Simple and filling: avocado mango smoothie

My 16 month old little man loathes avocado. He's complete opposite of his sister, who loved avocado (it was her first food at 13 months old) and still loves it. I've had to resort to trickery to get this healthy fat into my boy. I made him an avocado mango smoothie that he promptly devoured and looked oh-so-cute devouring it. For any of you mamas having a hard time getting certain good foods down their kiddo's gullet, the blender is your friend.


Creamy avocado mango smoothie
1 fresh ripe mango
1/2 banana
1 avocado
enough milk (or water) to blend it all up
optional healthy additives: greens (kale or spinach), chia seed

Blend it all up and serve. The texture is divinely smooth. I didn't add the "healthy additives" in this one since my main goal was to get the avocado in little man's belly. Simple yet filling. Sometimes simplicity is a nice change.

Homemade energy gel

I know, I know. It looks like...poo. But it doesn't taste like it looks, I promise!

Carob Energy Gel

Ingredients:

• 2 large dates, pitted
• 1 Tbsp maple syrup or honey
• 1 Tbsp ground chia seeds
• 1 Tbsp coconut oil
• 1 tsp lemon zest
• 1 Tbsp fresh lemon juice
• 1 tsp carob chips
• Sea salt, to taste

Directions:

Blend all ingredients together to the consistency of gel.

So I saw this recipe and just had to try it! It turned out really good, except for it was far too sweet for my taste buds. I did make some changes to the original recipe as you can see, as I do for most recipes I try. I substituted cocoa nibs for carob chips and agave nectar for maple syrup. (The verdict is still out on agave and it's similarities to high fructose corn syrup, so I ditched agave over a year ago and have stuck with maple syrup and honey as my go-to sweeteners.) However, the flavor is really, really tasty. The lemon adds a perfect zing to the other flavors. I can't wait to try this again and change it up even more. This would be a great pick-me-up during the sluggish time of day or before a run/workout!

Power seed, engage!

Thanks to a good friend, I've gotten to know a magical little seed known for its green hair growing powers, the chia seed. Apparently the Aztecs and Mayans knew about the health benefits of this tiny seed; it sustained them during long hunts. You can read all about the versatile little seed by visiting The Great Google, so I won't reinvent the wheel here, I'll just go straight to the recipe I conjured up this afternoon. I wanted a mildly sweet, bursting with healthy power-packed goodness snack. I ended up with just that:

"Tropical Chi-gel-ly":
1 C coconut water
3 T chia seeds
1 large ripe mango, peeled and cored
1/2 ripe banana

optional: add a small amount of honey or a whole banana for a sweeter gel-ly.

I let the seeds gel up then added everything in my food processor and processed away. I topped mine with a ripe organic strawberry and coconut flakes. Yum! I wish I could say that I ate this little bowl of yum before heading out for a fantastic run, but unfortunately my iliotibial band is acting up again, so you'll find me on the living room floor rolling the foam and stretching out the IT band!

The options are limitless with chia, it can be added to salads, cereals and baked goods. Anything edible, really. I can't wait to play around with it some more! Enjoy!