When the sun comes out, a deliciously chilled fruit smoothie goes down an absolute treat. I’ve started enjoying a fruit/veg smoothie at 11 o clock whilst at my desk, it’s a brilliantly filling and nutritious elevenses! You could easily make yours before work or the night before then pop it into a thermos (to keep it cold) or bottle to drink at work or post gym session.

Strawberry and Coconut Smoothie

Serves 2

250ml coconut milk drink or coconut water

Pretty simple- put into a blender and blitz it all together. Top with a little extra desiccated coconut, if you like.

You could also use coconut milk for a really creamy finish. If you haven’t got fresh strawberries, use frozen berries and sub out the ice. The smoothie will last overnight in the fridge if you want to keep it all to yourself!

What Blender Should You Buy? 

I’ve had a few questions about the best type of blenders. In my opinion, the Vitamix is the best one out there. Yes it’s pricey but it is incredible. It can create frozen desserts and hot soup just by the turning of the blades. A Vitamix blitzes fruit and veg (and ice) so smoothly that you can create a juice  just by adding water without losing any of the fibrous goodness! At £399 it will set you back a pretty penny, but it is incredible!

Of course, there are a lot of other great blenders out there without the hefty price tag. The Good Housekeeping team have thoroughly tested them out (I wish I could have been part of that test!) so I thought I’d share their findings:

Magimix Le Blender (£143.99) – quiet, performs at a range of speeds and auto settings, strong and durable glass, however limited accuracy in the measuring jug.

Dualit Blender (£149) – pretty quiet, a six tip blade means large quantities of mixture can be blended smoothly, however small ingredients, like berries, might not be combined fully as the blades are quite high. A little splash back through feeding hole.

Sage by Heston Blumenthol (£199.99)- accurate auto timed sessions, blade doesn’t detach so hard to clean, and small ingredients may fall below the high blades.

Cuisinart 2 in 1 Prep and blend (£125) with 2 speed settings, plus and ice and pulse setting, this produces good results although there was some leakage when at max capacity.

And at a slightly cheaper price level;

Jamie Oliver by Philips (£70)- durable glass goblet plus great recipe booklet, however it moves around when in use, not enough speed settings and some ingredients weren’t incorporated.

Breville Pick and Mix Blender (£40)- not designed to do many tasks, although smoothies and dips are fine, non-slip feet aren’t very effective, quite a lot of splash back when pouring liquid through the hole.
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What’s your favourite smoothie recipe? I’m always on the look out for new combinations!