5 Juicing & Smoothie Recipes to Kickstart Healthy Habits

My first-born would eat anything I put in front of him, from eggplant to tofu, he would happily try anything when he was little.  As our family has grown in children, so has their pickiness.  Though my third child at two is just now cooperating with eating vegetables, I've not really worried too much when she was rejecting the hard vegetables at 18-months.  My trick has always been to load up the vegetables in smoothies and more recently, I've tried juicing for even more vegetable variety without any complaints on pulp that now come from the oldest child.

A friend of mine from Hawaii, Blake Brutus La Benz, has done a lot of juicing and smoothies this year, and always makes posts of pictures and video on his social media to encourage others to live healthy. Though I've shared some smoothie recipes we use in our house, Acai Smoothie, Vitamin C U Later Sickness Smoothie, and Immunity Packed Pumpkin Smoothie, I was so excited when Brutus generously shared some of his personal recipes for you all. And if you think his name sounds familiar, you might be right.  We've shared about his fame in the list made about the 36 Best things about Hawaii, check him out. 

Chard-a-licious: A Juice Recipe: By Brutus

Any type of juicer can be used.  For best results, chop larger/wider items into smaller pieces.  For leafy greens, fold the stem into the rest of the leaf and roll leaf tighter before inserting into juicer.  Once juicing is complete, stir well to mix the layers of juice, and enjoy!  Makes between 20-30 ounces.

-4 big leaves of chard (any color)

-4 carrots

-1 medium beet (beet greens optional)

-half lemon

-half orange

-half medium tomato

-half large cucumber

-1 granny apple

Collardy Apple: A Juice Recipe: By Brutus

Any type of juicer can be used.  For best results, chop larger/wider items into smaller pieces.  For leafy greens, fold the stem into the rest of the leaf and roll leaf tighter before inserting into juicer.  Once juicing is complete, stir well to mix the layers of juice, and enjoy!  Makes between 20-30 ounces.

-7 collard leaves

-3 granny apples

-2 celery stalks

-half lemon

-half large beet (red or golden)

Green Goodness: A Juice Recipe: By Brutus

Any type of juicer can be used.  For best results, chop larger/wider items into smaller pieces.  For leafy greens, fold the stem into the rest of the leaf and roll leaf tighter before inserting into juicer.  Once juicing is complete, stir well to mix the layers of juice, and enjoy! Makes between 20-30 ounces.

-3 medium leaves of chard

-4 or 5 medium leaves of kale

-1 medium cucumber

-1 medium tomato

-2 granny apples

-half lemon

-1 handful of spinach

Kalepaya: A Smoothie Recipe: By Brutus

Any type of blender can be used, although I find that the premium blenders (Ninja, Vitamix, etc.) make much smoother smoothies.  Remove seeds and rinds from fruits and vegetables as desired; and use organic or local produce whenever possible.  Makes approximately 25-30 ounces.   Enjoy!

-half medium papaya

-half orange

-2 medium leaves of kale

-1 banana

-1 level table spoon chia seeds

-8 to 10 ice cubes

-1 cup water

Mint-Anana-Kale: A Smoothie Recipe: By Brutus

Any type of blender can be used, although I find that the premium blenders (Ninja, Vitamix, etc.) make much smoother smoothies.  Remove seeds and rinds from fruits and vegetables as desired; and use organic or local produce whenever possible.  Makes approximately 25-30 ounces.  Enjoy!

-3 medium leaves kale

-2 small/medium banana

-1 stalk celery

-1 medium carrot

-1 apple

-1 4-inch mint stalk and leaves

-8 to 10 ice cubes

-1 cup of water

Mango Cutting Trick

With Halloween on its way, this trick is sure to be one that will get you a yummy treat.

Over the summer, someone said to me that they love fresh mangoes, but hate cutting them, because after peeling the skin, the fruit it so slippery that it makes it hard  to slice up (insert, afraid they're going to cut off a finger) and extract the fruit from the seed.  After posting the Acai Smoothie recipe that called for a mango, I thought I would also share a trick that I learned growing up in Hawaii.  The step-by-step picture tutorial will have you enjoying fresh mango quickly and safely. 

1) Hold the mango in your hands upright with the skinniest part between your fingers.  The seed is oriented in the same position in the fruit.

2) Line your knife up on one side of the fruit about a third of the way from the edge and slice straight down the side of the seed.

3) Repeat on the other side of the seed.

4) Take one of the sides of fruit that you've cut off and score a 1" crisscross pattern in the fruit, being careful not to slice all the way through the skin.

5) Slightly invert the mango so that the pieces are raised.

6) Take a spoon and run in between the skin and the fruit and place mango pieces in a bowl or directly in your mouth :)

Vegetable Soup

I absolutely love using Wailani's scrubs for the great topical applications, such as reducing the appearance of stretch marks or calming inflamed and sore muscles from a tough workout, but secretly one of the things I love is that it reminds me to include the healthy ingredients in my family's meal plan.  The fact that it makes my shower smell like Hawai'i doesn't hurt either.  As the wife of a soccer coach, mother of three, and native of Hawai'i we've used ginger in our house both topically and in our food to help with inflammation and nausea and just because it tastes ono (good). 

I'm using it everything from the scrambled eggs to smoothies and juices.  In our Good Fish Friday recipe, we shared links to just about every other recipe we've shared with ginger, just in case you can't get enough of it.  With our spring special body scrub coming out this week, Hunny Ginger, I thought I'd share a yummy soup recipe that includes ginger and turmeric, both known for their amazing anti-inflammatory properties. 

As you might recall, our Golden Pineapple Body Scrub's beautiful coloring is derived from organic turmeric and so I'm excited now to round-out the anti-inflammatory regime with a scrub that includes ginger essential oil. 

Don't be scared of the long list of ingredients.  The recipe is simple to prep and pull together.  This recipe can feed a crowd, so if you know any expectant mommies out there, a container of soup and a Hunny Ginger Body Scrub make a great Mother's Day gift.  Check out our specials just in time for summer!

Vegetable Soup

2 russet potatoes, peeled and cut into 1/2 inch pieces

20 baby carrots cut into 1/2 pieces

4 celery hearts cut into 1/2 pieces

3 leeks, white and green parts only, cleaned and cut into 1/2 pieces

1/4 cup coconut oil

64 oz. vegetable stock

1 tsp salt

1 tsp black pepper

1/2 tsp crushed red pepper flakes

1/2 tbsp onion powder

1 tbsp ground ginger

1 tbsp ground turmeric

28 oz. can whole peeled tomatoes in juice

2 medium zucchini cut into 1/2 in pieces

1 15-oz. can cannellini beans, rinsed and drained

2 cloves garlic minced

2 tbsp dried parsley

1/2 c freshly grated parmesan cheese and rind

1) In a large stockpot, heat 1/4 cup coconut oil over medium heat.  Add cut potatoes, carrots, celery, and leeks.  Stir occasionally for 5-7 minutes.

2) Add vegetable stock, salt, black pepper, crushed red pepper flakes, onion powder, ground ginger, ground turmeric, and canned tomatoes with juice.  Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer for 10 minutes.

3) Add zucchini, beans, minced garlic, parsley, and grated parmesan cheese and rind.  Reduce heat to low and cook for at least 1 hour to allow flavors to combine.

4) When you're ready to serve, either mash the whole tomatoes with a potato masher, blend with an immersion blender, or transfer tomatoes and some vegetables to a blender and blend to smooth then return to the soup mixture.

5) Serve sprinkled with additional grated parmesan cheese alongside a salad or a piece of crusty bread.

Pineapple Shave Ice

I was missing my favorite Oahu shave ice store the other day- their flavors are ono (delicious) and the ice is soft as snow.  But let’s face it, it’s an indulgence that is purely sugar. 

I had gotten a pineapple to make pineapple whip ice cream, but then I realized, I could substitute a few ingredients and get an all natural version of pineapple shaved ice that is packed with immunity boosting Vitamin C, because I use the core in the recipe as well.  Vitamin C also helps with arthritis, which some people might be feeling a little more with the change of seasons. 

It’s also got coconut water in it, which is high in potassium.  Low potassium leads to Charley Horses, which is common in pregnancy and in athletes.  So give your favorite pregnant mama or athlete this recipe for a sweet treat that’s good for the body.

The ingredients in the super simple pineapple shave ice mimic some of those in the Golden Pineapple Body Scrub, which people say smells so good you could eat it.  So, instead of eating the scrub, try this recipe.  If you don’t want to go through the hassle of shaving the pineapple goodness at the end, you could also freeze into popsicles, making it easier to distribute portions to hungry keikis (kids).

Pineapple Shave Ice

1 pineapple

Coconut water

1 T Honey

1)      Remove top, skin and any divots of the pineapple and cut remaining pineapple, including core, into blender manageable slices

2)      Add pineapple and 1 T Honey to the blender (Honey is mostly for pineapples that might be a little under ripe)

3)      Add coconut water as you blend to create a semi-thick consistency, approx. 4 ounces, but depends on the size of your pineapple

4)      Place blended mixture into a freezer safe container and freeze overnight.  My kids thought I was making a smoothie though, so it can also be enjoyed as a smoothie right away

5)      Once the mixture has frozen solid, get out a metal spoon and shave off desired amount into a bowl and enjoy 

Love making my family healthy food they like to eat.

~Have fun and live healthy!

Pumpkins in Hawai'i

So, just for a reminder that Hawai’i celebrates Thanksgiving too, Wailani’s wanted to do a Pumpkin Pie body scrub.  Even though the change of seasons doesn’t involve the changing leaves that other places enjoy, there are noticeable differences, days getting shorter and rain spells getting longer, that are equated with the fall.  There are pumpkin patches, though you might be more likely to find a maze in a pineapple field than a corn field.

While many parts of the Thanksgiving spread might not resemble the traditional meal served at the first Thanksgiving, for example eating with chopsticks, there is one part that does and should remain the same: Pumpkin Pie.  It’s not for sentimental reasons, though I’m sure we all have a favorite memory, it’s because of the awesome vitamin packed punch this ingredient boasts, 280% of your daily recommended Vitamin A value in one serving. 

Vitamin A has too many benefits to healthy living to list here, but just to give you an idea of the reported skin property benefits, they include reducing wrinkles and protecting your skin against UV damage from sun exposure.

Whenever  I find a superfood, I’m always trying to add it to everything.  My favorite thing to get a vitamin packed punch for the day is a breakfast shake.  I make it for the kids to get extra antioxidants from blueberries or a boost of anti-inflammatory from spinach.  I even get some omega 3s in there for heart health with ground flax seed.

While Wailani’s Pumpkin Pie Body Scrub might smell like you could eat it, enjoy an Immunity Packed Pumpkin Smoothie instead.

Immunity Packed Pumpkin Smoothie

~12-14 oz. smoothie

Blend and enjoy!

4 T pumpkin

¼ tsp cinnamon

½ c spinach

1 T ground flax seed

¼ c blueberries

1/3 c mango

1 T honey

1/3 c coconut water (depending on your preferred consistency)

Have fun and live healthy!