Healthy Friday

Get a Healthy Start  to the Weekend with 

Cherry Berry Smoothie
Cook's Notes: The beauty of a smoothie lies in the endless possibilities. You can incorporate whatever fruits and veggies you like and then custom blend with your needs with add-ins like protein powder, seeds or whole grain. That means how healthy your smoothie is will largely depend on your ingredients. 
This recipe serves 2 and comes from Midwest Living
I am on my third bag of fresh cherries this season as they are so good this time of the year. 
Ingredients:

• 1 cup fresh pitted cherries
• 1/2 cup low-fat milk
• 1/4 cup plain fat free or low-fat yogurt 
• 3/4 cup blueberries
• 1 tablespoon cherry or cranberry juice or concentrate that has been thawed
• 1 tablespoon honey 
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla 
• 8 ice cubes

Directions:

• Chill glasses in freezer 15 minutes.
• In a blender combine all ingredients and whatever add-ins you like. Blend until smooth. Add in ice cubes and blend 15 seconds.

 Note I enjoyed the smoothie outside but did a photo redo inside as it was quite sunny which made it difficult to capture the smoothie contents. 

Corn, Blueberry, Avocado Salad with a Citrus Vinaigrette Dressing

Cook's Notes: A salad loaded up with juicy blueberries, fresh sweet corn, creamy avocado, tender greens and fresh basil that are all deliciously in season right now. Toasted almonds and red onion added in for extra crunch. Optional adding in crumbled feta for a bit of creamy tang, A citrus vinaigrette brings it all together with the absolute best of summertime. Recipe inspiration gimmesomeoven and serves 4.
Salad Ingredients:

• Mixed greens(I used combination of romaine and baby spinach) 
• 2 large avocados, peeled, pitted and diced
• 2 cups blueberries
• 1 cup chopped fresh basil leaves
• 1 cup copped toasted almonds 
• 3/4 cup whole corn fresh or from a can of Steamfresh corn
• 1/2 cup finely diced red onion
• Optional: crumbled feta cheese

Directions:

• Toss the salad in a large mixing bowl. Drizzle evenly with the dressing.

Honey Citrus Dressing 
Cook's Note: If using dried red pepper flakes start small and test taste first.
Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon champagne vinegar, or white wine vinegar
• 1/4 cup orange juice, freshly squeezed from 1/2 large orange
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice, freshly squeezed from 1/2 lemon
• 2 teaspoons honey
• 1/4 cup olive oil, extra virgin
• 2 tablespoon cilantro, finely chopped
• 1/2 small Thai red pepper, very finely chopped, or 1 teaspoon dried chili flakes
• salt and pepper, to taste

Directions: 

• Combine all vinaigrette ingredients in a blender or shake well in a small Mason jar.