I originally shared this recipe for what I cheesily dubbed a “power smoothie” back in 2012 when I was pregnant with my youngest (who turns 8 and the end of June, and I’m fine, I’m fine, I’m FINE, thanks for asking.) I still love it, but the pictures needed a makeover and the recipe needed some slight tweaking (I cut down on the sugar and upped the fat a little to balance out the macros). If it’s too tart for you, feel free to add a little drizzle of honey or agave! Read more after the recipe!
Kate's Power Smoothie
Ingredients
- 1 cup orange juice preferably the good stuff, like the not-from-concentrate orange juice
- 2 tablespoons steel cut oats or oatmeal
- 3/4 cup 2% or full-fat plain Greek yogurt
- 1 1/2 cups frozen blueberries
- 3 cups baby spinach leaves
- 1 1/2 cups crushed ice
Instructions
- Combine ingredients in the jar of your blender and blend. You will probably need to run it through twice. Serve immediately.
- Makes 1 giant smoothie, 2 smaller smoothies, or 3 snack-sized smoothies.
Notes
nutrition information (for 2 servings using 2% greek yogurt):
Calories: 211Fat: 3
Carbs: 36
Sugar: 22
Fiber: 7
Protein: 12 This also has 211% of your Vitamin A, 116% of your Vitamin C, 37% Calcium, and 19% of your iron--not too bad for a snack! Tip: To help your blender out, you can soak the oak groats in the orange juice overnight (either in the jar of your blender or in in a glass). This will make it easier to blend and will also eliminate a lot of the grittiness from the oats.
step in the way-back machine to 2012
Yeah, I know, that’s probably the cheesiest recipe title ever written. I’m sorry. I generally have a zero-tolerance policy for cheesiness. And yet…here we are. This smoothie and I have a special relationship and like all special relationships, there’s room for a little PDA, right, schnookie wookums?
I’m also trying really, really hard not to make every single one of my posts about being pregnant because I realize that the world is not pregnant with me and I also realize the world does not revolve around my pregnancy and me (unlike my first pregnancy when it did–just ask my sister Annie.)
That said, food and pregnancy are inextricably related, at first for the aversions and then for the cravings. Throw in the fact that, at least for me, a little too much salt, sugar, or fat can send a perfectly good day to a very bad place and I spend a lot of time thinking about food (and, let’s face it, I think about food a lot to begin with).
When I’m growing babies (let’s see how many euphemisms for “pregnancy” I can come up with in a single blog post), breakfast is a tricky meal for me. I need a lot of calories, I need them fast, I need complex carbs and protein, and I hate eggs. Also, I’m dead tired and trying to get two kids up, dressed, fed, not looking like orphans, and sent to school with a decent lunch as well as trying to get a dog to do her business rather than be distracted by the mean neighborhood cats that like to taunt her.
breakfast while gestating a human
I’ve dabbled in different breakfast options here and there, but most things either leave me feeling weighed down, starving, crashing, or filled with inexplicable road rage an hour later when I’m on my way home after taking my kids to school. (Sidenote: my husband just loves gestating Kate. I do believe I’m painting a lovely picture of myself right now).
So anyway, I started making this power smoothie a few weeks ago and it has changed my life. Totally not being overly dramatic here. I’ve tinkered with proportions and I still do from time to time, depending on how I’m feeling and what I’m in the mood for. No, it’s not super low in calories or sugar (although it’s not an over-the-top dessert smoothie made with ice cream or sherbet or frozen yogurt). Yes, it has a juice base, which I realize is not super cool or hip in the smoothie-making universe, and yet…I don’t really care. It does, however, keep me satisfied, energized, and feeling really great for a good three hours (at least). Like…it makes me feel like my batteries have been charged. (Yes, I know, we’re moving back into cheesy territory).
If I make and drink a full-sized smoothie (I usually cut it down by at least 1/3), it has 6 grams of fat, 14 grams of fiber, 24 grams of protein, and is loaded with potassium, Vitamin C, folate, calcium, and iron. It has a serving of dairy, 3 vegetable servings, and 4 servings of fruit (plus some change). Not too shabby, plus it’s freaking delicious. (On the downside, a whole smoothie has quite a bit of sugar…this smoothie is designed to serve 2).
how to make it
So what’s in this magical concoction of a power smoothie? Orange juice (try and get the good stuff, like the not-from-concentrate good stuff, not necessarily the fresh-squeezed good stuff, which you are often required to pay for with your firstborn child), 2% or whole plain Greek yogurt (I love Fage; make sure it’s actual Greek yogurt with twice the protein, not Greek-style yogurt that uses thickening agents), frozen blueberries, baby spinach, crushed ice, and steel cut oats.
Steel cut oats are loaded with vitamins, minerals, fiber, and help stabilize your blood sugar. They help keep you feeling full and satisfied. Plus, you don’t have to cook them, which is always a bonus in the morning. You don’t have to use them, and they will add a grainy texture to your smoothie, but I don’t mind it–the oats are sweet and they make me feel like I’m tangibly doing something good for myself, like running on the treadmill or giving up Teen Mom (neither one of which I’ve done lately).
In the jar of your blender, add your juice, 
oats (you can actually do this the night before; soaking them will make them less grainy).
yogurt, blueberries,
spinach (you can’t even taste it, I promise), and ice.
Should we talk about this ice for a second? I hated our freezer ice machine (Louisiana water is terrible, but my freezer icemaker is unfiltered. Throw in the fact that my ice always tasted like freezer because it was exposed in the freezer and I never used my ice because it was gross). I finally got this Igloo countertop ice machine from Sam’s Club. I still have to transfer the ice to the freezer, but I can store it in a freezer bag and only make it when I need it, so old ice doesn’t sit in my freezer for weeks. I thought it was silly at the time, but it’s seriously probably my favorite kitchen appliance right now!
Anyway. Blend thoroughly–my Blendtec handles it well on the smoothie setting, but you may have to run it through twice.
This is a serious smoothie. Take it with you when you drive your kids to school. Road rage crises will be averted.
(These bamboo straws come from Grove, which is hands-down my favorite place to get natural cleaning, home, and beauty products!
Kate's Power Smoothie
Ingredients
- 1 cup orange juice preferably the good stuff, like the not-from-concentrate orange juice
- 2 tablespoons steel cut oats or oatmeal
- 3/4 cup 2% or full-fat plain Greek yogurt
- 1 1/2 cups frozen blueberries
- 3 cups baby spinach leaves
- 1 1/2 cups crushed ice
Instructions
- Combine ingredients in the jar of your blender and blend. You will probably need to run it through twice. Serve immediately.
- Makes 1 giant smoothie, 2 smaller smoothies, or 3 snack-sized smoothies.
Notes
nutrition information (for 2 servings using 2% greek yogurt):
Calories: 211Fat: 3
Carbs: 36
Sugar: 22
Fiber: 7
Protein: 12 This also has 211% of your Vitamin A, 116% of your Vitamin C, 37% Calcium, and 19% of your iron--not too bad for a snack! Tip: To help your blender out, you can soak the oak groats in the orange juice overnight (either in the jar of your blender or in in a glass). This will make it easier to blend and will also eliminate a lot of the grittiness from the oats.
Questions & Reviews
You can buy bags of crushed ice from the meat counter at any grocery store or sonic drive-in! I live on it when I’m pregnant! Also, have you ever tried adding flax to your smoothies? It’s pretty good.
Fantastic! I am so excited to try this! I, too, struggle with breakfast. Even when I’m not pregnant, I hate eggs, and cereal just makes me stuffy and grumpy. I have seen so many blogs that say ‘just experiment with different ingredients’ for a smoothie. I don’t do well with that! I appreciate an actual recipe! And for the addition of the oat groats. Never knew what they were and I bet it will help me a ton in the morning! BTW, congrats on the baby! =)
Thank you for the quick response you guys are awesome! Yes Coach’s is a brand their oats are very good cooked..not pasty and gummy 🙂 Check out their site for more info http://www.coachsoats.com And if you have time could you let me know what some of the nutritional similiarities are like fiber, protein, etc. I live in the mountains and am 1 1/2 hours from nearest grocery store. So just really anxious and curious to know 🙂 thanks much! BTW Coachs oats has 1/3 c serving: 3g fat, 160 cal, 10mg sodium, 27g carb, 4g fiber 2 soluble 2 insoluble, 0 sugars, and 6g protein
It looks like they’re steel-cut oats, so pretty much just chopped up oat groats! You should be totally fine adding those to your smoothies. 🙂
I’ve been wanting to made a serious smoothly lately and this is just the one I’m going to try. Hope my little grocery store out here – 5 hours from the nearest whole foods store — has oat groats and that my blender is up to the challenge.
Oh, and if you don’t mind, you said about 450-500 calories for the full recipe? Is that about 2 16oz servings? Just wondering…I’m done having babies and trying to lose some weight 🙂
Yeah, so it would be in the 200-250 range for 1 16-oz smoothie 🙂
I have Coach’s Oats. How similar to groats in nutrition do you think they are? And thank you for sharing all your wonderful recipes!
I really don’t know–is Coach’s a brand name?
Congrats on baby! I’m also pregnant (yes, the world does revolve around food and the “results” of eating said food, so to speak…) and constantly looking for ways to get my protein, nutrients and fiber in new and exciting ways. This smoothie looks AWESOME. Two questions – would I lose anything by cooking the oat groats (yup, very fun to say!) if I don’t want grainy-smoothie-syndrome?? And does the smoothie last in the fridge/freezer for any length of time if I can’t drink it all at once?
Looks like I should read the other comments before asking questions – I see both of mine answered. Happy Gestating, my fellow pregos! = )
I would try either soaking the oat groats in the orange juice overnight (either in the blender, or just pouring it all into the blender in the morning) or grinding them in a coffee or wheat grinder to get a super-fine consistency.
If I have leftovers and no one to drink them, I can keep it in the freezer for 2-3 hours or in the fridge for a bit longer (depending on how liquidy it ended up coming out).
Hope that helps! 🙂
Thanks for the great smoothie recipe! I have been making “green smoothies” for quite awhile now & love them. I’ve never tried the oat groats, will have to try that, but I do use ground golden flax… It has a very mild nutty flavor that blends really well into just about anything, and the health benefits are amazing! I can’t even taste it in smoothies, but it adds protein, fiber, antioxidants, omegas… Just to name a few.
can you use frozen spinach? what would be the amount adjustment?
and I too would grind my oats in a coffee grinder before putting them in the smoothie
I wouldn’t use frozen spinach; it’s kind of globby and wet. You can keep fresh spinach good a lot longer by placing it in Ziploc bags when you get home and then opening the bags as little as possible, if that helps at all! 🙂
I have used frozen spinach in smoothies and it works ok, but the flavor is stronger so you need more of the other stuff if you don’t want to taste the spinach. Really ripe bananas are good for this. Also, a paper towel in the bag with your spinach helps it stay fresh longer.
Just bought some of this yogurt. Excited to try this smoothie!