Veggie Smoothie

[ArtGirl]

I know, a "veggie" smoothie sounds yukky. Earlier this year I disolated my jaw and even after it was put back in place it took a week before the pain level reduced enough to chew my food. So, EVERYTHING went into the blender. Even my salad.

Well, I found that I really liked the blended salad (I added vinegar and oil just like I would have done before blending it). Then I started blending together a mixture of raw vegetables (without the vinegar and oil) and found that not only did these things taste good but set very well on my stomach. Probably because the fiber in the vegetables was so well cut up that digestion was made easier.

Now I put about a cup worth of chopped vegetables (whatever I have on hand) in the blender and add some water, turn it on and keep adding water until the mixture is blending well. I turn up the speed to "liquify" and let it run for a while (although, there is usualy some bits and pieces that don't get blended, but that little bit of crunch is nice.)

Some of my blends are (I usually put onion in everything as I really like onion):

zucchini, carrots, cucumber

cucumber, tomato, bell peppers

lettuce, carrot, celery, onion

broccoli, tomato, carrots

You can make it with any combination. Tomatoes, carrots and cucumber are naturally sweet and I don't add any sweetner to these, but with some of the other less sweet vegetables I'll add some stevia.

I will warn you, though, that (this is color-theory 101) red and green make gray. So, some of these combinations can be sort of brown. And using red cabbage results in a sort of purple-gray mixtuer.

Another thing I do with blended vegetables is heat it up for a "creamed" soup. I like butternut squash very well this way (I add coconut milk to it--yumm). Also, "cream" of cauliflour soup is great (I add potato buds to this).

So, give this a try sometime. It is my all-time favorite BREAKFAST! Really. For some reason the raw vegetables stay with me as long or longer than eggs.

[jenvan]

Interesting...I love veggie creamed soups. I should try it as a smoothie sometime... I'll try (almost) anything once

[eKatherine]

Gazpacho!

[ArtGirl]

Gazpacho!

I've never heard of Gazpacho. So I did a Google search. Yes, my smoothies are a lot like this cold vegetable soup. I found a recipe for one from http://teriskitchen.com/soups/gazpacho.html, complete with the vinegar and oil.

Anybody know if canned tomatoes and tomato juice are gluten-free? One could sub apple-cidar vinegar.

[miles2go]

Oh, that is sooo right up my alley. Thanks, I can't wait to try it!

I can my own tomatoes, so may not be the best reference for this, but I'm pretty sure that almost all canned tomatoes are gluten-free. Just give a quick double check of the ingredients before you buy!

[eKatherine]

I had a white gazpacho containing, among other things, garlic, oil, blanched almonds, and bread (sigh), and garnished with white grapes. I guess somebody could sub a white rice bread for the wheat bread.

Ajo blanco con uvas de Malaga

1/2 pound stale white bread, without crusts

2 garlic cloves, peeled

pinch of salt

2-3 tablespoons olive oil

2 tablespoons sherry vinegar or white wine vinegar

1-1/2 cups freshly ground almonds (blanched)

2-1/2 cups ice water

1/2 pound white grapes, seedless or seeds removed

Pour water over the bread and squeeze it out. Crumble and put in the blender with garlic, salt and olive oil. Blend until smooth, adding water as necessary to keep the blender going. Add the almonds and the rest of the water. Blend until creamy. Refrigerate 2 hours and serve garnished with green grapes.

[ArtGirl]

I had a white gazpacho containing, among other things, garlic, oil, blanched almonds, and bread (sigh), and garnished with white grapes. I guess somebody could sub a white rice bread for the wheat bread.

Here's the recipe from the link that didn't work on my earlier post. It contains no bread.

GAZPACHO

SERVES 4

Make it in the summer when the vegetables are at their finest and when lighter, as well as cold meals are most appropriate and appreciated. All of the amounts can be altered to taste, desired thickness or texture and to which vegetables are most available.

INGREDIENTS

1 small sweet onion, quartered

1 large green bell pepper, seeded and quartered

2 medium cucumbers, scrubbed and coarsely chopped

1 rib celery, coarsely chopped

3 large cloves garlic, peeled

2 large fresh ripe tomatoes, quartered

2 cups tomato juice, or use canned whole tomatoes with their juices

2 teaspoons chopped fresh basil

Salt and pepper to taste

2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar or red wine vinegar

2 tablespoons olive oil

Hot sauce (optional)

Place the onion, pepper, cucumbers, garlic and fresh tomatoes in a processor; process until very finely chopped. Add the tomato juice, basil, salt, pepper, vinegar, olive oil and optional hot sauce. Process until soup is the desired texture. Taste for seasoning; chill for at least one hour before serving. If desired, garnish with finely chopped cucumber or whole basil leaves.

Notes: If the soup is too thick, stir in more tomato juice. If desired, use all fresh tomatoes and omit the juice entirely.

[queenofhearts]

MMMMMM, I love gazpacho & even pre-diagnosis I always made it without bread (even though the bread is authentic-- I just like the lighter texture of veg-only). If you make it ahead & keep it icy cold, it is one of those things that tastes like heaven in really hot weather, when you don't think you have an appetite.

In the middle of Summmer I use tomatoes from the garden or farmer's market, but if only store-bought are available, canned are actually more flavorful.

I'm pretty sure the Hunt's tomatoes I use are gluten free, at least by the ingredient list. Anyone heard otherwise?

And I often use V-8 for the tomato juice-- does anyone know if that is gluten-free?

Leah