Thursday, June 13, 2013

Toddler Friendly Smoothies Using Avocado


I recently discovered how amazing it is to add an avocado to smoothies. My household has a certain love affair with avocados, so I decided to give this a shot after a friend recommended it to me. Not going to lie, this was an amazing discovery. I think avocado needs to find its way into every corner of my cooking. Into my cereal, into my coffee.. yea, that part I was kidding about.

Avocados are considered the perfect food by many, it's been said that an avocado contains many of the nutrients we need to survive. It's a great first food for babies as well - Penny was chowing down on slices by the fistful when we introduced her to foods via baby-led weaning. Hanna from Endless Simmer hilariously recants the etymology behind the word: "...avocado is a derivative of ahuacatl, which happens to be the Aztec word for testicle.  The avocado grows in pairs, dangling from the tree so suggestively that even the Aztecs noticed, pausing long enough from their daily blood sacrifice to chuckle to themselves and bestow the avocado with its legacy."  Will you ever look at avocados the same again? ;)


But isn't the hardest part first selecting the perfect avocado? Avocado Central has a great interactive widget to help you determine the stage of your avocado's ripeness.


The Freckled Avocado
mmm, our favorite!
  • 1 ripe avocado 
  • 5 medium to large frozen organic strawberries 
  • 1 cup of plain or vanilla flavored Greek yogurt 
  • 2 Tablespoons of local honey
The Tropical Avocado
  • 1 ripe avocado 
  • 1 peeled and frozen banana 
  • 1 cup of plain or vanilla flavored Greek yogurt 
  • 1 cup of fresh orange juice 
  • 2 tablespoons of local honey
The Chocolate Avocado
  • 1 ripe avocado
  • 1 cup of plain or vanilla flavored Greek yogurt
  • 2 tablespoons of cocoa powder
The Red Avocado
  • 1 ripe avocado 
  • 1 cup fresh orange juice 
  • 1/2 cup frozen raspberries
A few that we'd like to try:
Beet- Avocado: from We are Not Martha
  • 2 small beets
  • 1 C vanilla soy milk (I used Silk Light)
  • 3/4 C frozen berries
  • 1/2 avocado
  • 1 C baby spinach
  • 1 scoop (10 grams) chia seeds
Avocado Apple: from Cooking Classy
  • 1 medium ripe California avocado
  • 1 large granny smith apple, chilled, cored and sliced
  • 1 ripe banana, peeled and frozen
  • 1 Navel orange, chilled and peeled
  • 2 cups packed spinach
  • 1 cup almond milk, chilled
  • Juice of 1 lime
  • 2 tsp agave nectar or honey, or to taste (optional)
  • 8 ice cubes (about 1 1/3 cups)
    Avocado Mango: from Reboot with Joe
    • 1 cup mango (fresh or frozen) 
    • 3 handfuls spinach
    • 1/4 avocado 
    • 1 cup almond milk- add a little water if you like your smoothie thinner 
    Do you like to add avocado to your smoothies? What is your favorite combination? 

    20 comments:

    1. This comment has been removed by the author.

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    2. These are great ideas! I've never had avocado in a smoothie, but my husband's tried it a couple of times and loves it. I think I'll make some of these for all of us soon. I think my toddler will love them.

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    3. I add spinach to all smoothies, but never avocado. These sound great. I love the benefits of avocado, will definitely try this

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    4. What a great idea. I have never thought of adding avocado to a smoothie. I will have to try this. My littles will love it

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    5. what straw cup is in the picture please?

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      1. Hi Ella, it's been a few years since I've written this post and the cup appears to have been redesigned, but it was made by Playtex. This one looks like it is the closest to what we had - http://amzn.to/1HFP9l6

        I loved this cup because it was easy to clean (the straw came apart in two pieces) and it seriously never leaked. Good luck!

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    6. Thanks for the great recipes! My toddler loved avacado a as a baby, but lately refuses to eat it. I love the health benefits so I can't wait to try these with her. We call smoothies her "special drink"- she loves them that much!

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    7. I love using avocados--they are one of my favorite foods!

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    8. Oh my word, these all look amazing! I LOVE avocado and smoothies, but never thought to mix them!

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    9. So happy you’ve shared this! My little one is in need of more fats and I am very much NOT okay with the suggestions I was given by my pediatrician’s office (butter. Just add lots of butter to everything). So I wanted to start doing more avocado. She already loves smoothies, especially in our reusable baby food pouches, so these are perfect!

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    10. My little one LOVES smoothies I drink one most mornings with spinach to keep my iron up, but he doesn't tolerate lactose so I usually make ours with coconut milk as to not upset his tummy and since I still breastfeed him I have to avoid lactose too lol. Great recipes though!

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    11. We are big smoothie lovers and they are super helpful since my son wont touch most fruits and veggies!! He's a big texture kid... but adores smoothies!! Im constantly slipping in spinach but haven't considered avocado!! Great idea!

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    12. This smoothie looks amazing and I know my little one will love it! Thanks for sharing!

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    13. Yum! I love adding avocado to my smoothies. Thanks for all the new recipes to try!

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    14. Thanks for sharing,sometimes a smoothie is the only way to get foods into my fussy eater

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    15. I always try to jucie a lot of apples and just about 1 inch of fresh root ginger. Weight Loss Smoothies

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    16. my daughter will love these, thank you for sharing

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    17. These sound great for both Littles and me! Thank you

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    18. I bet my 18 month old would love this! My older kids probably would as well.

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