Healthy Green Smoothies My Kids Will Actually Drink

This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. #NaturallyClean #CollectiveBias 

I remember once, ages ago, complaining to a friend about what a picky eater Forrest was. At the time, I think he was only really eating breads (muffins, rolls, etc.), and hadn't touched a fruit or vegetable in months. And this other mom suggested all casually, "Why don't you make him smoothies? My kids love smoothies." 

And I think I actually laughed out loud, because it seemed to me that a child who will drink smoothies is not a picky child.

Thank goodness, Forrest has been improving on the picky eating lately. I still think he's absurdly picky, but at almost 5 years old, he's finally becoming more willing to try things. 9 times out of 10, he'll take a microscopic bite and declare it disgusting, but at least he'll try. This feels like huge progress to me. 

And although he insists that he hates almost every ingredient I put into smoothies, he actually is loving and requesting them lately. 

The smoothie love started a few months ago--Forrest was out running errands with my mom and watched while she ordered herself a smoothie. I swear to you, the greatest persuasion tactics in the world wouldn't have made the smallest impact if it had been me drinking a smoothie in front of him, but we're not talking about boring mom here. We're talking about Grandma. I'm not sure she even had to offer--he asked for a sip and then proceeded to gulp her entire smoothie down, and started requesting them at home. Which Darcy appreciates, since she can't say 'smoothie' but loves them anyway.

And now, these homemade smoothies are probably the only source of actual vitamins and nutrients that he ingests. I'm only half joking.

I almost always have these ingredients on hand, so it's really easy to whip up a quick smoothie when he asks. Here's the formula that has worked best for us:

1/2-1 cup ice
1 1/2 cups frozen mixed berries
1 cup fresh spinach, chopped
1 banana, fresh or frozen, chopped
1/2-3/4 cup lowfat vanilla yogurt
1 cup juice (or milk, or almond milk)

Our blender has been slowly dying for years now--I'm always a bit surprised when it kicks on after being plugged in. We really ought to just get a new one (especially since the kids are such smoothie fans now!), but in the meantime, I try and help it as much as I can by chopping up some of the ingredients before adding them to the blender. 

I give 1-2 handfuls of spinach a rough chop before tossing it in--I love using spinach in smoothies because (and I'm being totally honest here) I think it tastes like nothing. So why not add some healthy greens when they have literally no impact on the flavor of the smoothie? Forrest doesn't need to know.

I used new Green Works Pump 'N Clean while making my smoothies the other day--it's completely food safe, so it's great to use if you need to clean up a tad while cooking. I used it to clean off my knife after chopping the spinach. I love that I can use it one-handed, and that it's totally safe to use in the kitchen and even around food. (Be aware, though, that it should not be used to clean up after raw meat or fish!)

Then just jumped right back in to chop my banana.

If I've really gone heavy on the spinach, or if I'm using milk instead of juice, I'll sometimes add a bit of sugar to the blender, too. 

If you're interested in trying out new Green Works Pump 'N Clean, grab it in the natural section of the cleaning aisle at Target. And even better, from June 14-July 11, use the Target Cartwheel app to save 10% on all varieties of Green Works products (including Pump 'N Clean). Target is actually the only retailer carrying the entire Green Works line, so check them out while you're there.

Do you use natural cleaning products like Green Works in your kitchen? And--as the parent of a picky eater, this is always on my mind--how do you convince your kids to try healthy new foods?

Homemade Laundry Detergent

I've been interested lately in using more natural, homemade cleaning products in my house--I wish I could say that this was for environmental, earth-happy reasons, but my main motivation was the other type of green . . . saving big bucks, baby! I do worry a bit about breathing in those awful smelling fumes, coating all the surfaces in my house with who-knows-what chemicals, and rinsing it all down the drain, so I loved the thought of actually knowing what's in the products I use to clean my house, as well as saving some money by using simple, cheap ingredients to make my own cleaning supplies.

I decided to start by making my own laundry detergent, and researched recipes online. Most of the recipes I found are quite similar--you can find a list of 10 detergent recipes here, and a rather in-depth post with a recipe, cost breakdown, and Q&A here . . . according to that last link, using homemade laundry detergent costs about a penny per load, a huge savings from the cost of using store bought detergent (roughly $0.50 per load). I was skeptical about how well homemade detergent would work, but I've found it to be just as effective as any store bought detergent I've ever used, and leaves our clothes just as clean and fresh-smelling as before. And the cost is just unbeatable--the supplies to make dozens of gallons of my own laundry soap cost about the same as one container of store bought detergent. Can't beat that!

What You'll Need:

1 bar of soap (many recipes call for Fels Naptha soap, which I read was rather harsh, so I used a bar of Ivory soap, but you can use whatever bar soap you have on hand)

1 cup Borax -- I found it at Smith's . . . there was none at KMart (the employee I asked made me repeat it 3 times before finally giving up and sending me away), and none at a store called, ironically, Cleaning Suppliers, where the employee finally called someone (who? no idea) to ask what Borax was

1 cup washing soda (not baking soda! There's a difference!)

Note before you get started: Unless you have a really, really big pot and bowl (more like a huge bucket) to mix this in, I'd recommend halving the recipe--I had to try and divide it into portions as I was adding ingredients because I couldn't fit it all into my biggest pot or bowl, and lost a few cups of detergent along the way.

Pour one gallon of water into a large pot, and grate your bar of soap into it; heat until the soap dissolves. Add the borax and washing soda and bring to a boil. Remove from the heat, add a gallon of cool water, and stir it all up. Pour it into whatever container you plan to use (I used a milk jug and an empty container of store bought laundry detergent), and there you have it--two gallons of homemade laundry detergent! Add 1/2 cup of your detergent to each load of laundry. 

I find that my detergent's consistency changes over time--the day I made it, it was very thick, like jello (I had to scoop it out of the container to use). A few days later, it was kind of soupy with big gel-like chunks. Over time, it settled into a thick liquid, like regular store bought soap. I just make sure that, no matter the consistency, I give it a good shake before pouring it out to use, and it never seems to affect the laundry's cleanliness at all.

When my store bought versions run out, I'd also like to try homemade dish detergent, fabric whitener, shower spray, and all-purpose cleaners. What do you think of homemade cleaning supplies? Love 'em? Don't trust 'em? Willing to give 'em a shot?

EDITED 10/8/11
A few commenters (Mountainrose, Coffee Queen, and Bellamere Cottage) mentioned using this same recipe minus the water to make a powdered detergent. That sounded WAY better to me, since the most difficult part of the process was finding a pot big enough to hold all the wet ingredients, trying to mix it all evenly, transfer without spilling, etc. So when my wet batch ran out, I tried their idea--following the exact same recipe, minus the water, I ended up with a powdered detergent that I like SO much better than the liquid! Just add 1 tablespoon per load (I have a front loader and measure it out into the little detergent drawer at the top, then send a little water down after it to make sure it finds its way into the machine), and it works just as well as the liquid detergent. Smells fresh and clean, takes up so much less space in your cupboard, and is so much easier and quicker to whip up!