My husband, a former collegiate football player, stands a little over six feet and 240 lbs. Let’s just say, to cook a big meal wasn’t an option, but a must in order to keep him happy. Yet, he would probably agree that eating a healthy, mainly plant based diet has allowed him to keep his playing weight of 300 lbs off permanently.

As his appetite has slightly decreased, his tastes and food choices have changed tremendously- so much in fact that he requests simple juices, smoothies, or salads for dinner. Properly selected and balanced foods offer more benefits than genetically engineered, weight loss, and appetite suppressant supplements on the market.

Selecting local and/or organic foods give high quality nutrients and flavor that stave off hunger with protein and good fats.

Blueberry Smoothie

1 banana

1 cup blueberries

¼ cup silken tofu

¼ cup water

¼ tsp cinnamon

1 Tbsp ground flax seed or 1 tsp flax oil

½ cup ice or less

Add water and fruit first then the remainder of ingredients. Don’t skip the cinnamon it enhances the sweetness of the fruit and you is very faint.

Ginger Mango Smoothie

1 mango chopped

1 banana

Juice of 1 lemon

¼ cup water

1 tsp minced/grated ginger

2 tsp local honey

¼ cup ice

Peanut butter Power Smoothie

2 bananas

2 Tbsp non-hydrogenated peanut butter

1 cup strawberries, chopped or ¼ cup Welch’s grape juice

¼ cup tofu (opt)

¼ cup water

Ice

Add water and fruit then the remainder of ingredients

Chocolate Almond Shake

2 frozen ripe bananas (right before the banana begins to spot, peel and chop into pieces then freeze)

1 cup soy milk or more if needed

1/4-1/2 cup almonds

1 Tbsp cocoa powder

Add milk then all other ingredients and blend till smooth

Orange Mango Smoothie

1 orange

1/8 cup water

3-4 dates chopped

1/2 cup mango

1/4 cup Brazil nuts

1/2 tsp vanilla

Blend orange, water, and dates for 30 sec. or until dates are almost invisible. Add mango, vanilla, and Brazil nuts and blend until smooth with no lumps.

Yellow Bomb Smoothie

1 cup pineapple frozen or fresh

1 cup water

½ of yellow bell pepper diced

1 tsp ground flax seeds or chia seeds

¼ cup silken tofu

½ Tbsp agave (opt)

Blend fruit and water then add all other ingredients

Carrot Kale Juice

4 carrots

2 celery ribs

1 apple

2 stalks of kale

Strawberry Kiwi

2 cups strawberries, chopped

2 kiwis peeled

½ Tbsp unrefined sugar

Juice of ½ orange (opt)

Ice

Blend until smooth