Kale, Peach, Watermelon Smoothie

Kale is one of those amazing garden plants. You can plant it just about anywhere and you’ll get something that stands up big and strong. I’m sure it’s got ‘weed’ in its ancestral tree somewhere. The plants that came up in my garden this year took a while to come on, but when they did, a hand full of leaves really was all that it took.

But look at that, I’m writing as if the plants are dead and gone. Far from it! I just pick the bottom leaves and let the plant keep growing. They are all three feet tall now and still pumping out leaves. I fully expect that these will be the last greens that I get out of the garden this fall. Next year, I’m going to put in MORE and get enough to make kale chips. But that’s a posting for another day.

Recipe:

  • 2 peaches
  • Juice of 1 lemon (no seeds)
  • 1 inch wide slice of watermelon
  • 8 to 10 Kale leaves
  • 1 probiotic (optional)

I don’t like to add lemon seeds to my smoothies so I cut them in half and squeeze them over a bowl. Once I’ve extracted all the juice, I remove the seeds with a spoon before dumping the juice into the blender. It seems that life is just easier that way. 

Notice that the watermelon has nearly filled the blender. I spun the fruit for a few seconds before removing the top to add the kale. When adding the kale, I pick off the leaf and leave being most of the steam. But I’m willing to bet that the stem is where the bulk of the metals are, for it’s a pretty stiff stem and, for some reason, it reminds me of bone.

In sixty seconds, the blend makes easy work of this chewing concoction. The lemon juice if a must here. It counters the bitters in the kale with the acids from the citrus. Once these two balance each other out, it’s just a matter of adding a little sweetener – dates!

I’m sure I’ll have more of these come this fall when the weather really turns cold. If I had a little more gardening room, I’d grow a plant for you two.