Summer might be behind us, but that doesn’t mean you need to leave your summer glow behind, too! Treat your taste buds to a Glowing Strawberry Lemonade Smoothie and enjoy the added benefits that come along with two of my favorite beauty-promoting fruits: strawberries and lemons.
While often considered as a summer refreshment, lemonade can be enjoyed year-round if you want to continue glowing from the inside out, Beauty. As you sip, you’ll feel nourished and refreshed from ingredients like banana, strawberries, lemons and spinach. Lucky for us, this produce is available in most grocery stores during every season!
Strawberries: Nature’s Secret Beauty Fruit
Strawberries are not only delicious to eat, but they’re also beautiful to look at. Is it any coincidence that they can help make us boost our glow, too?
Strawberries are an all-around skin-beautifier.
If you’re looking to brighten your skin and tighten your pores, then salicylic acid is just the thing to remove dead cells from your skin to encourage new cell growth. And strawberries have the presence of Vitamin C, salicylic acid and antioxidants.
Also, ellagic acid prevents skin damage—making your skin look younger and fresher—exfoliating and soothing your skin by removing impurities. When it comes to preventing acne and keeping blemishes at bay, strawberries are amazingly effective in clearing acne and reducing oil buildup.
And speaking of prevention, strawberries also have the power to fight free radicals. How? By providing vitamin C which is involved in the production of collagen, for overall smoother skin.
Note: Be sure to get them organic! They have consistently been a top Dirty Dozen produce item on the Environmental Working Group list.
When Life Gives You Lemons…
… get your glow on with strawberry lemonade! An essential part of promoting beauty from the inside out is cleansing and detoxifying. I can’t think of a better fruit that aides with the detoxification process than the humble lemon. As you know, I am a huge fan of these little yellow powerhouses, and always kick off my day with hot lemon water!
Lemons are a powerful fruit filled with flavor. They work hard to deliver an extra blast of vitamin C and enzymes to your diet. Lemon has been associated with boosting liver’s function and tissue regeneration, which is helpful while cleansing as the liver is our main detoxifying organ. When your body gets help detoxifying from lemons, the result is clearer skin, more energy and less bloating. Who could complain about that??
Don’t Reach for just ANY Strawberry Lemonade
Now that I’ve touched on the powerful benefits of strawberries and lemons, you might be convinced to reach for a glass of the pink stuff. Unfortunately, not every strawberry lemonade out these is a beauty food.
Most conventional lemonade mixes come in a powdered form and are filled with the beauty-robbing ingredients like chemicals, dyes and processed sugar. These additives are tough on the body and can speed up the aging process, which is a big beauty no-no!
Not only does my Glowing Strawberry Lemonade Smoothie recipe not contain any of these harmful ingredients, it also is incredibly hydrating and refreshing.
It’s simply based on whole ingredients, like strawberry and lemon, that work hard once they’re in your system to cleanse and nourish from the inside-out! Not to mention, my smoothie is much more delicious than that pink powdered stuff, if I say so myself! 🙂
A Note About Food Combining
Wondering if it’s OK to combine fruit with leafy greens? Great thought, Beauty! Yes, typically we don’t want to eat fruit and veggies together since fruits digest quickly and should be eaten on their own. However, there are exceptions, such as green leafy vegetables! Spinach, kale, chard, collards can be combined with fruits. In this recipe I’ve combined strawberry and banana with chard, celery and kale. These veggies are high in water and when blended (which is key here), they are much easier to digest.
Ready to add this recipe to your glowing food arsenal? I hope you enjoy sipping on your Glowing Strawberry Lemonade Smoothie all year round, just like I do!
Glowing Strawberry Lemonade Smoothie
Glowing Strawberry Lemonade Smoothie Author: Kimberly Snyder Serves: 1
Ingredients
- 1 cup water
- 1 ripe banana peeled
- 2 handfuls of spinach
- 1 cup strawberries
- 1 lemon peeled
- 2 stalks of celery
- 2 handfuls of baby chard
Instructions
- Place all ingredients into the Vitamix.
- Blend ingredients together until smooth, and enjoy!
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was on Instagram!
Lots of love,
I got a little confuse about the food combination regarding fruits, leafy greens and vegetables. According to Ann Wigmore’s book the Hippocrates Diet, she speak about not to mix acids fruits, sweet fruits and sub-acid fruits with leafy green and vegetables because it will give a very poor digestion. So what is the rule of food combination then?
Thanks for this great question, Leticia! Food combining can be confusing, especially at first because it’s not easy to keep track of all the rules. Here’s a link to a blog I wrote about food combining, in case you haven’t seen it yet, The Beauty Food Pairing Cheat Sheet! (INFOGRAPHIC): http://bit.ly/2O32NWC. Yes, typically we don’t want to eat fruit and veggies together since fruits digest quickly and should be eaten on their own. However, there are exceptions, such as green leafy vegetables – spinach, kale, chard, collards can be combined with fruits. In this recipe you may be concerned about the strawberry and banana being mixed with the kale, chard and celery. These vegetables are high in water and when blended (which is key here), it makes them easier to digest. Consider keeping track of how you feel in cases like this, so you can note how your body reacts and will know which food combinations you should steer away from. Don’t forget to check out the link I included and let us know how you do. Just remember, do the best you can. Progress not perfection. Lots of love to you! 😉