So two days ago I deviated from my usual diet- big time. And I have been paying the price ever since. I have stated before that I am not a vegan or even strict vegetarian although I mostly eat that way. I haven’t even had chicken in a few months only because I just don’t have a taste for it. Plus I think my body doesn’t handle a lot of protein well. Unfortunately lately I have been really tired because I haven’t been planning my meals right and believe my iron was really low. So I went to the store and got myself some grassed beef to make a burger. This was also my first time having grassed beef and I must say it was really delicious. And although I don’t regret eating it as a word of caution to others in my position, except to be out of commission the next 24 hours. Sorry if thats TMI.
Day two I am feeling more like a human again and I obviously wanted something nutritious and detoxifying so a green smoothie seemed the obvious choice. Plus I have been wanting to try buckwheat groats for awhile and I finally picked some up yesterday. I soaked them in water overnight and after finding ground cardamom for a really good price I had to make a chai spice. This was freaking fantastic on top of the smoothie and really makes it feel like a substantial meal because of all the chewing. Plus the spices have their own abundance of nutrients like iron, calcium, potassium, chromium and lots of others.
Parsley, aka only the most common garnish used is only just recently making an appearance in my kitchen. I’m not sure why I just don’t love it as much as most whereas cilantro, mint, chives, Thai basil… I am obsessed with. Parsley has been used for hundreds of years as a detoxifying ingredient. It is high in vitamin K, C, and A as well as lutein and Zeaxanthin which are antioxidants that help fight degeneration of the eye as well as plaque build up in the arteries.
The other ingredients somewhat speak for themselves as far as health qualities go. Overall this smoothie is really high in vitamins, minerals, protein, fiber iron and calciumand also low in calories. It is definitely bitter so sweeten it to taste. You could add a handful of mint leaves but I refrained because I wasn’t sure how that would pair with the chai buckwheat. This has become my new favorite green smoothie but feel free to alter to your preference!
Ingredients:
3 cups spring mix
1 stalk celery
3 dinosaur kale leaves, stems removed
1 large or 2 small frozen beets (I love to add them instead of ice cubes)
1 cup broccoli sprouts
1 cup parsley (great time to use those stems!)
Water and ice for desired consistency
1 tsp cinnamon
Sweetener, stevia dropper to taste or try a frozen banana for more decadent breakfast
Blend everything and sweeten to taste
-Add ins I forgot but I will add next time is 1 tsp spirulina and 1 tsp matcha green tea powder.
Buckwheat Groats:
-Soak 1/8 cup buckwheat groats overnight. Rinse well and pat dry. Warm 1 tsp coconut oil in a pan and add groats. Use premade chai spice (if not high in sugar) or add pinch of ground ginger, cardamom, cinnamon and optional cloves. I also grated some allspice. Toast On medium heat until there is no liquid or moisture. These have a firm bite and chewing well is a must for good digestion!
Buckwheat is a great source of iron and gluten free whole grain shown to help balance blood sugar and lower blood pressure.
240 calories in entire recipe
14g fiber
40g carbs
5g fat
16g protein
7g sugar
60% of daily iron needs
50% daily calcium needs
weeks worth of vitamin A, C, and K 😉
And tomorrow there is some super easy and delicious vegetarian comfort food and its super affordable too!
Tagged: beets, breakfast, broccoli sprouts, buckwheat groats, celery, chai spice, cleansing, dinosaur kale, gluten free, green monster, high calcium, high fiber, high iron, high protein, parsley, smoothie, spring mix, vegan
Heather's Creative Concoctions 
I can understand your discomfort after eating that beef. When I first went vegetarian a few years ago, a few months in I was invited for dinner at my boyfriend’s brothers. Well we forgot to tell them I was vegetarian and they made spaghetti with meatballs. I felt bad so I ate it and oh my- I was definitely not going anywhere for a day or 2 lol. I feel your pain. I get that way now too if I accidentally eat dairy. Bleh.
This smoothie is so clean! I might make this later even though I don’t have any celery!
Oh no, the things we do for love ;). Omgosh it has been a rough few days and I definitely don’t plan on doing that again!
I’m so intrigued by this smoothie! I’ll have to give this one a try. 🙂 Thanks for the recipe!
Sure, let me know what you think! Make sure you have sweetener on hand if you are used to sweet smoothies, or frozen banana 🙂
I’m not a huge parsley fan either but things tend to end up tasting differently in smoothie form. I’ll have to give this a try…probably with the addition of the frozen banana:) I’ve been all about frozen bananas lately:) I don’t even put them in smoothies anymore. I just get them out of the freezer, cut them up and eat. They’re so creamy and perfect, you know?
And the buckwheat groat recipe looks so fun. It’s like you made your own cereal. I’ve had a bag of buckwheat groats for awhile now but I’ve been lacking inspiration…this looks perfect!
I am totally obsessed with banana too and buckwheat groats lately, positing tomorrow on them 😉
[…] my post on my super detox green smoothie using broccoli sprouts, I was contacted by Life Force Foods Brocco Sprouts to do a product review […]