy fat in avocados allows you to absorb nutrients better. Most vitamins are fat soluble and need a fatty medium to be absorbed adequately.

Ginger. An ancient remedy

Ginger is not only beautifully fragrant, but it’s also a powerful root that has been used in traditional medicine for centuries. Gingerol, the bioactive compound in ginger, is responsible for its wellness benefits.

• Ginger can relieve nausea and morning sickness symptoms. It can also help control vomiting episodes and alleviate an upset stomach.
• Ginger might help reach your weight loss goals, as it can increase the rate at which your system burns calories.
• Ginger is a potent all-natural anti-inflammatory that can reduce joint pain, stiffness and other symptoms related to chronic inflammation.
• Ginger might help you keep your blood sugar levels in check, reducing the risk of heart disease and other related disorders.

Lemon juice. A citrusy personality

Lemon juice adds brightness and contrasting acidity to the smoothie. In the process, it adds its own nutritional compounds and health benefits to it.

• The juice of one average-sized lemon adds over 50% of the vitamin C you need for the day, responsible for keeping your immune system strong and healthy.
• Consuming lemon juice often can reduce the risk of developing kidney stones while helping you maintain adequate PH levels.
• Pectin, an abundant fruit fiber in lemons, might help you reduce weight by keeping you satisfied for more extended periods. It might also increase the number of calories you consume during the day.

Baby Spinach. A reliable superfood

Spinach is well known for being an excellent source of iron, which aids in producing blood cells, but spinach is much more than that. It’s an authentic superfood!

• Spinach has large amounts of antioxidants which bind with scavenging free radicals floating in your bloodstream. These compounds are responsible for many modern diseases.
• Exciting medical research shows that spinach consumption might decrease cancer cell growth, and although more research is needed, the results so far are encouraging.
• Spinach might help reduce your blood pressure, which is an excellent way of preventing heart disease.

Kale. The trendiest nutrient-rich leafy green

Not dissimilar to spinach and other leafy greens, kale is a nutrient-rich veggie with extraordinary health benefits.

• Kale has astounding levels of vitamins A, K and C. A cup of kale dramatically exceeds the amount of these nutrients needed for the day.
• There are many antioxidants in kale, which keep free radicals under control, preventing them from damaging your cellular tissue, lowering inflammation in the process.
• Consuming kale will reduce your levels of ‘bad’ low-density cholesterol and increase the levels of ‘good’ high-density cholesterol.
• Kale might help fight cancer cells thanks to a compound called sulforaphane, which works at a cellular level.

Mint. Beautifully fragrant and healthy

Mint is one of the most pleasing sweet-scented herbs, but it provides its fair share of nutrition and health benefits to the smoothie.

• Mint might reduce the Irritable Bowel Syndrome symptoms, including bloating, indigestion and constipation.
• Consuming mint often might improve cognitive functions, including memory. It might also reduce chronic fatigue and help you stay alert.
• It is well known that mint can ease the common cold symptoms, improving breathing and easing throat discomfort.
• Finally, mint might not be nutrient-rich, but it does contain antioxidants, vitamin A, folate and the essential minerals iron and manganese.

Tips and Facts for the Perfect Smoothie

• Source organic ingredients when possible, and wash and disinfect them thoroughly before making a smoothie.
• All the ingredients in this smoothie are lectin-free. So, if you’re staying clear from the carbohydrate-binding proteins, then you’re totally safe.
• This Smoothie is ideal for people with diabetes since it contains no added sugar, and the ingredients are naturally low on simple carbs.
• Smoothies are ideal for giving nutrients to your body if you have trouble eating solid food. It will also complement plant-based diets adequately with vitamins, minerals and fiber.

The Heart Healthy Smoothie Recipe

Ingredients:

• 1 avocado
• 1 2-inch piece of ginger
• 1 lemon
• 1/2 cup baby spinach
• 1/2 cup kale
• 2 tablespoons mint leaves
• 1 pinch of salt
• 1 cup of water

Directions:

1. Wash and disinfect the herbs. Peel and chop the ginger. Dice the avocado. Juice the Lemon.
2. In a blender, add the ‘balancer’ ingredients: avocado, ginger and lemon juice. Add the water and blend until smooth.
3. Coarsely chop the baby spinach, kale and mint, and add to the blender. Blend to the desired texture.
4. Taste and season with salt if necessary.
5. Enjoy at any time of day and complement with a balanced diet and an active lifestyle.

(Related Article: Eggs, Unbeatable Nutrition for a Healthy Breakfast)