The Organic Climber – Vegetarian running, cycling, swimming, rock climbing and raw foods.

Wow, I’m so sore today after spending the weekend in Arkansas, climbing and bushwhacking through the overgrown brush on the trail. I’m cut (from thorns), bruised (from the rock), and tender all over from climbing the steep lichen covered rock. I haven’t been climbing as much lately so this fun weekend really did me in. But, despite beat down feeling I have decided to bring you a new smoothie recipe.

After a trip to HEB last night we came back with lots of nectarines, one of my favorite fruits. I also had some mangos left over from the pervious week that were not ripe enough to dry for the climbing trip; but, upon returning home they were the perfect ripeness for a smoothie. So, this morning I tossed a couple of nectarines in the blender along with a mango and two bananas, and came up with a delicious smoothie.

The Recipe

• 2 fresh, ripe nectarines
• 1 small mango
• 2 bananas
• 4 TBS of agave nectar
• Optional: greens and, or protein powder
• Ice
• Note: Serves Two

Place all the ingredients into a blender and blend. For super blending power, check out the VitaMix blender, it’s my FAVORITE kitchen tool. Using the link on my web site you get free shipping and I earn a small commission.

RAW Food, Smoothie Tuesday by OrganicClimber
banana, fresh, mango, nectarine, RAW, raw smoothie, smoothie, Vita-MIx, vitamix, Vitamix discount
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Whenever people ask me what blender I suggest, I always tell them the Vita-Mix 5200, and this was even long before I was an affiliate (offering free shipping). In my opinion there is no other option if you are going to be making smoothies every day. There are numerous reasons for getting a Vita-Mix 5200, so I have composed a list of reasons to make the investment.

1. Ease of use – It’s just simpler. Just this morning I was trying to make a smoothie using my old Cuisinart blender that my fiancé currently has at her apartment. It was a very difficult process. Ever so often, I would have to stop the blender, take a spoon, and push the fruit back down into the blades. That is rarely ever needed when using the Vita-Mix. The base of the hopper is wide and the blades are flat. Things just blend well in the Vita-Mix! The two horsepower motor will pretty much blend rocks. This ends up being a huge time saver too, as blending your smoothie will only take seconds – and is fuss free!
2. Tamp it down – There are occasions where you will want to blend a large amount of fruit or create something like a sorbet, or a smoothie without much fluid to help the blades turn and process the contents of the hopper. The Vita-Mix comes equipped with a tamper that can be used to press down the contents without having to stop the blender. This is something other commercial grade blenders don’t offer. This again makes for an easier smoothie making experience.
3. Making breads – With a Vita-Mix you can easily knead sprouts and grains to make bread. I have made a couple of different raw breads using the Vita-Mix.
4. Chopping Nuts – The Vita-Mix 5200 is a variable speed blender that allows you to perform tasks such as chopping nuts. I have used this a couple of times to chop nuts for energy bars. It’s also good for creating things like almond flower and grinding flax seed to powder.
5. Breaking down the cell wall – With it’s two horsepower motor, the Vita-Mix blender will break down the cell wall of fruits and vegetables, releasing a plethora of nutrients otherwise not available from chewing.
6. Overall health – Owning a Vita-Mix blender will improve your overall health and well-being. Because of it’s ease of use you will find yourself making delicious smoothies and other wonderful recipes a lot more frequently. The only time I ever don’t make a smoothie for breakfast is when I meet eat at a restaurant with friends. As a result of owning this wonderful machine you will be giving your body wonderful nutrients provided by raw foods.
7. It’s easy to clean – The hopper is not dishwasher safe, but is very easy to clean. Simply place some dish soap in the container, fill half way with water, and blend on high power for a few seconds to a couple minutes and your container is clean.

If you are still using a conventional blender I would strongly encourage you to invest in a commercial grade blender; especially if you are making smoothies on a daily basis. The machine comes with a 7-year warranty. It’s guaranteed to work like new for seven years. For somebody consuming a large amount of raw foods daily and using a blender regularly, performance and a long lasting piece of equipment is key.

Before purchasing my Vita-Mix I did A LOT of research because of the price tag, but I firmly believe I made the right decision. I have never regretted it.

RAW Food, Smoothie Tuesday by OrganicClimber
5200, food, RAW, smoothie, Smoothie Tuesday, Vita-MIx, vitamix
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During my recent trip to Colorado I ended up buying a batch of cherries to snack on, but ended up coming home with at least half a bag. So, I decided to use the rest in a new smoothie recipe. This one is great for all you runners, climbers, and other athletes out there. Cherries are a great anti-inflammatory. In it’s concentrated format, it has 10 times the strength as one aspirin; and, it’s all natural! To make this an even better recovery smoothie, I added chia seeds to help boost energy levels. You could take it a step further and add flax seed, but I didn’t want to mess with the flavor too much.

I don’t typically buy cherries that often, but this smoothie was so tasty, I could easily see myself buying more and throwing them in the freezer. Simply adding them to my normal daily mixed berry smoothie would be a welcomed treat. The tart, sweet taste just hits the spot, and the hint of vanilla I added via a flavored rice protein powder just stepped this recipe up an extra notch. So enough talking up the smoothie, enjoy this delicious and powerful recovery smoothie, or just simply drink it for no other reason but to enjoy it.

The Recipe

• 1/4 of a 10oz bag of mixed berries
• about 5 oz of fresh cherries (or fresh-frozen cherries)*
• 1 heaping TBSP of vanilla flavored vegan rice protein (alternatively you can omit this and simply use vanilla extract)
• 1 TBSP of your favorite greens powder
• 1 dropper full of Liquid Stevia (or some variation of sweetener)
• * Make sure you blend this smoothie very well, especially when using fresh cherries, you want to make sure you destroy the pits and stems of the cherries. This is one instance where having a Vitamix is a huge advantage.

If you happen to be interested in purchasing a Vitamix, doing so through clicking the links on my website actually helps me out. I get a nice little commission, and you end up with free shipping on an amazing, must have machine for any raw foodie, vegan, or smoothie addict. (coupon code for the free shipping on a Vitamix 5200 is 06-004609)

Smoothie Tuesday by OrganicClimber
anti-inflammatory, berry, cherry, inflammatory, RAW, smoothie, Vita-MIx, vitamix
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I spent this past weekend hanging out in Austin with friends, in fact, it was the same friends that first peaked my interested in raw foods. On Sunday morning before church we made a really delicious smoothie. It just so happened that the night before they held a game night and one of the participants brought grapes to snack on. There ended up being a lot left over and we used them in our smoothie the next morning.

Grapes alone weren’t going to be enough, so we ended up adding raspberries, banana, hemp milk and vanilla flavored hemp protein. I didn’t record the exact ratios, but there were more grapes than the other ingredients, we also made enough for four people at once, so I will give my best guess for a single serving.

The Recipe

½ cup of grapes
¼ cup of raspberries
½ banana
¾ cup of hemp milk
2 TBSP of vanilla hemp protein powder*
*Alternatively you could use regular hemp seed protein and add about a teaspoon or more of vanilla extract.

This smoothie was tantalizingly delicious! The added vanilla flavor (along with the hemp milk) was perhaps the best part. I had never thought about using flavored hemp protein powder, but I think I will definitely have to add that to the mix. I apologize there is no photo for this one. Perhaps I will make another one on my own later this week and take a photo.

Remember, if you are interested in purchasing a Vita-Mix blender you can receive free shipping by using the link above. That is a $25 discount. The purchase also helps me out!

RAW Food, Smoothie Tuesday by OrganicClimber
banana, grape, hemp, protein, rasberry, RAW, smoothie, Smoothie Tuesday, vanilla, Vita-MIx, vitamix
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