A: Everything, apparently, particularly when it comes to Girl’s Night. Hanging out with some of my favorite ladylarks in the presence of this rogue roughage seems to have become as common as kicking back with the gals and a friendship bracelet crafting supplies.
This past weekend, seven of us gathered ’round the old tee-pee* for gabbing and gnashing our teeth together, when Mala whipped my teenaged blender (got a terrible case of the fifteens, that guy), berries galore, bananas, yogurt and yes, our leafy green friend kale. Proudly a forested hue, the kale stood out among his compatriots in a “one of these things is not like the other” sort of way. A blender, and…kale?
As it turns out, Mala was whipping up an impromptu smoothie of sorts using all those ingredients (and soy milk, which I didn’t notice until later). Without much in the way of measurements, she created a blended treat that was hard to resist sipping without reprise (man, had she spiked it we’d never have known and it could have been bad news considering how fast we slurped through the bendy straws she provided us with).
Kale adds a unique texture and taste to a smoothie. It becomes very fine but doesn’t quite liquify fully, yet because it’s been chopped up beyond recognition all the flavor is diffused through the surface area. This tough leafer is certainly bitter in flavor, but when paired with the sweetness of berries that rough quality is cut down. Add in the banana, which provides it’s own occasionally overbearing taste, and suddenly it’s tug-of-war on your tastebuds.
I’ve since recreated Mala’s genius – wait, let me rephrase. I’ve since attempted to recreate it, which has been part of the fun. Trying a variety of fruits and kale together, using soy milk or juice, seeing how yogurt changes the consistency – it’s been a blenderiffic experiment in my kitchen. But it’s been rather in the style of the Swedish Chef – no regard to quantities or writing down what I put in. Which means I have nothing to offer ya’ll if you wanted to make your own, other than to buy kale, buy fruit (frozen is great for this), buy a liquid you like that makes sense, and make sure you have a blender handy.**
*Not a joke, we have a tee-pee in our apartment.
**If you really need a recipe, this one on For the Love of Food Blog is very simple and tasty, though it does definitely come out green! Adding berries will change the hue. (Dear me, and if you have time scope out her recipes and ideas. She takes great photos, and I’m seriously going to try this Creamy Broccoli and Kale recipe.)
Peanut butter! That was also a crucial ingredient in my concoction to boost the protien and healthy fat content. Almond butter would be super yummy too, or really any nut butter.
Other smoothie musings…
Start your mix by tossing a quarter or half cup of dry rolled oats per person to up the fiber. Blend up those oats by their lonesome and they should turn into a relatively fine consistency, then mix in your other ingredients du jour.
Yogurt and juice notes…try to avoid product that add extra sugars – check the ingredients list. The fruit you add to the smoothie yourself will probably provide plenty of sweetness.
Looking forward to our future smoothie adventures!