The Orangeman (Smoothie)

A couple of weeks ago I mentioned that I had picked up The Abs Diet cookbook from Men's Health when we were at the Library. This cookbook has a whole section dedicated to smoothies that I couldn't wait to try. My kids love smoothies. I can't remember when I first introduced smoothies into their food routine but my most requested 'recipe' these days involves a cup of yogurt, a banana, a splash of orange juice and a generous helping of (frozen) blueberries.



What I noticed about the smoothie recipes in Abs Diet is that many of them require whey protein powder. I don't know about you, but when I read 'whey protein powder' I immediately conjure up images of body builder types looking to bulk up...in other words, not me. It also conjures up images of those huge buckets of whey powder they sell in health food stores. Can one really go through that much whey powder in a lifetime? Again, not me! I did end up discovering you can get whey protein powder at the Bulk Food store, so I got a small bag to try. I also decided it likely wouldn't hurt to omit the whey powder from the smoothie recipes. From what I have discovered online about whey powder, it isn't necessarily dangerous but it isn't something that you really need if you are already eating a balanced diet. And it isn't recommended for kids.

This morning I managed to finish a 3 mile run. Yesterday I did 2 miles, so I clocked about 8 km over the course of the weekend, which is great for me at this time of year, when I am still running indoors on my treadmill. After I finished my 3 miles I was very hot and very thirsty. I decided to try out The Orangeman, one of the Abs Diet smoothie recipes. It appealed the first time I scanned through the book since it sounded a lot like an Orange Julius. And you know what? It tasted a lot like an Orange Julius. Although it's been years since I've actually had an Orange Julius...so let's say it tasted a lot like what I remember an Orange Julius tasting like...


The Orangeman (a gender-neutral drink)

1 cup 1 percent milk
1/2 cup frozen orange juice concentrate
2 tbsp low-fat plain yogurt
1 banana
2 tsp whey powder (optional)
6 ice cubes

Put all of the above in a blender and blend. If your blender is a bit wimpy like mine, crush the ice cubes before you put them in. I put my cubes in a large ziploc bag and beat them with a heavy wooden rolling pin. Seemed to do the trick.