Breakfast of Champions

Monday through Friday, Bo and I are not big breakfast eaters. On the weekends we'll go all out - when we are well rested and have plenty of time to make a nice big breakfast. Yes, I know breakfast is the most important meal of the day. But during the week, to be perfectly honest we would rather sleep a few extra minutes in the morning than get up to eat something just "because we are supposed to", when we aren't even really hungry. So we usually just grab a breakfast bar on our way to work each morning. A few months ago when I had my turn at funemployment for a few weeks, I started getting back into cooking and baking and recipe-hunting (and, well, many other things that I had not been able to enjoy in a long time!). During that time I mastered our new favorite breakfast: a strawberry-banana smoothie.

It's healthy and light, and gives us a good start to the day. I try to make them twice a week in the evening so it's ready to go each morning, and that way we don't have to lose any precious moments of sleep - just pour and go.

I looked through several smoothie recipes online, and ended up making up my own recipe based on what we like and don't like. We've also substituted different fruits, and though they've all been delicious, the classic strawberry-banana is still our favorite.

Strawberry Banana Smoothie

2 bananas, cut up
1 8 oz. carton of strawberries, hulled
12 oz. fat-free vanilla yogurt
1/4 cup orange juice
2 tbsp wheat germ
1 tsp honey
10 ice cubes






Blend all ingredients except for the ice, until smooth. Then add the ice cubes and blend again until smooth.


A few lessons learned that I will share from my short-lived smoothie making experience... I always double the recipe in order to have a few days' supply on hand. Also so that I am not constantly cleaning our blender. I got a 2 liter plastic pitcher at Target that holds the exact amount the recipe makes and is perfect for storing in the fridge. And when we are going out of town, I put the pitcher in the freezer so our leftovers don't go bad. When we get back I just put the pitcher back in the fridge and let it thaw over night. It tastes just the same as when it's fresh. And I swear it tastes better when served in a Gator tumbler ;)