A monstrous meal

Remember when I threatened to put vegetables in their smoothies? I meant it.

With my efforts at getting my picky, strong-willed 15-month-old to eat consistently nutritious meals failing miserably, I reached out to a friend for help. And she introduced us to the Green Monster.

I had my doubts (you would to, if you found yourself dumping spinach and yogurt into a blender and preparing to serve it to the 4-and-under crowd), but the Green Monster smoothies were a huge hit with all three kiddos. Jacob drank three cupfuls, which I'm sure I'll pay for later when all that spinach works its way through his digestive tract. I'm afraid his little body might go into shock with all the vegetables and nutrients coursing through him right now.

Abby and Caleb thought the name was hilarious, and insisted on showing me their terrible claws and gnashing their terrible teeth the whole time they were drinking their Green Monsters. The kids were totally full after polishing off their smoothies, and I realized that they didn't need lunch, seeing as how this drink is basically an entire liquid meal.

We made a few minor adjustments to the original recipe, so here's our version of the Green Monster.

Green Monster Smoothie
(makes 4-6 servings)


2 frozen bananas (peel them before you freeze them)
3 cups frozen chopped spinach
1 tablespoon peanut butter
1-2 cups vanilla yogurt (we used the whole milk yogurt)
1 cup coconut milk (original recipe called for almond milk, but coconut milk is fattier)


Optional ingredients:
a handful of blueberries (not too many, or it becomes a purple monster)
a few pieces of frozen rhubarb (not sure why...it just looked healthy)
a handful of cooked baby carrots


Place all ingredients in blender and mix. If you're using a lot of frozen ingredients, there's no need to add ice.

Enjoy!