Tag Archives: smoothie

Sweet Treats For Easter – Layered Smoothie and Lightened Strawberry Cake

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litehouse jennifer fisher strawberry cake overhead

You better hop to it if you are still looking for sweet treats to share with family and friends this Easter weekend. If the bunny that visits your house is anything like the one who hides eggs at mine, I’m pretty sure you’ll have enough chocolate goodies and jelly beans to last until the Fourth of July!  But if you are hosting an Easter brunch, luncheon or dinner, you probably need a delicious dessert that is showy enough for a Sunday celebration of this magnitude.

But don’t fret, I have an easy and “healthier” option that I whipped up for Lighthouse Foods — a Lightened Strawberry Bundt Cake and it is just perfect for the season! Several decadent ingredients found in traditional pound cake recipes have been swapped with sugar-free and reduced-fat products to keep this cake a little from exploding with excess. Plus, fresh strawberries for garnish are always a good thing! Check out the Living Lighthouse Blog for the full directions.

litehouse jennifer fisher cut strawberry cake lemonade

You may want to spend some extra time (especially if you have today off) enjoying the perks of great outdoors in spring – warmer weather, longer days and verdant vistas with beautiful wildflowers. Fuel up with long-lasting healthy energy with the Layered Spring Smoothie I created for CorePower.com. Sweet layers of fruits and vegetables blended with a Core Power High Protein Shake not only looks pretty, but will have you feeling pretty good too – it’s packed with 26 grams of quality protein!

easter-inspiredsmoothie

Layered Easter Smoothie Recipe

  • 1 bottle Vanilla Core Power (or milk of your choice)
  • 1 large banana, sliced and frozen
  • ½ cup frozen or fresh spinach (a handful)
  • ½ cup sliced frozen strawberries
  • Whipped cream and pastel sprinkles, if desired

Pour entire bottle of cold Core Power into blender. Add frozen banana slices and blend until smooth; blend in ice if mixture seems too thin. Divide banana mixture evenly into three parts, leaving one part in blender and pouring the other two parts into two small bowls or cups.

Add handful of spinach to portion remaining in blender and process until smooth. Pour this into bottom of tall glass. Over this “green” layer, pour the “yellow” portion that is just banana and Core Power.

Quickly rinse out blender and pour in the remaining bowl. Add strawberries and blend until smooth. Pour this “pink” layer on top. Garnish smoothie with whipped cream and pastel sprinkles, if desired.

strawberry banana spinach layered smoothei

 

layered easter smoothe 250

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Note: For “no bleed” stripes, freeze serving glass between each layer. For a more casual “dip-dyed” look (as in photo), this step is not necessary – the colors will seep together a bit by design!

 

 

 

 

If you are still looking for a sweet and stunning end to your meal, check out the gallery of Best Easter Desserts from CookingLight.com. The Black and White Angel Food Cake has definitely grabbed my attention!

easter desserts cooking light

Are you planning a special dessert for Easter? Let me know in the comments below!

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Mint Melon Smoothie Recipe + Apera Review

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mint cataloupe smoothie

This Melon Mint Smoothie may be one of my favorites yet – it definitely ranks in the top three! The key to the refreshing minty-melon taste is to use really, really ripe cantaloupe and the freshest mint you can find. It was really my frugalness that was the basis for this protein smoothie; you see, I had an entire cantaloupe get over ripe on the counter because of a too-busy-to-cut-it-up week. It was a little mushy, so rather than throw it away (the horror!), I cut it up in cubes and dry-packed for the freezer.  My thought was I could throw a few chunks in whatever smoothie I was whipping up for the day, and the frozen melon would help with the smooth frozen consistency – I never expected the melon taste to come through so strong! The perfect way to cool on a warm spring day here in Austin!

mint smoothie

Mint Melon Smoothie Recipe

  • 10 ounces almond milk
  • 1/3 cup (approx. 1 scoop) vanilla or unflavored protein powder
  • 1 cup frozen cantaloupe or honeydew chunks
  • 10 fresh mint leaves

Place all ingredients in blender and puree until smooth. Serves 1.

aspera active pack

I also wanted to share a quick review of an awesome backpack sent to me by Apera Bags. There are a lot of gym bags out there, but what I love about the Apera Bags is that they are protected on the inside and out with an antimicrobial finish – not that my stuff stinks or anything (jeeze), but it’s just reassuring to know my bag has these germ-fighting superpowers!  There are pockets and pouches galore, all with various functions – to hold shoes, water bottles, a change of clothes, wet towel, etc.

gym backpack

The particular Apera Bag I picked is called the Active Pack and it is perfect for both work and play (there is a padded area where you could stash a laptop or tablet).  Of course, I wanted to get the hot pink color, but knew that my husband wouldn’t help carry the load on or weekend hikes if I didn’t choose a “manly” color.  And actually, I’m happy with the black color, it will go with all my gym and running fashions and won’t end up looking scuffed up in a few months. But, now I’m fighting with my husband over who gets to use it and when!