Given a choice I will, more often than not, choose to "chew" my calories, rather then "drink" them. But the other day, I had green smoothies on my mind.  I did a quick survey to see what kind of ingredients I had on hand:  ripe banana...check...fresh pineapple...check...fresh baby spinach...check...and last but not least, coconut water.  I whirled them all up in my magic bullet, not sure what to expect, but was rewarded with a delicious, healthy, and refreshing afternoon snack.  Thus...the Tropical Green Smoothie was born! 

Coconut water seems to be all the rage these days.  It's got an interesting flavor, I have to say. Almost salty to me, but it works really well in this smoothie.  I'm not certain I would enjoy drinking it on it's own though.  From what I read, coconut water is mother nature's sports drink, with it's amazing hydrating capabilities, high potassium levels and low natural sugars.  It's no wonder people are going crazy over it!  You can purchase it plain or with added fruit juice.  The varieties with the added fruit juice are a bit higher in calories and sugar than the plain version.  I can see why it made this smoothie so refreshing and the perfect beverage to enjoy on a hot summer afternoon!

Tropical Green Smoothie is gluten free and dairy free.  The sweetness will be determined by the sweetness of the fruit you use in it.  The riper the banana and more sweet the pineapple, the sweeter the smoothie will be.  If your fruit is a little under ripe, you might want to add a touch of agave to it or even use one of the pineapple flavored coconut waters in place of the plain coconut water. (Changes to the recipe as written may result in changes in the nutritional information provided)

Tropical Green Smoothie would also be great frozen into "pops" during the hot summer months for a refreshing frozen treat too!  Yum!

Here's an interesting fact about plain coconut water...(and one that I find most interesting given my nursing background) Did you know that due to the isotonic nature of coconut water, it can be administered intravenously to replace lost fluids in an extreme emergency??  In fact, it is used quite commonly in poor, third world countries to save lives.  Wow.  Who knew?

Tropical Green Smoothie

By Renee's Kitchen Adventures

Ingredients

• 1 medium sized ripe banana, peeled and broken into chunks
• 1/2 cup fresh pineapple chunks (can use frozen in place of fresh)
• 1 cup of coconut water
• 1 cup organic baby spinach
• ice, as desired

Instructions

1. Add all ingredients into blender. ( I used my magic bullet).
2. Blend until smooth and with desired consistency. (Add sweetener if needed)

Yield: 1 serving
Prep Time: 00 hrs. 10 mins.

Cook time: 00 hrs. 00 mins.
Total time: 10 mins.
Tags: smoothie, beverage, spinach, coconutwater, banana, pineapple, healthy

Servings - 1   Serving size - 1 recipe   Points Plus per serving - 5 Points+
Calories - 193.1,   Total Fat - 0.9g,   Carb. - 48.6g,   Protein - 3.1g,   Fiber - 4.7g 

Printable Recipe 

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How about you?  Have you tried coconut water?  What do you think of it?