Green Glow Smoothie with Romaine Lettuce, Kale and Yogurt

It ain't going to get greener than this, And it ain't going to get more open ended either. Basically, anything that is green and edible goes into this smoothie, so what I have given below are only the ingredients that I used. You could, for example, switch and swap the kale with broccoli or the celery with leeks. Or you could throw in a green pepper or two. Or, how about a jalapeno to spice things up? And let the fruits bind together all that greeny goodness into an incredibly delicious super-detox drink.

Serves 4
Preparation Time: 15 minutes

Ingredients: 

4 cups chopped spinach
1 medium head of romaine lettuce, chopped
3 celery stalks
2 gala green apples
1 pear
1 cucumber
2 stalks of kale
1/2 cup chopped parsley
1 banana (or) 1 medium ripe mango, peeled and chopped (or) 2 cups pineapple cubes without rind (or) 2 cups of a combination of all three
1 cup ice cold water
1 cup probiotic low fat yogurt (optional). You can substitute the yogurt with an additional cup of cold water
Juice of half a lemon.

Instructions:

If you have a juicer:

1) Juice the spinach, kale and parsley first, followed by the cucumber, lettuce, celery, apples and pear.
2) Transfer to a blender, add the banana/mango/pineapple, water and yogurt and lemon juice.
3) Blend well, pour into tall glasses and serve with a garnish of mint leaves.


If you do not have a juicer:
1) Peel the cucumber. Chop all fruits and vegetables
2) Set the blender on low speed and blend the water, spinach, parsley and cucumber.
3) Gradually add the celery, kale and lettuce and blend until smooth.

4) Increase the speed, add the fruits. Gradually add the yogurt  and lemon juice and blend until smooth.

 Serve.