Featured from our cook book: Flax and basil smoothies

This recipe comes from The Endurance Sports Cookbook published by us. Our book offers runners healthy and diverse meal ideas for breakfast, lunch and dinner as well as snacks for the trail and desserts for after hard effort days. Sign up for our weekly newsletter to get your copy here.

ONE DATE SMOOTHIE

Who says you have to eat oats out of a bowl? Oats provide a source of complex carbohydrates for recovery. If you’re working with a blender that doesn’t have much power, try soaking the dates in boiling water prior to adding to them to the blender container. If desired, you can add a touch of maple syrup.

1 ½ cups milk of choice
1 tsp vanilla extract
½ cup plain yogurt, preferably Greek-style
½ cup old-fashioned rolled oats
2 tbsp ground flaxseed or wheat germ
¼ tsp ground cardamom
½ cup dried pitted dates,chopped
1 banana, preferably frozen

Method: Pour the milk in a blender container. Add in remaining ingredients in the order specified. Turn blender onto its low setting and process for 20 sec. Switch to the high setting and blend until dates are turned into small bits, about one minute.

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GREEN MONSTER BASIL SMOOTHIE

Avocado gives this smoothie a creamy richness and plenty of heart-healthy monounsaturated fats. Not to be confused with coconut milk, increasingly popular coconut water has a pleasant tang and healthy amounts of electrolytes. Add in additional liquid if you find the smoothie too thick for your liking.

1 ½ cups coconut water
1 cup milk of choice
½ lime, juiced
1 medium ripe avocado
¼ cup fresh basil
1 tbsp honey
Dash of salt
1 tsp lime zest

Method: Pour 1 cup of coconut water into the compartments of an ice cube tray. Place tray in freezer to freeze. Pour the milk into a blender container followed by remaining coconut water, lime juice, avocado, basil honey and salt. Drop in coconut ice cubes and blend on low for 20 sec. Increase the speed to high and continue blending until the ice is fully mixed, about 20 to 30 sec. Serve garnished with lime zest.