A Complete Guide to Cultured Smoothies

Blending up a smoothie can give you an opportunity to pack a nutritional punch with various nutrient-dense and cultured foods. Often the pickiest of eaters will gladly sip down a big frothy glass of kefir or yogurt if it is mixed with the right ingredients.

But it is too easy to get stuck in a smoothie rut. Be creative and explore all of the smoothie options!

The Smoothie Base

The base of every smoothie is some type of liquid. If you want your smoothie to pack a wallop in terms of both nutrition and calories, then you want your smoothie base to contain some good protein, fat, and preferably cultures.

Here are some cultured smoothie base options:

• Yogurt. Makes a tart, thick (if you use whole milk yogurt), and rich base.
• Kefir. Kefir has a slightly different flavor than yogurt due to its yeasts, but it too makes a rich delicious base for smoothies.
• Buttermilk. Cultured buttermilk is another tangy cultured milk product that can be used on its own as a smoothie base or combined with yogurt or kefir.
• Cultured Coconut Milk. Use coconut milk kefir or coconut milk yogurt as a rich, dairy-free base to your smoothie.

This is where you can add nutrition, calories, and some yumminess to your smoothies to keep them varied and interesting.

Herbal Boosters. Because smoothies usually contain a sweet component like fruit or sweetener, the sometimes grassy flavors of herbs can go undetected for a bit of extra nutrition. A few options are maca or Siberian ginseng powder for energy or oatstraw for calcium.

Egg yolks. Many people add egg yolks to their smoothies for both health and flavor reasons. Egg yolks from pastured chickens add vitamins, minerals, and good fats. They also make smoothies rich and creamy in flavor. (Always excercise caution when using raw egg yolks.)

Nutrient-dense Fats. Adding coconut oil, raw butter, or cod liver oil to smoothies is a good way to provide some extra nourishing fats for your family. Coconut oil provides essential medium-chain fatty acids, raw butter contains fat-soluble vitamins, and cod liver oil contains vitamins A and D.

Recipes

By livening up your smoothies with various fruits, flavors, and combinations you can keep your family begging for more of those cultured drinks that are so good for them.

• Apple Pie Smoothie
• Watermelon Smoothie
• Cranberry Smoothie
• Pumpkin Smoothie
• Ginger Peach Smoothie
• Strawberry Banana Kefir Smoothie
• Raw Creamy Orange Smoothie (use kefir, buttermilk, or yogurt instead of milk)
• Almond Butter Kefir Smoothie
• Raw Apricot Creme Kefir Smoothie
• Chocolate Kefir Smoothie

Make Extra For Popsicles

Because smoothies are creamy and sweet they are excellent when made into probiotic popsicles. Simply take your leftover smoothie liquid (or make up a batch just for the occasion) and freeze into popsicle molds or small Dixie cups with popsicle sticks.

Children love these as probiotic-rich alternatives to store-bought popsicles.

So grab your blender, your kefir (or other smoothie base), and some yummy ingredients and play around with some delicious cold drinks for breakfast, a snack, or dessert.

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Related Articles & Recipes:

• VIDEO: Making Kefir
• Three Ways to Make Cultured Buttermilk
• Orange Smoothie Recipe

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