Antioxidant Avenger Smoothie

Tess Masters—aka, The Blender Girl— is masterful when it comes to creating easy plant-based recipes that anyone can whip up fast in a blender. Tess’s lively, down-to-earth approach has attracted many loyal fans looking for quick and fun ways to prepare healthy food. In her cookbook The Blender Girl,  she offers 100 whole-food recipes that are gluten-free and vegan, and rely on natural flavors and sweeteners. Many are also raw and nut-, soy-, corn-, and sugar-free. 

After a diagnosis of Epstein-Barr virus years ago led Masters to begin searching for a change in her diet to help her feel better. Ultimately, she discovered that her perfect diet was a blend and she's never looked back.

What she advises? Just eat more veggies. And fruit. 

Time to give your blender some love...

Tess likes to think of this powerful immunity blend as “field to shield.” With the antioxidant weight of these ingredients, nothing’s getting the better of you (especially if you boost with açaí, maqui, and chia seeds)! The trio of orange zest, cinnamon, and ginger warms up the party, making this “berry” special.

Antioxidant Avenger (serves 2) 

• 1 1⁄4 cups (300ml) coconut water or water, plus more as needed
• 2 cups (320g) mixed fresh or frozen berries (1⁄2 cup/80g each of blueberries, blackberries, raspberries, and strawberries)
• 1⁄2 cup (85g) red seedless grapes
• 1 ripe pear, skin on, cored and diced
• 1⁄2 teaspoon minced ginger
• 1⁄4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1⁄2 teaspoon finely grated orange zest
• 1 chopped pitted date, soaked (see page 6), plus more to taste
• 1 cup (125g) ice cubes

optional boosters: 

• 2 tablespoons açaí powder
• 2 teaspoons maqui powder
• 1 tablespoon chia seeds

 Throw all of the ingredients into your blender and blast on high for 30 to 60 seconds, until smooth and creamy. Add more coconut water as needed to blend. Tweak the sweetness to taste.

 Nutritional facts (per serving) Calories 256 kcal | Fat 1 g | Saturated fat 0 g | Sodium 12 mg | Carbs 66 g | Fiber 9 g | Sugars 48 g Protein 2 g | Calcium 43 mg | Iron 1 mg122 

TIP: Just start with one healthy smoothie a day, or a few times a week, and see how that goes. No one says you need to do this all the time. Switch it up, mix it up and get the kids involved. This is a great way to get imaginative in the kitchen. It's a good way to get kids to feed themselves. Take the "small steps, big changes" approach.

What new ingredient are you interested in adding to your smoothies? Tell us in the comments below.