Smoothies

Sometime before Christmas, my GF and I saw an infomercial for the NutriBullet, a newer type of blender which claimed to be more effective than previous models at making smoothies.  The presentation was as slick and persuasive as any other.  I got her a NutriBullet for her birthday (after Christmas), and she responded by getting me one for my birthday as well (in January).

Since then, I’ve been having smoothies for breakfast practically every morning.  Unfortunately I’ve yet to come across a mix which tastes good, so I’m usually simply chugging it as quickly as possible – depending on how thick the mix ends up being.

The NutriBullet is certainly effective at mixing completely different ingredients into a uniform oozy form of goo.  That’s the most fun part about it: seeing it blend all those into a consistent mess.

I remember an Asterix story, “The Laurel Wreath”, in which he and Obelix concoct a noxious soup or stew from literally everything they could find in the Romans’ kitchen, hoping to horrify their owners enough to sell them to someone else.  But the mixture proves to be a surprisingly effective cure for hangovers, which is just what the Roman family’s prodigal son requires.  Plan backfire!  D’oh!

While I can’t say I’ve done that, I have experimented with different mixtures.  I’ve added bananas, green apples, blackberries, strawberries, pineapple, raspberries, oatmeal, olive oil, coconut, almonds, and kale.  Protein powders can go in, but don’t taste very good.  Bananas tend to make the whole damn thing taste like bananas.  Of course, you can also add alcoholic beverages for cocktails, but carbonated beverages are off limits.

The primary boast for smoothies is improved health and energy, and losing weight, but as yet I’ve seen little evidence of either after 6 months of these bizarre veggie shakes.  Perhaps others will see a benefit I’ve yet to notice.