This post is a recipe for a blueberry beet smoothie.

Confession: I had never tried beets before a couple months ago.

I honestly didn’t know what to do with them! And I guess I still don’t because I skipped the real deal (and the mess) and bought canned beets.

But then I got the Run Fast. Eat Slow: Nourishing Recipes for Athletes cookbook and saw the recipe for a beet smoothie so I decided to venture outside of my comfort zone and try some beets!

Blueberry Beet Smoothie

I modified the Run Fast Eat Slow “Can’t Beet Me” Smoothie a bit.

Blueberry Beet Smoothie

Serving size: 1

Ingredients:

1/3 can beets, drained
1/2 cup frozen blueberries
1/2 frozen banana
3/4 Tbsp. nut butter
1/2 cup plain Greek yogurt
1 scoop vanilla protein powder (optional. I used Tera’s Whey bourbon vanilla)
Almond milk to the top of ingredients (roughly 3/4 – 1 cup)

Directions:

Combine ingredients in blender. Blend until smooth. Enjoy!

Normally I drink my smoothie from the blender jar, but for the sake of photos I poured it into a bowl and topped it with some fun ingredients: fresh blueberries, coconut flakes, Hemp seed, and Erin Baker’s Blue Bike sprouted granola. Yum!

Health Benefits of Beets

• Beets are a powerful antioxidant, which means they help to reduce inflammation and muscle soreness.
• Consuming beet juice prior to endurance exercise has been found to increase stamina.
• May lower blood pressure by improving blood flow.
• Rich in nutrients – fiber, folate, Vitamin C, manganese, and more!
• Help to detox your blood and liver.
• You can eat the greens too! They also have high nutritional value and you can add them to your smoothie or sauté lightly along with other leafy greens such as spinach or kale.

Have you ever tried beets? What is your favorite way to use/eat them?

Are you going to try my Blueberry Beet Smoothie?