Doctor Oz and the Healthy Strawberry for Smoothies, Breakfast, and Wellness
Doctor Oz has been drinking his fair share of Smoothies to show his audience that you really can find healthy alternatives to soda pop, kool-aid, and artificially flavored or sweetened beverages that steal your health from you with every nasty sip you take! There truly are healthy alternatives that taste great and provide the nutrition that make doctors and moms happy!
The best ingredient in the ‘average’ Smoothie that most people will find suitable for what they want a drink to taste like for flavor and sweetness is the humble organic Strawberry. Strawberries are more common as a flavor for ice cream, jam, jelly, and many food that feature fruit as the primary ingredient. Strawberries are often the first berry that people think of when asked to name five berries.
The season when Strawberries can be obtained from your garden, the local Farmer’s Markets, your local health food stores, and CSAs is rapidly approaching and won’t last for long. Then what do you do? Do you settle for frozen berries or wait until next year for fresh berries? Well, we have the optimum solution!
You choose two types of methods that are used to preserve the nutrient value and the flavor of Strawberries when not in season. You purchase freeze-dried Strawberries that can be re-hydrated easily and used in any recipe that asks for berries. They blend quickly, they retain the usual flavor, and they contain the nutrients that are considered valuable. Freeze-dried Strawberries can be eaten plain, too. They are like candy that is full of air and melt in your mouth. Cool! The freeze-dried Strawberries can also be added to granola, cereal, fruit salad, and Smoothies. They give your Smoothie both texture and taste!
The second solution is dehydrated Strawberries. VitalChoice offers frozen organic Strawberries. If you want to rehydrate your dried berries using your own water; then get those. If you want to allow the frozen berries to thaw and use them as they are in their own juices; then select the frozen Strawberries instead of the dried fruit. You might want to have both on hand during the late summer, autumn, and winter months.
You can sprinkle the dried berries on yogurt, quinoa or amasake pudding. You can even make tarts, pies, and crumbles with the dried or frozen berries. You can also use the dried berries in muffins or cakes. If you want to make a fruit sauce to go over fresh berries or other fruit, then take the Strawberries and add them to boiling water with organic cane sugar or white grape juice and reduce it until it has become the thickness you prefer in your sauce.
Honeyville will deliver the freeze-dried Strawberries to your door and you can use these right from the can or keep them in your Food Storage pantry for emergencies or times when you can’t get fresh berries.
The VitalChoice company has many fine frozen and dried berries that we continue to discuss with you every month. Their Strawberries are organic and delicious. They also have organic Chocolate Bars that will knock your socks off! Their seafood is sustainably-harvested and delightful when paired with a berry reduction sauce for entertaining guests or for special family occasions.
When you are using Strawberries to make Smoothies; then combine them with fruit juice and bananas for the best flavor and texture. Refrain from using ice cubes, since you have the coldness of the frozen berries to cool down your Smoothie. Apple or white grape juice will keep the flavors hidden and will keep the taste of your Smoothie more berry-ish than when you use some other fruit juice. Many people like the taste of a combination of berries, so you can experiment with strawberry, raspberry, blueberry, cherry berry (LOL), boysenberry, marionberry, and if you want an exotic berry – try goji berries with your strawberries for your Berry Smoothie.
Whether you nibble on dried Strawberries for breakfast alone or with your granola or favorite cereal, you can always sip your Smoothie in the morning hours to provide nutrients and calories until afternoon when it’s time for giving your body another substantial meal. When you have a Strawberry Smoothie for breakfast, you are less likely to drink two or three cups of coffee. If you combine the berries with your whole grains; then your body will feel satiated until your next meal in the afternoon or evening. Breakfast berries won’t weigh you down like a greasy heavy breakfast of sausage, eggs, ham, bacon, pancakes or waffles. Berries are light and yet filling and flavorful for the first meal of the day!
Wellness presupposes that you are going to eat a wide variety of fruit all year long to give you specific nutrients and co-factors that are not as common in other foods. Wellness is also based upon eating regional foods in season and properly preserving foods when they are ripe to eat when out of season in your area. Wellness is not just a group of vitamins and minerals; but a Way of Life which enables you to live a healthy Lifestyle. Enjoy your berries…eat them as one component for your complete Wellness approach to your Life.
