Cucumber Blueberry Smoothie

Yes, you read that right -- cucumber.  I had a little over half of a cucumber in the fridge that needed to be used... and since I didn't have enough other veggies to make a salad, I was looking for other things to do with it.  I decided to search and see if anyone had put a cucumber into a smoothie (because I kind of wanted a smoothie for breakfast...) and lo and behold, people had!

This smoothie was really light and refreshing.  It did taste like cucumber... but with a sweeter coolness than just a cucumber in a salad.  The blueberries were definitely in the background of this smoothie but they added a great purple color (and a lot of healthy nutrients!).  Overall, I think this was less of a milkshake-y smoothie and more like a health drink.  But still really delicious.  I will certainly be trying cucumber in my smoothies again -- perhaps with some honeydew or apple or something.  :)

One of the things I love best about smoothies is how easy they are.  Just dump things in a blender, blend, drink.  Perfect!  They're really forgiving too... maybe one smoothie will need a little extra liquid to get the right consistency but there are really endless combinations of flavors that you can create just by altering the ratios of ingredients.  I often put some wheat germ or oatmeal into my smoothies to add some extra bulk... but this one was just fruit/veggies, yogurt, milk, and some sweetener.  Lots of people also put some ice or juice in their smoothies (in place of the dairy) so that's a great way to alter the recipe too.

This recipe made 3 servings of smoothie.  Jeremy and I each had one and there is one sitting in the fridge (although he'll probably drink that as a second breakfast...).  I'm usually ok on one glass of smoothie to hold me until lunch.  Jeremy, not so much.  But these are a great way to get a healthy start to the day and get going on the fruit and veggie servings.

 

Recipe:
1 c. seeded and peeled cucumber, diced
1 c. frozen blueberries
1/2 c. plain greek yogurt
1 c. skim milk
1-2 tbs. agave syrup (depending on how sweet you want your smoothie)
pinch of salt (optional, just to enhance the flavors)

1. Put all the ingredients in a blender.
2. Blend until smooth.
3. Enjoy. :)