Suitable for: Celiac/grain-free, Dairy-Free, Paleo, Ok for some low-carb

My new morning routine goes something like this:

1. Measure my powdered nutritional supplements into a glass and add water and a squirt of flavoring like Mio.

2. Measure out my lemony fish oil and try to get it to the back of my throat to swallow it without really experiencing it. The taste isn’t bad, but swallowing a spoonful of oil is gross.

3. Get my other supplements and vitamins, and while trying to stir the powdered stuff in the water, take everything as fast as possible.

4. Walk around shuddering for a few minutes because what I just ingested was so unpleasant.

While the grown-up part of my brain realizes that all these various unpleasant substances will help me be healthier, the child part of my brain says that they all are really yucky and I don’t wanna eat ’em. I usually just overrule my inner child, but today I tricked it instead by making a very tasty and enjoyable smoothie that contains everything I usually have to force myself to drink.

I’m not a big fan of bananas in smoothies, but when I put in berries and added my lemon flavored fish oil, it completely masked the banana taste and I was just left with a nice lemon-berry flavor.

It fast and easy to make, and you could easily blend one up for a portable breakfast on your way out the door.

Ingredients:

1 frozen banana

1 C frozen mixed berries (my blend is raspberries, blackberries, and blueberries)

1 tsp chia seeds (you can omit this if you want, but it’s nice for the texture)

1/2-1 C unsweetened Almond milk

1 T honey (or 2 packets of Splenda, or other sweetener equivalent to 4 tsp sugar)

1 tsp lemon flavored fish oil (The link is to the brand I personally use. I don’t get anything for recommending it. It’s just what I know is good.)

Any other powdered supplements you take

The directions are pretty simple. Put everything in a blender and then turn it on. Other than that, there are just a few tips.

Start with 1/2 C of almond milk (or any kind of milk you like), and then if things aren’t blending smoothly, add a little bit more until it’s blending well.

When you freeze your banana, break it up into a few pieces before you put it in the freezer so that it will be easier for your blender to handle. I just keep a large plastic container in the freezer full of frozen banana segments, with the layers separated by wax paper.

If you can tolerate dairy and want to throw in some yogurt, I say live the dream for the rest of us!

Also, if you want to add some protein, you could add some protein powder or hemp seeds. If you can eat dairy, whey protein is fine. If you can’t have dairy, or even if you can, you may want to consider trying (don’t freak out) cricket flour. It’s extremely rich in protein and a supremely sustainable food source. If you can’t bring yourself to eat crickets, pea protein is another option.

If the carbs in a banana are too much for you, you could try substituting an avocado.