Smoothies are an integral part of my morning routine. And when I say “integral,” I really mean it! I don’t think a day has gone by where I haven’t had a smoothie for breakfast or for a mid-morning snack. I’m a little obsessed. So why the obsession with smoothies? Well, it’s the easiest way for me to get a few servings of fruit and veggies and start the day off on the right note. As much as I love eggs or coconut flour pancakes or a warm bowl of oatmeal, I need some blended goodness to start my day. Only problem is that since I make smoothies a lot, I tend to get into a rut with the ingredients. Lately, smoothie du jour has been half a banana blended with an apple, celery and some greens with a dash of protein powder. It’s good, but it’s a bit boring. Time to make something a bit more inspired with this skin booster smoothie…

Skin booster smoothie? Will it really boost your skin? Well, there’s no miraculous drink that will change your skin overnight, but this smoothie will probably help you take a step in the right direction. I firmly believe that healthy skin is more about what you eat than it is about the products you use. I haven’t had the best skin (thanks to my Indian genes) growing up and I’ve tried everything under the sun, but in vain. I even spent close to a thousand dollars before my wedding on skincare packages at a popular beauty salon. Talk about spending some serious cash on something that didn’t help much! Anyway, my skin didn’t really improve until I tweaked my diet. What did I tweak? I just started eating more whole fruits and veggies. It was that simple.  Just two servings per meal did the trick.  I wish I had known that before – I could have saved a lot of $$$.

While there’s obviously more to healthy skin than fruits and vegetables, they do form a basis for a skin boosting diet. So what’s this smoothie got that will help boost your skin?

 
Watermelon: You know the antioxidant lycopene? The one you hear about all the time in the news and the papers? Well, it turns out that tomatoes aren’t the only source of this antioxidant. Watermelons have a fair bit of lycopene and a recent study showed that watermelon lycopene had higher antioxidant activity than tomatoes. Just keep in mind that to absorb lycopene, you need a bit of fat or oil with your meal. So if you intend on having this smoothie without anything else, you probably won’t absorb the lycopene effectively. I recommend having something with fats on the side. Eggs, coconut oil, yogurt – whatever you like. Just eat some fat…
 
Strawberries: We all know that strawberries are a great source of vitamin C, but there’s more to strawberries than that. They are high in manganese, which is a required co-factor for an enzyme called prolidase, which necessary to make collagen. Good production of collagen = healthy, supple skin.
 
Beets: Beets are rich in phytochemicals called betalains (which give beets their characteristic colour). These betalains are anti-inflammatory and can also help slow down the aging of the skin due to free radicals due to their anti-oxidant activity.
 

I wasn’t sure if this smoothie would taste as pretty as it looks, but it sure does. Even my husband agrees! His exact words were “heaven in a glass”. Hmm, not sure about that, but it’s pretty darn good.

Note that you can sweeten it a bit if you need it. I don’t have much of a sweet tooth anymore, so the natural sweetness of the fruits is good for me, but if you need a little extra sweetness, I recommend using raw honey, maple syrup or stevia extract.

 

Ingredients
 

• 1 small red beet, peeled and cubed (raw or steamed, depending on how powerful your blender is)
• 1 cup watermelon, cubed
• 3/4 cup strawberries, frozen
• 1/3 cup cucumber, cubed
• 1 meyer lemon, juiced (or 1/2 regular lemon, juiced)
• sweetener of choice, to taste (optional)

Instructions

1. Blend all the ingredients and enjoy!

Notes: Gluten-free, Dairy-free, Soy-free, Vegan, Paleo

Pryda, my cat, seemed to be really intrigued by the smoothie… Anyway, try the smoothie out and leave a comment below!

For more yummy and nutritious recipes, check out The Whole and Happy Life.

The information provided here in respect to healthy living, nutrition and diet and is intended for informational purposes only. Always seek advice from a doctor or other qualified health professionals before making any changes to your diet.