Mango-Banana Smoothie

I freaking love smoothies. I make them a few times a week, especially now that it is officially summer and extraordinarily hot outside. I've been tempted in the past by those smoothie restaurants, and yes, I'll admit to getting them now and again if I'm in a hurry. However, every time I do, I'm disappointed by two things: There are way too many calories in those things, and they're never even half as good as the ones that I make at home with fresh, organic produce.

This smoothie was the perfect post-run snack. It has everything I need to refuel after a strenuous workout, plus its cold and satisfying. I added flax seeds to this, which are super healthy, especially for vegetarians (they contain a lot of nutrients like omega 3's that are primarily found in meat).

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Carrot-raisin-yogurt shake

Every morning, I go running with my good friend and fellow blogger, April. We live in Florida, and its summer, so as you can imagine our runs are pretty grueling. This morning, it was particularly hot and humid. After the run was over, she told me about a shake that she's made that she thought would be a great post-workout snack. This is the kind of shake where you think about it, and you can't imagine that it would be that good. So, after I got home, I really wanted a good, refreshing, healthy post-workout snack, and I decided to give April's shake a try. Holy cow it was good!  April used actual carrots in her shake, but I had carrot juice on hand so I just used that. For extra protein just add some plain or vanilla protein powder. Enjoy!

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Peanut-choco-banana protein shake

EJ and I are obsessed with these. I like to make them after a hard workout - when I come back from a long run there is nothing better (and combined with a foot massage from my husband...heaven).

Ingredients:
1 banana
1 cup chocolate ice cream
2 tbsp peanut butter
1/2 cup milk (add more if the shake is too thick)
1 scoop protein powder (we use Publix brand vanilla)

Blend. Enjoy.

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