French Macaron Smoothie

I used to think smoothies were a joke.

That some people high up at Jamba Juice are laughing themselves all the way to the bank because people thought they were being healthy when really they were sucking in an average of about 60 grams of sugar.

But after reading CrazySexyDiet (thanks for the recommendation, Mama Pea!), I started to come around to understanding that you can make smoothies that are filling and good for you by adding a general ratio of 3:1 vegetables to fruit. Let me be honest, adding that quantity of vegetables to a smoothie is not second nature and most times I stick to the tried-and-true combo of spinach-peanut butter-banana. Kris Carr suggested romaine leaves in her Green Guru Smoothie. Romaine leaves?! That's what I said. But it's pretty yummy, after all. I just try not to linger on the lettuce part.

This tropical green monster has been my latest favorite because you know I have soft spot for the islands.

TROPICAL GREEN MONSTER

INGREDIENTS:

* 1/2 avocado
* 1/2 banana
* 1 cup spinach
* 1 kiwi
* 1/2 cup chopped mango
* 1 Tbsp. peanut butter
* 1 cup apple juice

Combine in blender until smooth and creamy.

But I don't need to be eating lettuce and cucumbers for breakfast all the time. Especially not at 8 am on a Monday morning when I have conference calls. I sometimes consider just getting up out of my desk while people are still talking and booking it down to the bottom floor of my office building to buy a sugary snack and and some coffee from Peet's to help me get through the call. But now I don't have to do that because I have Mama Pea's Cake Batter Green Smoothie and I am perfectly happy to sit calmly while five lawyers fight for a chance to hear themselves speak.

I have also been slurping up Kath's Dough Boy Smoothies and they are fantastic!

And if Mama Pea says you can have cake batter for breakfast, then I think you can have french macarons, too.

FRENCH MACARON SMOOTHIE

INGREDIENTS:

* 1 cup rolled oats (do not use quick oats!)
* 1 cup almond milk
* 1 Tbsp. almond paste
* 2 Tbsp. almond flour
* 1 Tbsp. chia seeds
* 1/2 tsp. vanilla bean paste

Combine all of the above ingredients in your blender and place in fridge overnight.

Add in the morning before blending:

* 1 banana
* another 1/2 cup of non-dairy milk (soy, almond, etc.)

I can't wait for breakfast tomorrow. We'll call it dessert.