Exact's Healthy Living: Antioxidant Smoothie Recipe

Ashley Hein, Exact Sciences' Accounting Manager, contributed this post.

Did you know that anyone who consumes 2,000 calories daily is supposed to eat 2 ½ cups of vegetables and 2 cups of fruit a day? That is a lot of fruits and vegetables.

Growing up, my parents always pushed my brother and me to eat fruits and vegetables. Even if we did not like the meals they prepared, we had to at least try a few bites of everything. I credit them for the wide range of foods that I eat and the healthy lifestyle that I live today.

Fast forward 15 years and now I am in the same shoes they were, except I am trying to get my husband to eat vegetables. He made good progress with most vegetables, but I knew I had to find a way for him to eat kale, spinach, and other leafy vegetables.

The perfect way for me to disguise all those cancer preventing vegetables was in a morning smoothie. Since we purchased a new blender, I have been making smoothies packed with antioxidants each morning. My husband now consumes spinach and red cabbage on a daily basis, in fact, he requests it!

Antioxidant Smoothie

Start to finish: 10 minutes

Servings: 2  

Ingredients

• handful of red grapes
• two handfuls of baby spinach
• thin slice of red cabbage, core included
• one carrot, chopped in a few pieces

• 1/2 lime, peeled but leave as much of the white portion as possible (that’s where all the nutrients are!)
• 1/2 orange, peeled but leave as much of the white portion as possible
• slice of pineapple, core included
• handful of frozen strawberries
• handful of mixed berries(blueberries, blackberries, raspberries)

• 3 tablespoons ground flaxseed
• 1 tablespoon honey
• 1 tablespoon coconut oil

• 1 cup water
• 4 ice cubes

Blend on high until smooth. Serve immediately.

The citrus fruits, honey, and coconut oil hide the bitter flavor of the red cabbage and spinach. Depending on what vegetables we have in the house, I will often throw in kale or green cabbage as well. The options are limitless, experiment today and let us know what great tasting recipes you come up with at home! I’m always looking for new smoothie recipes.