Hangover Smoothie
1 cup of milk
1 banana
1 tablespoon of honey
1 cup of ice
This smoothie recipe is for all you weekend warriors. After a long night out, the last thing you want is to waste the next day recovering, and this smoothie will help restore vitamins and nutrients you’ve lost. Milk can give you a base of nutrients for your body to help re-nourish itself. Potassium can help replace lost electrolytes, and while it is found in milk, the sliced banana will do most of the heavy lifting. Finally, the tablespoon of honey, which has fructose and glucose, can help fuel your liver as it works hard processing your drinks from the night before.
Good Mood Smoothie
1 cup of mung bean sprouts
1 cup of strawberries
(you can substitute another fruit if you prefer)
1 ripe banana
½ cup of water or ice
This smoothie is for when you need a little pick-me-up during the day, but you might need to take a trip to the grocery store before you pull out the blender. One cup of mung bean sprouts is important to this smoothie, and while you may have never heard of them before, they’re high in tryptophan. Tryptophan is an amino acid that helps produce serotonin and promotes good sleep and stable moods. Also, the magnesium in the mung bean sprouts and banana will combat magnesium deficiencies, which may lead to stress.
Nighttime Smoothie
1 cup of cherry juice
1/2 banana
1/2 cup of soy milk
1/2 cup of ice
1/4 tablespoon of vanilla extract
If you’ve had a long day and you’re craving a smoothie, this is the one for you. Start with one cup of cherry juice, which has melatonin, a sleep hormone. The banana provides magnesium, which can lead to relaxation, and the soy milk provides tryptophan, which may help produce more serotonin before you head to bed for the night.
Study Smoothie
1 cup of blueberries
(strawberries and cranberries work well, too)
1 cup of yogurt
3 tablespoons of chocolate sauce
3 tablespoons of peanut butter
Rather than eating C-Store snacks during midterms and finals, try making this smoothie to help you in your studies and avoid the snacks between meals. Blueberries, strawberries and cranberries are all rich in antioxidants, which, in addition to helping your immune system, may help in memory retention. Yogurt, and other dairy products contain nutrients that may help in building acetylcholine, a chemical that promotes memory retention. As for the peanut butter and chocolate well, those make for an even better tasting smoothie that’ll keep you in your chair and out of the vending machines.