Summer Green Smoothie Coolatta Recipe

Happy June 1st!

Summer is in full swing and I'm excited! I absolutely love this time of year. However, since it tends to be extremely humid in NYC right about now, staying hydrated is a top priority for me. 

We all know that drinking lots of water is super important (all year long) but there are more ways to stay hydrated and quite delicious ones. This week I found myself reaching for cooling and hydrating foods such as leafy greens and my absolute summer favorite: watermelon. I love to eat watermelon on its own for breakfast or a cooling snack, blended into a smoothie with fresh mint or tossed with extra virgin olive oil, feta cheese and basil for a delicious salad. 

This is the season when dark leafy greens are plentiful at your local farmer's market. I love to make salads but there is much more you can do with greens than salad. This week I grabbed huge bundles of tuscan kale, spinach, arugula, rainbow chard, radish with tops and spring onions. When I have greens on hand I'm more likely to toss them into EVERYTHING from salads to wraps to smoothies to fresh pressed juices.  Dark leafy greens just make me so darn happy!

Here is one way of incorporating greens when you're pressed for time!

Mini-Recipe: Saute washed and torn kale(I used Tuscan) with 3 cloves diced fresh garlic, 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil or coconut oil and a pinch of sea salt and cracked pepper. Once the kale had started to wilt I fold in 1 can drained and rinsed organic beans (here I used canelli beans) and a pinch of red pepper flakes (you can adjust depending on how spicy you like it). A super simple and delicious mixture that can be eaten alone or topped with shrimp or wild salmon or spread over a bed of steamed quinoa - delicious! I try to reduce my fairy intake but I do love a good sprinkle of high-quality Parmesan cheese on top. I also ate this as a side dish for a few days and I can tell you this one is a favorite. Mainly because of how easy it is to swap out for anygreen andany bean and you've got a meal in minutes:

Another way I incorporate greens in the summer is by adding them to my morning smoothies. I just wash n' tear up a handful of kaleleaves or rawspinach or both and toss in the blender. Below is one of my favorite cooling and hydrated smoothie recipes that makes a great breakfast replacement on a hot day or afternoon pick-me-up! 

Hydrating Green Smoothie Coolatta

1.5 cups coconut water 1 Tbsp Chia Seeds 1 handful of raw Spinach 1.5 scoop Nutrimeal Free protein powder(soy free, diary free, gluten free and fructose free) 1/3 cup frozen peaches 1/3 cup frozen pineapples 1 tbsp organic grade B maple syrup (optional)

In a high speed blender mix all ingredients and blend until fully incorporated. Adjust coconut water for thicker or thinner smoothies. Enjoy!

 *Gluten-Free *Soy-Free *Dairy-Free