I don’t know about you guys, but I find it hard to eat enough fruit in the winter. Most of my go-to favorites aren’t in season, and even if I were to spend a ton of money at the store to buy them out of season, they don’t usually taste very good anyway. Now, don’t get me wrong, I love that citrus fruits abound right now but I’m much more likely to bake with them than choose them as snacks π
So, every winter, I turn to smoothies to help me make sure I’m getting the nutrients I need. They’re so quick and easy, and the possibilities for different flavor combinations are endless. My freezer is full of frozen fruit, especially lots of berries, so I can whip up any number of smoothies at a moment’s notice. I mostly eat them for breakfast, but some nights they even become dessert.
This banana-mango smoothie is one of the newest recipes I’ve added to my rotation. It’s so thick and creamy, and uses ingredients I almost always have on hand. Banana is definitely the dominant flavor, with the mango mostly adding sweetness – you could probably even skip the honey in the recipe if you wanted and it’d still be great. The smoothie includes nonfat dry milk powder, which adds extra calcium, but it’s optional so no worries if you don’t keep it on hand. You can also make this the night before and stick it in the refrigerator for a super quick breakfast on the go the next morning – gotta love that!
Banana-Mango Smoothie
from Cooking Light, March 2001
{Note: I’m sure you could just sub frozen mango for fresh here to make life easier but it’s been hard to find at my grocery store lately.}
1 cup cubed peeled ripe mango (about 1 mango)
3/4 cup sliced ripe banana (about 1 medium)
2/3 cup milk (I used 1%)
1 tablespoon nonfat dry milk powder (optional)
1 teaspoon honey
1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
Spread the mango in a single layer on a baking sheet and pop in the freezer until frozen, about 1 hour. Combine the frozen mango, banana, milk, dry milk powder, honey, and vanilla in your blender. Press the top on tightly then process for about 1 minute, or until smooth. Pour into glasses and garnish with banana slices or more mango, if desired. Serve!
Serves 2
I made mango smoothies in the summer when the yellow mango is in season. It’s sweeter so I like it better and there’s less need for another sweetener. I always include frozen bananas. Yum. π
What a perfect, healthy start to any morning! I love mango, mostly when paired with sticky rice, and this will encourage me to try it in smoothies. Yum!
I have a smoothie almost every morning, and banana mango is my favorite! This recipe looks fabulous!
Love this! Looks like a perfect post-workout snack!
I love this flavor combo. I have never thought to use dry milk powder in smoothies but I do like it in baking, I bet it’s great in this!
Oh I love this! I also tend to eat a lot more fruit during the summer. Smoothies are such a smart way to get more fruit, love it! Plus, the banana/mango combo is awesome. Now I want one of these in the morning π
You need to spend more time in the freezer section! Frozen fruit is my savior in the winter- amazing smoothies, cakes, pies, etc. They freeze fruit at peak freshness so it’s really good. I love this smoothie!
I definitely survive more on bananas and apples in the winter but I still plurge on berries and hope for the best. I usually have pretty good luck, but the blueberry are kind of bland that I got recently.
@Jennifer – I hear you, I do buy frozen berries for baking and smoothies in the winter, but I really miss fresh berries for snacking π
I love smoothies, they are a great way to get more fruit. I have never used mango before though, sounds amazing!
I need to start doing smoothies. I never eat breakfast, but think I could come around to the idea. Always have bananas and yogurt too – I don’t know what I’ve been waiting for!