Summer is the season of the smoothie, and I have one every night.
Here’s my recipe:
One cup of skim milk
One cup of frozen blueberries or strawberries
One banana (I don’t much like bananas, but they give the smoothie a nice texture, and the flavor of the berries dominates)
8 packets of Equal (yes, I know, that’s a lot of Equal, but I’m okay with that)
As much ice as I can put in without making the smoothie too bland
Blend well
This recipe makes an enormous amount of smoothie, and it’s a great treat for people who are watching their calories.
Studies show that while drinking water doesn’t make you feel full (contrary to what many people believe), high water content in food does make you feel full. So, for example, eating some ingredients made into a soup will be more filling than eating those same ingredients made into a casserole. Lots of ice in the smoothie makes it very filling.
Also, if you’re really watching every single calorie, consider that you burn up one calorie for every ounce of an ice-cold drink, because of the energy needed to warm it up.
Despite the photograph, I eat my smoothie from a bowl, not a glass. Eating out of an enormous bowl, with a spoon, makes me feel like I’m having something substantial and meal-like, while drinking a smoothie out of a glass makes it seem like a casual snack. Research shows that your perception that you’ve eaten a lot, or a little, plays a big role in satiety.
For a different treat, freeze the smoothie in little cups. That’s delicious too, but I can never manage to resist eating the smoothie right away.
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Life Two describes itself as the “destination for information on middle age,” but there’s a lot of great information there that’s not specific to middle age. Good round-ups of studies, useful links, interesting articles. This morning, one item particularly caught my interest, because it’s an important issue for happiness: What we can learn from near-death experiences.
[Later] Aack, in my hurry, I completely forgot to note that the Life Two post was riffing off the interesting post at Marginal Revolution on the subject of near-death experiences. Check that out, too.
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