Coconut Smoothie Calories

Smoothies are one of life's pleasures aren't they? Not only are they absolutely scrumptious, they're ridiculously easy to make as well. If you're health conscious, you can even add some greens to your standard smoothie recipe to up the health quotient, or use nutrient rich low fat foods to jump start your day. Practically any fruit can be added to a smoothie, though using a good base fruit will make sure that your smoothie has that characteristic creamy, 'smooth' texture. Bananas, peaches, mangoes, pears, guavas, pineapples, berries and avocados are all good options as base fruits - you can come up with all sorts of combinations to create the perfect smoothie. Choose a complementary base fruit when making your favorite coconut smoothie recipe, and mix and match till you find a combination that works for you - and which has the least coconut smoothie calories.

Typically based on fruit, there are very few hard and fast rules to follow when making smoothies. Most often, they use a base, some form of liquid and additional flavoring fruit. The base can be fruit or vegetable, fresh or frozen; some smoothies use milk or yogurt as the liquid, while unsweetened fruit juice, coconut water and pure water are preferred by weight watchers. There are also green smoothies, which involve the addition of a green vegetable to the ingredients of a basic smoothie - the fruit flavors mask the taste of the vegetables, while giving you all the benefits. Both the water and the flesh of the coconut make for fabulous coconut smoothies, with a few additions as fruit. For all you health freaks, the following are some recipes for a variety of coconut smoothies.

Pineapple Coconut Green Smoothie with Strawberries

Ingredients

• One tender coconut - Flesh and 2 oz coconut water
• Pineapple - ½
• Whole organic strawberries - 1 ½ cups
• Fresh, organic baby spinach (or other green) - 2 ½ cups

Method

1. Peel, core and cut the pineapple into chunks, and hull the strawberries.
2. Place all the ingredients in a blender and blend on high for 30 seconds to a minute, or until smooth.

Calories
The calorie count below is for two servings of the above recipe.

NUTRIENT	VALUE
Calories	636
Fat	8 g
Protein	16 g
Carbohydrates	136 g
Calcium	31% RDA
Vitamin A	257% RDA
Vitamin C	302% RDA
Iron	15% RDA

Banana Apple Coconut Smoothie

Ingredients

• One tender coconut - Flesh and 4 oz coconut water
• Bananas - 2 small
• Unsweetened apple juice - 2 cups
• Strawberries/Blueberries - 1 cup

Method

1. Peel and slice the bananas, hull the strawberries. Place in the freezer for approximately an hour, or until frozen solid.
2. Place in the blender bowl along with all the other ingredients and blend on high for 30 seconds to a minute, or until smooth.

Calories:
The calorie count below is for two servings of the above recipe.

NUTRIENT	VALUE
Calories	444
Fat	6.4 g
Protein	8.8 g
Carbohydrates	100.2 g
Calcium	26% RDA
Vitamin A	81% RDA
Vitamin C	51% RDA

If smoothies form a regular part of your diet, it may be worthwhile to look at low and green smoothie versions, to ensure that the calories in coconut smoothies don't translate into weight gain. Smoothie recipes are a great way to get kids to drink up their daily fruits and vegetables without the fuss that cooked foods may entail. Coconut smoothies when made with coconut water form a low fat version of the regular smoothie, while the flesh of this versatile fruit is packed with calcium, iron, selenium and zinc. If coconut smoothie calories bother you, make these an occasional treat, or let them double up as power breakfast smoothies - you won't need much else once you've downed these babies. Smoothies are quick, easy and refreshing, and full of all things nutritious - get out your blender and whiz away!