NaturesPlus Helps You Create a Smoothie for Every Need

You love your smoothie bowls, but they’re a pricey habit: The average superfood smoothie bowl can cost you anywhere from $8.50 to $11.00. 

A better bet? Make them yourself—with ingredients that change along with your needs on any given day.

NaturesPlus can give you a hand. In addition to SPIRU-TEIN^®, one of the first meal replacement shakes ever developed, we offer organic plant proteins as well as easy-to-use collagen peptides.

Smart Smoothie Strategies

First, here are three ways to get the most out of your homemade creations.

Watch Portion Sizes

Smoothies can provide more than one serving of produce in one sitting. But don’t go crazy on the fruit: Even though fruit contains natural sugar...it’s still sugar. The liquid calories can go down fast, too. To keep calories and carbs from adding up, ask yourself: Would I eat all the fruit in one sitting? “Use one cup of fruit total,” says registered dietitian Jessica Cording, RD, CDN. “The rest should be vegetables, unsweetened liquid and ice.”

Decide: Is This a Meal Replacement or a Snack?

If it’s a snack, keep toppings such as seeds, nuts and fruit to a minimum. If it’s a meal, make sure it’s filling enough to be satisfying.

Don't Eat on Your Feet

“I love the smoothie bowl trend because it’s getting people to sit down and eat their smoothie with a spoon,” Cording says. Plus, research shows that the simple act of chewing your calories is more satiating than drinking them.

Different Goals, Different Ingredients

You can also tailor your smoothie to help support whatever you’ve got going on. A smoothie isn't just fuel—it's a tool. (All the recipes below serve one except for the breakfast smoothie, which serves two.)

Best Breakfast Smoothie

Purpose: To give yourself an a.m. advantage

Special ingredient: Collagen peptides

Collagen “is having a moment right now,” says blogger Kate Kordsmeier, who drinks this smoothie daily. “I always feel full of energy after drinking this green smoothie, but it’s the long-term effects of drinking it regularly that I notice the most. You just feel so good the rest of the day.”

1 cup frozen mango

1 1/2 cups coconut water

2 cups spinach

1 cup frozen pineapple

1 tbsp chia seeds

1 tbsp wheatgrass

2 scoops NaturesPlus Collagen Peptides

Combine ingredients in a large, high-powered blender, such as a Vitamix, and blend until smooth and creamy.

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Best Beauty Smoothie

Purpose: To help you look your best

Special ingredient: Silken tofu

“What you eat is going to show up on your face,” says the smoothie’s creator, nutritionist Alissa Rumsey, MS, RD. This smoothie is also filled with pumpkin seeds, walnuts, blueberries and avocado, which provide collagen-boosting antioxidants, vitamin C and omega-3 fatty acids. Protein and fiber from quinoa keep insulin from spiking, which can otherwise trigger acne.

2 cups spinach, fresh

3/4 cup blueberries, frozen or fresh

1/4 avocado

2 tbsp pumpkin seeds

2 tbsp walnuts

1/4 cup cooked quinoa

1/2 cup silken tofu

8–10 oz water or unsweetened nondairy milk (depending on thickness preference)

1/2 cup ice

1/2 scoop NaturesPlus Organic Paleo Protein Powder (optional)

Blend until smooth; add water or milk as needed for consistency.

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Best A-Game Smoothie

Purpose: To help you power through a big day at work

Special ingredient: Wild blueberries

Texture trick:Two additional ingredients—cauliflower, cooked and chopped to the size of rice grains, and xanthan gum—lend a rich texture, especially if you like your smoothies thick. To rice your own cauliflower, cook a head of cauliflower, then pulse the florets into rice-size pieces in the food processor. Place extra in baggies and store them in the freezer for later.

Compared to regular blues, these gems provide 72% more fiber and 32% less sugar while providing twice the level of antioxidants, according to Cording. This brainiac smoothie is packed with protein powder too, “to help stabilize your blood sugar so you can stay focused, whether you’re giving a presentation or sitting through an important meeting,” Cording adds.

3/4–1 cup water or unsweetened coconut water

1 scoop Simply Natural SPIRU-TEIN Vanilla Shake Powder

1/2 tsp xanthan gum

1/2 medium or 1 small frozen banana

1/2 cup frozen wild blueberries

1/2 cup frozen riced cauliflower

1 cup frozen chopped spinach (or 2 cups raw)

1 cup ice (or more if needed)

Pile ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth. Pour into a glass or bowl. Garnish a tablespoon of chia seeds or other toppings, such as nuts, granola, cacao nibs and coconut flakes, and drizzle with coconut oil.

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Best Recovery Smoothie

Purpose: To help you feel better faster after a party night

Special ingredient: Pumpkin puree

“Whenever you’re hungover, you’re dehydrated and your electrolytes are out of whack,” Cording says. This smoothie, packed with pumpkin puree and banana, offers potassium, magnesium and sodium to help replenish them.

1 cup water or unsweetened nondairy milk

1/2 cup pumpkin puree

1/2 medium frozen banana

1 large handful baby spinach

1 tsp pumpkin pie spice

1/4 tsp vanilla extract

1 cup ice

1 scoop NaturesPlus Energy Protein Shake (optional)

Layer ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth. You can pour into a bowl and top with chia seeds, coconut flakes or nuts.

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