the art of blending!

So I just discovered the art of blending to make smoothies and soy milkshakes for Operation Must Gain Weight Immediately since I can't seem to be successful in this no matter what I do. Does anyone have a favorite smoothie/milkshake recipe/idea for weight gain that they might want to share? I've already got the protein powder. I'm up for anything delicious :) So far I've mixed lactaid milk with some soy ice cream cookie bars. Thanks and happy gaining to all!

Me too! :) I forced my mom to buy a blender last month, and since then it's been at least one smoothie a day... every day. Heh. Except mine are low-calorie/low fat, because I'm not trying to gain weight.

You really can mix any combination of ice cream/milk/yogurt + fruits + sugar and sometimes fruit juice. Virtually any fruit will work. ;) Try googling "smoothies" or "milkshakes" for recipes, or go to allrecipes.com or recipezaar.com for some good yummy ones.

Happy blending!

avocados or bananas make it really creamy! Plus avocados add tons of calories, and mixed with fruit, I promise it tastes really good :) I also put protein powder and soymilk or juice and yogurt. I also like to add honey to everything as a sweetener, the calories really add up that way and you don't notice it. I've also seen a lot of smoothie recipes with a little coconut oil in it for fat but I don't know where to get that.

Keep up the good work, I know you'll make it to Greece!

haha i am a master at blending :P

for smoothies, any fruit combosare good but kiwi tastes awful!!goes bitter for some reason. also adding yogurt is good and bumps up the cals

as for shakes, mine always start with a base of milk and a banana...from there it can go anywhere :) sweet cereals are good (like honey cheerios), teddy grahams are yummy, pb is a definite fave., granola bars can work well too!! really just stick whatever you fancy in...its hard tomake it taste bad :P

xxx

I used to work at a smoothie shop two summers ago.

If you like your smoothies thicker, freeze at least one of your fruits and cut it up (as to not kill your blender). If you like a runnier texture, just use fresh fruits, ice, and any liquid of your choice (water with protein powerder, milk, juice, etc.).

Some good combos are: peach, mango, and vanilla ice cream/yogurt/protein powder; banana, strawberry, and peanut butter (melted dark chocolate optional); raspberries, blueberries, and vanilla icecream/yogurt/protein powder; canned pumpkin, cinnamon and pumpkin pie spice/nutmeg, and vanilla ice cream/yogurt/protein powder; coffee, banana, and vanilla OR chocolate ice cream/yogurt/protein powder tastes just like an iced coffee, mmm.

Nuts, nut butters, flax seed, and granola/dry oatmeal are other awesome ingredients to add. :)

Thank you so much, everyone! I'm adding this all to a list right now!!

Muttlover ... Can you give recipe amounts on the pumpkin smoothie idea?

Also to toridl ... have you checked out PB2, a powdered peanut "butter" that doesn't have the fat of regular peanut butter but could be scooped (like protein powder) into a smoothie for taste and extra nutrition but without the mess or goo of jar PB.

I've had a difficult time getting used to the idea of protein powder because most brands, one scoop is only 9 grams of protein which is only one serving of protein in my meal plan. Why do I need to add it so I can make a "protein shake" when I can make a tuna sandwich with a lot more protein?

My sisters used to make smoothies a lot and they would just basically dump in any fruit/ice cream/yougurt/juice/soy milk we had.

my favs are pina colada smoothies-protein powder (vanilla) canned or fresh pineapple, tropical fruit juice, canned coconut milk blend with ice YUM

also choc pb or vanilla pb-i use choc or vanilla protein powder, plenty of pb-i chose real natural pb over pb2 cause i need the good fats :) -a frozen banana, soy or regular milk, a dash of cinnamon and a dash of vanilla extract with ice and its so amazing

Bryers lactose free ice cream in vanilla is VERY good. also what about ovaltine? that has some nutrition (i can't have this anymore because i can't have sugar) but I remember making those with Bryers lactose free, soy milk (chocolate flavor or vanilla ) ovalitine, banana and peanutbutter and wheat germ it was excellent! I wish I could have those now, unfortunatly my medical condition doesn't let me have sugar so most of what i have is pretty darn bland :-( but i hope you can try it and that it works for you!

 

as for a protein powder..the one I used to take (that I was allergice too!!) was by Kashi. I think it's lactose free..it kinda tasted like lucky charms and had good nutrition..added a nice taste. give it a try.

 

hope that helps,

Tiff :-)

for the weight gaining aspect, peanut butter (i personally loveeee almond butter) would be perfect to up the calories.

definitely bananas, pinapple, or coconut- all higher calorie fruits.

and if you're going to do a milkshake, you for sure have to try ben and jerry's half baked. mmmmm