Category: Beverages


Jan
2015

Homemade Amaretto

categories: Beverages, Italian
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Make homemade amaretto, a sweet Italian almond flavored liqueur, inexpensively at home! It’s easy, and can be used for cocktails or in other recipes.Make homemade amaretto, a sweet Italian almond flavored liqueur inexpensively at home! It's easy, and can be used for cocktails or in other recipes.
I recently whipped up some homemade Amaretto. It was so easy to make, and it only took a few minutes. I wanted to have it on hand, to use in a few recipes, but didn’t want to go to the store to buy an entire bottle just for a small amount needed.

Really… why pay some serious bucks for an entire bottle, when all you need might be 1/4 cup for a recipe? So I decided to make my own! If you are familiar with Amaretto, you know that it is a sweet, almond-flavored Italian liqueur.

A lot of people use it in cocktails, but it can also be used in numerous recipes.  I adapted a recipe I’ve had for years, and ended up making a small bottle of amaretto (approx. 13-14 ounces) that will be more than enough for several recipes, plus a few more.

Scroll Down For A Printable Recipe Card At The Bottom Of The Page

Is Homemade Amaretto Easy To Make?

Homemade Amaretto is totally easy to make.  You do need to have a bottle of cheap vodka in order to make this amaretto (you need 1 cup).

I happened to have a bottle stuck away because I make my own vanilla extract, and use that as the base (but that’s a completely different recipe, right?)

So How Do You Make Homemade Amaretto?

Making the amaretto is very easy! Water, granulated sugar and brown sugar are cooked in a saucepan, on medium heat, until the sugars are dissolved.

Bring this mixture to a boil, then remove the pan from the heat. Let it cool completely.

Water, sugar and brown sugar are cooked until sugar dissolves.

Add Extracts

After the homemade amaretto has cooled completely, add the vodka, pure almond extract and vanilla extract, and stir to combine.

Vodka, almond and vanilla extracts are added to the homemade amaretto mixture in pan.

Have a clean jar ready for the homemade amaretto. Use a funnel to pour the cooled homemade amaretto liqueur into the bottle.

The homemade amaretto is transferred into a bottle by using a funnel.

Into the bottle goes the homemade amaretto. It sure smells good! In fact, even a year or two later, I occasionally open the bottle just to smell this liqueur… it smells heavenly!

Pouring the homemade amaretto into a funnel, then into the bottle.

Put a label on the bottle, add a cork or screw top to seal it, and store your homemade amaretto in a cool, dark place.

Homemade Amaretto is ready to store in cool, dark place.

If you are interested in making this recipe, you will discover you can make your own homemade amaretto for a fraction of the cost of buying it at a store. Hope you will consider giving this recipe a try.

Thanks for stopping by. Don’t forget to check out ALL my recipes in the Recipe Index, which is located at the top of the page. Have a great day!

Interested In More Recipes?

Thank you for visiting this website. I appreciate you using some of your valuable time to do so.  If you’re interested, I publish a newsletter 2 times per month (1st and 15th) with all the latest recipes, and other fun info. I would be honored to have you join our growing list of subscribers, so you never miss a great recipe!
There is a Newsletter subscription box on the top right side (or bottom) of each blog post, depending on the device you use, where you can easily submit your e-mail address (only) to be included in my mailing list.

You Can Also Find Me On Social Media:
Facebook page: The Grateful Girl Cooks!
Pinterest: The Grateful Girl Cooks!
Instagram: jbatthegratefulgirlcooks

Author's signatureRecipe inspired by: Todd Wilbur’s Top Secret Recipe’s version of DiSaronno Amaretto

↓↓ PRINTABLE RECIPE BELOW ↓↓

4.5 from 2 votes
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Homemade Amaretto
Prep Time
10 mins
Cook Time
5 mins
Total Time
15 mins
 

Make homemade amaretto, a sweet Italian almond flavored liqueur inexpensively at home! It's easy, and can be used for cocktails or in other recipes.

Category: Liqueur
Cuisine: Italian
Keyword: amaretto
Servings: 14 ounces ( 1 oz. per serving)
Calories Per Serving: 85 kcal
Author: JB @ The Grateful Girl Cooks!
Ingredients
  • 1/2 cup water
  • 1/2 cup granulated sugar
  • 1/4 cup dark brown sugar + 1 Tablespoon
  • 1 cup vodka
  • 1 Tablespoon almond extract (extract with no added oils)
  • 1 1/4 teaspoons vanilla extract
US Customary - Metric
Instructions
  1. In a medium pan, add the water, granulated sugar and brown sugar. Mix to combine. Cook over medium heat, stirring to dissolve sugars.
  2. Bring the mixture to a boil; if all the sugar has dissolved, remove the pan from the heat. Set aside and let the hot syrup cool for 10-15 minutes.
  3. To the cooled mixture, add the vodka, almond extract, and vanilla extract. Mix well, to combine.
  4. Pour amaretto into a clean bottle using a funnel. Place cork or a top on the bottle to seal it. Store in pantry or cool, dark place.
  5. Enjoy!
Recipe Notes

Note: Recipe inspired by: Todd Wilbur's Top Secret Recipe's version of DiSaronno Amaretto

Nutrition Facts
Homemade Amaretto
Amount Per Serving (1 ounce)
Calories 85
% Daily Value*
Sodium 1mg0%
Potassium 5mg0%
Carbohydrates 11g4%
Sugar 11g12%
Calcium 3mg0%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

Here’s one more to pin on your Pinterest boards!Make homemade amaretto, a sweet Italian almond flavored liqueur inexpensively at home! It's easy, and can be used for cocktails or in other recipes.

 

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Jan
2015

Raspberry Yogurt Smoothie

categories: Beverages, Breakfast
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You’re gonna love this easy to make raspberry yogurt smoothie, with raspberries, banana, and Greek yogurt, sweetened with honey. It’s cold and delicious!You're gonna love this easy to make raspberry yogurt smoothie, with raspberries, banana, and Greek yogurt, sweetened with honey. Cold and delicious!
Well, it’s the New Year and it seems like everyone I know is on a new diet. Smoothies are all the talk this time of year. I happen to love smoothies. Here’s a great recipe for making a Raspberry Yogurt Smoothie.

Scroll Down For A Printable Recipe Card At The Bottom Of The Page

They are so easy to make. Basically you throw a bunch of “good for you” ingredients in a blender,  and blend until you have a nice cold, creamy, fruity beverage! Like this raspberry yogurt smoothie, for example!

I use Greek yogurt (for added protein) in a lot of the smoothies I make. I pick fresh raspberries each summer at a local U-Pick farm, so I always seem to have raspberries hanging out in my freezer, and bananas on our kitchen counter all year long. This is a GOOD thing when I want to make a cold fruit smoothie.

Fresh picked raspberries are perfect to use for jams and smoothies!

A lot of times I will double the amount of ingredients for any smoothie I make. Any leftover smoothies can be frozen and eaten later, when it will have firmed up, similar to ice cream, but better for you. Let it thaw a bit, then dish it up!

Turn A Raspberry Yogurt Smoothie Into A Popsicle!

You can also make popsicle-style treats with smoothies. Just pour the smoothie into a popsicle mold and freeze until later. It’s a wonderful, nutritious treat!

It's easy to turn a raspberry yogurt smoothie into a popsicle!

I’m pretty sure by now everyone has their way of making a fruit smoothie. That’s awesome! This is my way… hope you’ll give it a try and enjoy a cold and delicious raspberry smoothie.

Looking For More SMOOTHIE Recipes?

You can find all of my smoothie recipes in the Recipe Index, located at the top of the page. A few favorite smoothies include:

Interested In More Recipes?

Thank you for visiting this website. I appreciate you using some of your valuable time to do so.  If you’re interested, I publish a newsletter 2 times per month (1st and 15th) with all the latest recipes, and other fun info. I would be honored to have you join our growing list of subscribers, so you never miss a great recipe!
There is a Newsletter subscription box on the top right side (or bottom) of each blog post, depending on the device you use, where you can easily submit your e-mail address (only) to be included in my mailing list.

You Can Also Find Me On Social Media:

Facebook page: The Grateful Girl Cooks!
Pinterest: The Grateful Girl Cooks!
Instagram: jbatthegratefulgirlcooks

Author's signature

↓↓ PRINTABLE RECIPE BELOW ↓↓

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Raspberry Yogurt Smoothie
Prep Time
5 mins
Cook Time
0 mins
Total Time
5 mins
 

You're gonna love this easy to make raspberry yogurt smoothie, with raspberries, banana, and Greek yogurt, sweetened with honey. Cold and delicious!

Category: Beverage
Cuisine: American
Keyword: raspberry yogurt smoothie
Servings: 1 large serving
Calories Per Serving: 383 kcal
Author: JB @ The Grateful Girl Cooks!
Ingredients
  • 1 cup raspberries (fresh or frozen)
  • 1/2 banana , sliced
  • 3/4 cup plain, fat free Greek yogurt
  • 1/4 cup low-fat milk
  • 2 Tablespoons honey
  • 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1/2 cup crushed ice
  • whipped cream (as garnish... optional!)
US Customary - Metric
Instructions
  1. Put the raspberries, banana, yogurt, milk, honey and vanilla into a blender. Mix well until creamy. Add the ice and continue blending until thick and smooth. If necessary, add a bit more ice to make smoothie the thickness you desire.

  2. If desired, garnish with a spray of whipped cream! Grab a straw, drink it up, and enjoy!

Recipe Notes

If you want, you can drink a small portion and freeze the rest. After being frozen, it will firm up similar to ice cream. Let slightly thaw, and dish it up like ice cream. I've also poured extra smoothies into popsicle holders and frozen. It makes a great popsicle-style smoothie.

Nutrition Facts
Raspberry Yogurt Smoothie
Amount Per Serving (1 g)
Calories 383 Calories from Fat 27
% Daily Value*
Fat 3g5%
Saturated Fat 1g6%
Cholesterol 14mg5%
Sodium 95mg4%
Potassium 725mg21%
Carbohydrates 72g24%
Fiber 9g38%
Sugar 56g62%
Protein 22g44%
Vitamin A 60IU1%
Vitamin C 36.5mg44%
Calcium 296mg30%
Iron 0.8mg4%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

Here’s one more to pin on your Pinterest boards!You're gonna love this easy to make raspberry yogurt smoothie, with raspberries, banana, and Greek yogurt, sweetened with honey. Cold and delicious!

 

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Jul
2014

PeachBerry Smoothie

categories: Beverages, Breakfast
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A PeachBerry Smoothie is a cold and creamy, peach, raspberry, boysenberry, almond milk and yogurt fruit drink that tastes great any time!
PeachBerry Smoothie is a cold and creamy, peach, raspberry, boysenberry, almond milk and yogurt filled fruit drink that tastes great any time of day!

Summer. Heatwave. Hot!  Making a delicious, creamy, ice cold PeachBerry Smoothie beverage to enjoy drinking and cooling down with…priceless!

I sure enjoy a cold, refreshing drink on a really hot summer day, don’t you? When you finally get tired of drinking large amounts of ice water or cold iced tea, how about making a really good tasting peachberry smoothie?

Scroll Down For A Printable Recipe Card At The Bottom Of The Page

The Search Begins… In The Refrigerator!

The quest for to create this smoothie began as most of mine do…scouring the contents of our refrigerator or fruit basket to see what we had available. During this scavenging for ingredients I came up with a couple of ripe peaches, some raspberries and some amazingly delicious boysenberries (can substitute blackberries).

These sounded like the beginning of a great peachberry smoothie to me, so I gathered the rest of the necessary ingredients and whipped a couple smoothies up for my husband and myself. Pretty tasty, if I might say so!

How To Make This PeachBerry Smoothie

Let’s hear it for the stars of this delicious fruit smoothie: Fresh peaches, raspberries and boysenberries. How can you go wrong with these sweet and delicious fruit ingredients?

Fresh peaches, raspberries and boysenberries ready for smoothie

Now add some vanilla flavored Greek yogurt and cinnamon to the fruit in the blender. This will help make the peachberry smoothie nice and creamy, plus add some protein!

Vanilla yogurt and cinnamon for smoothie added to peaches in blender

The next thing to do is add vanilla almond milk to the mix. Give it all a good blending until the mixture is smooth and creamy. Throw in some crushed ice to make it really cold and thick, and blend well until combined. Now you have an absolutely delicious, creamy peachberry smoothie!

Almond milk and yogurt added to peaches and berries in blender

Time To Enjoy A PeachBerry Smoothie!

I still think it’s weird that the color of the berries overtakes the beautiful orange color of the peaches. Oh well. This peachberry smoothie may not LOOK like it is full of fresh peaches, but it is, and it has lots of peach flavor!

Spoonful of fresh peachberry smoothie in glass with straw

This yummy peachberry smoothie is wonderfully refreshing. With the addition of Greek yogurt for a protein punch and in season fresh fruit, how can you not love this delicious drink? Hope you will give this recipe a try. I’m pretty sure you’ll love it! Have a wonderful day, and please come back again soon. 

Looking For More FUIT SMOOTHIE Recipes?

If you enjoy fruit drinks similar to this peachberry smoothie, be sure and check out my other smoothie recipes, including Blueberry, Banana and Kale, Orange Julius (copycat), Peach Crumble, Raspberry, Strawberry, and Triple Berry Banana. These and ALL of my recipes from the blog can be found in the Recipe Index, located at the top of the page.

Interested In More Recipes?

Thank you for visiting this website. I appreciate you using some of your valuable time to do so.  If you’re interested, I publish a newsletter 2 times per month (1st and 15th) with all the latest recipes, and other fun info. I would be honored to have you join our growing list of subscribers, so you never miss a great recipe! 

There is a Newsletter subscription box on the top right side (or bottom) of each blog post, depending on the device you use, where you can easily submit your e-mail address (only) to be included in my mailing list.

You Can Also Find Me On Social Media:

Facebook page: The Grateful Girl Cooks!
Pinterest: The Grateful Girl Cooks!
Instagram: jbatthegratefulgirlcooks

Author's signature

↓↓ PRINTABLE RECIPE BELOW ↓↓

0 from 0 votes
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PeachBerry Smoothie
Prep Time
5 mins
Cook Time
0 mins
Total Time
5 mins
 

PeachBerry Smoothie is a cold and creamy, peach, raspberry, boysenberry, almond milk and yogurt filled fruit drink that tastes great any time of day!

Category: Beverage, Breakfast
Cuisine: American
Keyword: peachberry smoothie
Servings: 2 servings
Calories Per Serving: 180 kcal
Author: JB @ The Grateful Girl Cooks!
Ingredients
  • 2 ripe peaches , peeled, pitted, and sliced
  • 5-6 raspberries
  • 5-6 boysenberries (or blackberries)
  • 1 cup vanilla yogurt
  • 3/4 cup vanilla almond milk
  • 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 1/2 cup crushed ice
US Customary - Metric
Instructions
  1. Peel, pit, and slice peaches.
  2. Puree first 6 ingredients in blender until well blended.
  3. Add crushed ice to blender. Blend until smooth.
  4. Serve in 2 glasses. Enjoy!
Nutrition Facts
PeachBerry Smoothie
Amount Per Serving (1 serving)
Calories 180 Calories from Fat 27
% Daily Value*
Fat 3g5%
Saturated Fat 1g6%
Cholesterol 6mg2%
Sodium 202mg9%
Potassium 553mg16%
Carbohydrates 32g11%
Fiber 3g13%
Sugar 29g32%
Protein 7g14%
Vitamin A 540IU11%
Vitamin C 12.2mg15%
Calcium 331mg33%
Iron 0.4mg2%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

Here’s one more to pin on your Pinterest boards!PeachBerry Smoothie is a cold and creamy, peach, raspberry, boysenberry, almond milk and yogurt filled fruit drink that tastes great any time of day!

 

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Jul
2014

Watermelon, Lime & Mint Agua Fresca

categories: Beverages
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Watermelon, Lime and Mint Agua Fresca is an all natural, flavor-filled, family friendly beverage sure to refresh those you love on a hot summer day!Watermelon, Lime and Mint Agua Fresca is an all natural, flavor-filled, family friendly beverage sure to refresh those you love on a hot summer day!

Temps are in the 90’s in the Pacific Northwest this week…so here’s a fantastic, delicious and healthy beverage to guzzle on a hot, summer day… Watermelon, Lime & Mint Agua Fresca!

This refreshing, fruity, delicious drink is perfect on a hot day! It only takes 4 ingredients (including water) to make an entire pitcher full! Yum. This refreshing drink is colorful and all natural, too! 

Lucky for me, we had a huge watermelon in the refrigerator begging to be eaten, a lime laying on the counter, and I grow fresh mint in our garden. How could I NOT make this on a blazing hot day?

The watermelon agua fresca recipe is super easy…and I’m telling you, it’s wonderful! I found the recipe on Pinterest, and am sure I will be making it many times this summer!

Scroll Down For A Printable Recipe Card At The Bottom Of The Page

Watermelon used to make agua fresca!

How To Make Watermelon Agua Fresca

First you blend up the watermelon, a small bit of water, and lime juice, then you “muddle” (smash) some fresh peppermint into the watermelon juice. This releases the flavor of the mint.

The next thing you will need to do is strain out the peppermint leaves (optional- I did), and serve the drink over crushed ice! That’s it! Easy peasy and yummy! Here’s some pics and the detailed “how-to’s”:

Puree The Watermelon

Blend up the watermelon chunks with lime juice and water. You can do this step using a food processor or a blender. 

Strain the watermelon juice once blended to remove any wayward seeds that are hiding away in the puree.

Watermelon chunks are blended with lime juice and water into puree

Muddle The Mint Leaves For Flavor

Add fresh mint leaves to a small portion of the watermelon juice in a small container. I use a measuring cup for this.

I don’t think you will even break into a hard sweat doing this step… just sayin’.

Fresh mint leaves are added to a small amount of watermelon puree

Muddle or smash the leaves into the juice. I improvised and used the end of a wooden spoon to grind the leaves into the bottom of the cup.

The more you “smash” the leaves up, the more mint flavor will be released into the watermelon juice. That’s a GOOD thing!

Mint leaves are "muddled" into watermelon puree to release flavor

Time For Some Watermelon Agua Fresca!

Strain out the peppermint leaves from the juice (if desired). I have found I enjoy the watermelon agua fresca more if I strain out the crushed peppermint leaves.

All that said, to strain out the leaves or leave them in is ultimately YOUR CHOICE.

Pour the watermelon agua fresca over a cup filled with crushed ice. Garnish each drink with a tiny sprig of fresh peppermint leaves to make it look colorful and cute!

Watermelon agua fresca served over ice with fresh mint sprig

Now all you have to do is sit back, take a sip of this delicious watermelon agua fresca, and enjoy!

Watermelon Lime Mint Agua Fresca is ready to serve!

Hope you enjoy this cold, delicious and refreshing drink on a HOT day! It really is delicious and very refreshing!

Thanks for stopping by, and I hope you’ll come back soon for more family-friendly recipes. Take care, may God bless you, and have a GREAT day!

Looking For More COLD BEVERAGE Recipes?

You can find ALL of my recipes in the Recipe Index, which is located at the top of the page. I have other cold beverage recipes for you to enjoy, including:

Want More Recipes? Get My FREE Newsletter!

I publish a newsletter 2 times per month (1st and 15th) with lots of recipes, tips, etc..
Would you like to join our growing list of subscribers?

There is a Newsletter subscription box on the top right (or bottom) of each blog post, depending on the device you use.
You can submit your e-mail address there, to be added to my mailing list.

Find Me On Social Media:

Facebook page: The Grateful Girl Cooks!
Pinterest: The Grateful Girl Cooks!
Instagram: jbatthegratefulgirlcooks

Author's signatureRecipe Source: Jennifer Chong at: http://blog.jchongstudio.com/2014/05/watermelon-lime-mint-agua-fresca.html

↓↓ PRINTABLE RECIPE BELOW ↓↓

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Watermelon, Lime and Mint Agua Fresca
Prep Time
5 mins
Cook Time
0 mins
Total Time
5 mins
 

Watermelon, Lime and Mint Agua Fresca is an all natural, flavor-filled, family friendly beverage sure to refresh those you love on a hot summer day!

Category: Beverage
Cuisine: American
Keyword: watermelon agua fresca
Servings: 5 servings
Calories Per Serving: 56 kcal
Author: JB @ The Grateful Girl Cooks!
Ingredients
  • 5 cups watermelon , cut into chunks
  • 1/2 cup water
  • 1/2 cup fresh mint leaves
  • juice from 2 limes
US Customary - Metric
Instructions
  1. Place the watermelon chunks, water and lime juice in a blender. Blend until the mixture is smooth. Strain the watermelon puree into a pitcher. (straining helps to remove any wayward seeds).
  2. Remove about 1/2 cup of the watermelon puree and place it in a measuring cup. Add the mint leaves.
  3. With a wooden spoon "muddle" the juice and the mint leaves together to release flavor. Basically just smash the leaves (or grind them into the bottom of the cup) over and over. Strain the leaves out of the puree when done (optional - I did), and pour the puree back into the pitcher.
  4. Mix the juice well to combine, and serve over crushed ice. Garnish with a mint leaf, if desired.
  5. Enjoy!
Nutrition Facts
Watermelon, Lime and Mint Agua Fresca
Amount Per Serving (1 serving)
Calories 56
% Daily Value*
Sodium 4mg0%
Potassium 223mg6%
Carbohydrates 14g5%
Fiber 1g4%
Sugar 9g10%
Protein 1g2%
Vitamin A 1070IU21%
Vitamin C 21.5mg26%
Calcium 30mg3%
Iron 0.8mg4%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

Here’s one more to pin on your Pinterest boards!Watermelon, Lime and Mint Agua Fresca is an all natural, flavor-filled, family friendly beverage sure to refresh those you love on a hot summer day!

 

 

 

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Jun
2014

Strawberry Smoothie

categories: Beverages, Breakfast
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It’s EASY to make a homemade strawberry smoothie, with Greek yogurt, honey, fresh strawberries and banana! Cold, thick and creamy, you’ll enjoy this drink!It's EASY to make a homemade strawberry smoothie, with Greek yogurt, honey, fresh strawberries and banana! Cold, thick and creamy, you'll enjoy this drink!
It’s that time of year- yes, it’s strawberry season! Who wants a strawberry smoothie? I do, I do! Doesn’t that sound delicious? Well it does to me!

It gets pretty exciting here when the amazingly wonderful Hood Strawberries come into season in the great Pacific Northwest! People head out to the local U-Pick farms to grab big bucketfuls of these local delicious and sweet Oregon strawberries!

I love to go pick extra strawberries at a nearby U-Pick farm, to supplement what the small strawberry beds in my backyard garden produce each year. There’s just something about a creamy, cold morning smoothie, bursting with great strawberry flavor, that really gets me excited! Here’s a picture I took last year while out on a morning strawberry picking “mission”.

Picking fresh strawberries is a fun part of making a strawberry smoothie!
Whether you go pick them yourself, or you grow them in your own yard, OR you buy them from your local grocer or at a Farmer’s Market, a tasty strawberry smoothie is a GOOD thing!

Why Not Make A Delicious Strawberry Smoothie for Breakfast?

I love to have a strawberry smoothie for breakfast, especially as the weather warms up! They are also a great afternoon cold, healthy, and filling drink! In most of my smoothies, I use plain Greek yogurt, because I like the extra protein I receive from adding it to the drink.

It also helps to grow our strawberries in our little raised bed garden!  That way, I always have them fresh picked or flash-frozen to make a quick strawberry smoothie, year round!

Fresh strawberries growing in our backyard garden can be used to make a strawberry smoothie!A bucket of fresh strawberries can be used to make more than one strawberry smoothie!
So, no matter how you get your fresh berries for your smoothies, I hope you will give this simple, delicious strawberry smoothie a try. Have a great day. Cheers, and bottoms up!

Looking For More SMOOTHIE Recipes?

You can find all of my recipes in the Recipe Index, located at the top of the page. I have quite a few smoothie recipes, including:

Interested In More Recipes?

Thank you for visiting this website. I appreciate you using some of your valuable time to do so.  If you’re interested, I publish a newsletter 2 times per month (1st and 15th) with all the latest recipes, and other fun info. I would be honored to have you join our growing list of subscribers, so you never miss a great recipe!
There is a Newsletter subscription box on the top right side (or bottom) of each blog post, depending on the device you use, where you can easily submit your e-mail address (only) to be included in my mailing list.

You Can Also Find Me On Social Media:

Facebook page: The Grateful Girl Cooks!
Pinterest: The Grateful Girl Cooks!
Instagram: jbatthegratefulgirlcooks

Author's signature

↓↓ PRINTABLE RECIPE BELOW ↓↓

0 from 0 votes
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Strawberry Smoothie
Prep Time
5 mins
Cook Time
0 mins
Total Time
5 mins
 
It's EASY to make a homemade strawberry smoothie, with Greek yogurt, honey, fresh strawberries and banana! Cold, thick and creamy, you'll enjoy this drink!
Category: Beverage, Breakfast
Cuisine: American
Keyword: strawberry smoothie
Servings: 2 large servings (or 4 small)
Calories Per Serving: 157 kcal
Author: JB @ The Grateful Girl Cooks!
Ingredients
  • 10 large strawberries , sliced
  • 1/2 large banana , sliced
  • 3/4 cup plain Greek yogurt
  • 1/4 cup vanilla almond milk (can use regular milk if desired)
  • 2 Tablespoons honey
  • 2 handfuls of crushed ice
US Customary - Metric
Instructions
  1. Place all ingredients into a blender and blend for a couple of minutes until ice and all ingredients have been fully incorporated, and the mixture is smooth. If you want the smoothie to be even thicker, add additional crushed ice.
  2. Pour into 2 large glasses and serve!
  3. Enjoy!
Recipe Notes

Recipe Source: my head trying to think of new ways to use my strawberries!

Nutrition Facts
Strawberry Smoothie
Amount Per Serving (1 serving)
Calories 157
% Daily Value*
Cholesterol 3mg1%
Sodium 69mg3%
Potassium 303mg9%
Carbohydrates 31g10%
Fiber 1g4%
Sugar 26g29%
Protein 8g16%
Vitamin C 37.9mg46%
Calcium 130mg13%
Iron 0.3mg2%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

Here’s one more to pin on your Pinterest boards!It's EASY to make a homemade strawberry smoothie, with Greek yogurt, honey, fresh strawberries and banana! Cold, thick and creamy, you'll enjoy this drink!

 

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May
2014

Copycat Mocha Frappucino

categories: Beverages, Copycat Recipes
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Make your own version of a famous coffeehouse’s cold, creamy mocha beverage, with this simple and delicious Copycat Mocha Frappucino recipe!Make your own copycat version of a famous coffeehouse's cold, creamy mocha beverage, with this simple and delicious recipe!

I own five or six books by author Todd Wilbur in his series called “Top Secret Recipes”. They are such fun books in which to find some great “copycat” recipes. 

It’s a great way to fix a “very close to the original” (but for a fraction of the price) clone of a favorite food at home. This copycat mocha frappucino is one of those recipes found on his website.

Scroll Down For A Printable Recipe Card At The Bottom Of The Page

Why Not Make A Copycat Mocha Frappucino At Home?

Made popular by the famous coffee chain that seems to be on every corner, these chilled coffee beverages (the bottled version you find in grocery stores) can really add up ($$) if you purchase them often.

Well, now you can make a copycat mocha frappucino at home, so you can grab one on the way out the door without having to make an extra stop on the way to work or a kid’s baseball game (and for a fraction of the cost!)

Bottles are filled with copycat mocha frappucino, and are ready to refrigerate, then drink!

We don’t buy these very often at all, but when we do, this is my favorite. So naturally, I was curious to try making these at home. This is the copycat recipe for the bottled version you find in the stores.

They are very easy to make (and if helps if you happen to have a few extra bottles left over to package this in…I saved a few for this very purpose!)

Making This Coffee Drink

The copycat recipe calls for Natural Fruit Pectin (don’t let that scare you off), which is a fruit thickener, commonly used when making jam. It actually acts as a thickening agent in this recipe. I used it, but the original author of the recipe states that you don’t have to use it, if you don’t care about duplicating the texture.

Fruit pectin is used to make a copycat mocha frappucino.

The recipe also calls for espresso, but you can “fake it” with the easy to follow tip (found in the notes section of the recipe) and make your own. This is what I did, using the very easy instructions.

The recipe, as written, makes 24 ounces, but can easily be doubled. Hope you enjoy this cold, creamy, mocha coffee beverage (how’s that for a description)!

Thank you for stopping by. I hope you have the opportunity to make a delicious copycat mocha frappucino for yourself or for someone you love. Have a great day, and come back soon.

Looking For More BEVERAGE Recipes?

You can find all of my recipes in the Recipe Index, located at the top of the page. I have a nice variety of beverage recipes, including:

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Author's signatureOriginal Recipe Source: http://www.topsecretrecipes.com/Starbucks-Frappuccino-Bottled-Version-Copycat-Recipe.html

↓↓ PRINTABLE RECIPE BELOW ↓↓

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Copycat Mocha Frappucino
Prep Time
10 mins
Cook Time
0 mins
Total Time
10 mins
 

Make your own copycat version of a famous coffeehouse's cold, creamy mocha beverage, with this simple and delicious recipe!

Category: Beverage
Cuisine: American
Keyword: copycat mocha frappucino
Servings: 3 (makes 24 ounces total)
Calories Per Serving: 163 kcal
Author: JB @ The Grateful Girl Cooks!
Ingredients
  • 1/2 cup fresh espresso (see Notes below for how to create your own)
  • 2 1/2 cups lo-fat milk (2 percent)
  • 1/4 cup granulated sugar
  • 1 Tablespoon dry pectin
  • 1/4 teaspoon cocoa powder
US Customary - Metric
Instructions

  1. Make the espresso. In a large bowl add the sugar, dry pectin and cocoa powder to the hot espresso and stir or whisk well until completely incorporated. Chill mixture.

  2. When espresso mixture is completely chilled, add the milk; stir until combined.
  3. Pour mixture into a serving pitcher or individual bottles, and refrigerate. Serve cold.
Recipe Notes

**How to make copycat espresso to use in this recipe**
Use 1/3 cup ground coffee and 1 cup of water in your drip coffee maker. Brew this once, then run it through again, using the same grounds. (this will make approx. 1/2 cup espresso needed). **Run a pot of water through coffeemaker when done, to clean machine.

NOTE: Original Recipe Source: http://www.topsecretrecipes.com/Starbucks-Frappuccino-Bottled-Version-Copycat-Recipe.html

Nutrition Facts
Copycat Mocha Frappucino
Amount Per Serving (1 (8 oz. portion))
Calories 163 Calories from Fat 9
% Daily Value*
Fat 1g2%
Saturated Fat 1g6%
Cholesterol 9mg3%
Sodium 97mg4%
Potassium 295mg8%
Carbohydrates 31g10%
Sugar 26g29%
Protein 6g12%
Vitamin A 385IU8%
Calcium 246mg25%
Iron 0.1mg1%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

Here’s one more to pin on your Pinterest boards!Make your own copycat version of a famous coffeehouse's cold, creamy mocha beverage, with this simple and delicious recipe!

 

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Apr
2014

Blueberry Banana Kale Smoothie

categories: Beverages, Breakfast
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A healthy blueberry banana kale smoothie, with strawberries, almond milk and flaxseed is a delicious cold beverage treat for breakfast or any time of day!A healthy blueberry banana kale smoothie, with strawberries, almond milk and flaxseed is a delicious cold beverage treat for breakfast or any time of day!

Sometimes my husband and I don’t want a big breakfast. We simply want a cold, fruit and veggie smoothie, with lots of healthy fruits and veggies in it, like blueberries, bananas and kale! That’s how we both felt a couple mornings ago. We had gone out to eat the evening before and were still feeling rather full. We wanted something light and healthy for our breakfast.

After putting on our thinking caps (they’re really quite lovely!), we decided to make a healthy smoothie for each of us, full of fruits and veggies. What a great way to start our day…(drinking) something good for us, like this blueberry banana kale smoothie!

Scroll down For A Printable Recipe Card At The bottom Of The Page

Fresh Kale In Our Garden!

I went on a pillaging mission in our kitchen. The first thing I did was grab a couple frozen bananas (which I keep year round in our freezer), some frozen blueberries (leftover from my blueberry picking spree last summer), and a few strawberries.

Then I decided we needed something of the veggie variety to throw into the old blender to increase the healthy aspect of our smoothies. You can translate that to mean – I wondered how to “sneak” in a veggie before my husband knew what hit him.

Out into our back yard I went, and picked a handful of kale leaves from our garden (convenient, huh?). I carried the kale back into the house and had it blended the blueberry banana KALE smoothie before my husband had a chance to see it and opt out. Pretty sneaky, right?

Blueberry, Banana And Kale Smoothie / The Grateful Girl Cooks!

Okay – So How Do You Make A Blueberry Banana Kale Smoothie?

After washing the kale and draining it, throw all the ingredients into a handy dandy blender and “blend away”. Truthfully, that’s it! You might have to rip some of the kale leaves away from the stems before adding, but this whole drink is ready in a couple minutes! Before I even knew it, we had 2 perfectly purple, delicious (and dare I say healthy?) breakfast smoothies. The blueberry banana kale smoothie actually tastes great, as well!
 
Guess what? *You (or your family) will never know the “super food” kale is in there…trust me.*  It’s a super cool way of “sneaking” vegetables into a delicious drink This blueberry banana kale smoothie is lip smackin’ good!
 

Blueberry, Banana And Kale Smoothie / The Grateful Girl Cooks!

The blueberry banana kale smoothie is cold, creamy, bursting with flavor AND it’s good for you! You don’t have to confess to anyone that there’s kale in there! Shhh… let’s just keep this our little secret, ok? I hope you will consider giving this fruit (and veggie) smoothie “recipe” a try. I think you’ll like it! I’ve already made these smoothies two times this week…Yum!

Thanks for stopping by. I hope you have a great day, and sincerely want to invite you to come back again soon, for more delicious family-friendly recipes.

Looking For More SMOOTHIE Recipes?

You can find all my recipes in the Recipe Index, located at the top of the page. You might enjoy a few of our favorite smoothie recipes which include:

Interested In More Recipes?

Thank you for visiting this website. I appreciate you using some of your valuable time to do so.  If you’re interested, I publish a newsletter 2 times per month (1st and 15th) with all the latest recipes, and other fun info. I would be honored to have you join our growing list of subscribers, so you never miss a great recipe!
There is a Newsletter subscription box on the top right side (or bottom) of each blog post, depending on the device you use, where you can easily submit your e-mail address (only) to be included in my mailing list.

You Can Also Find Me On Social Media:

Facebook page: The Grateful Girl Cooks!
Pinterest: The Grateful Girl Cooks!
Instagram: jbatthegratefulgirlcooks

Blueberry, Banana And Kale Smoothie / The Grateful Girl Cooks!

0 from 0 votes
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Blueberry, Banana, and Kale Smoothie
Prep Time
5 mins
Cook Time
0 mins
Total Time
5 mins
 
A healthy blueberry banana kale smoothie, with strawberries, almond milk and flaxseed is a delicious cold beverage treat for breakfast or any time of day!
Category: Beverages, Breakfast
Cuisine: American
Keyword: blueberry banana kale smoothie
Servings: 2
Calories Per Serving: 223 kcal
Author: JB @ The Grateful Girl Cooks!
Ingredients
  • 1 1/4 cups vanilla almond milk (I've also substituted orange juice for this...quite good!)
  • 2 frozen ripe bananas , (if bananas frozen, you won't need ice. If room temp, add some crushed ice)
  • 1 cup blueberries (fresh or frozen)
  • 1 cup kale , chopped (and large stems removed)
  • 6 strawberries
  • 1 Tablespoon flax seed (this is great fiber...helps fill you up...but is optional)
US Customary - Metric
Instructions
  1. Place the almond milk, bananas, and blueberries in the blender. (If the bananas are not frozen, add a small handful of crushed ice to the mixer).
  2. Blend until smooth.
  3. Add remaining ingredients; blend well. If it is too thick, add a bit more almond milk...you really can't hurt these smoothies! Serve and ENJOY!
Nutrition Facts
Blueberry, Banana, and Kale Smoothie
Amount Per Serving (1 serving)
Calories 223 Calories from Fat 45
% Daily Value*
Fat 5g8%
Sodium 219mg10%
Potassium 739mg21%
Carbohydrates 45g15%
Fiber 7g29%
Sugar 23g26%
Protein 5g10%
Vitamin A 3460IU69%
Vitamin C 78.8mg96%
Calcium 262mg26%
Iron 1.4mg8%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

Here’s one more to pin on your Pinterest boards!A healthy blueberry banana kale smoothie, with strawberries, almond milk and flaxseed is a delicious cold beverage treat for breakfast or any time of day!

 

Save