A yogurt smoothie can refer to many different types of smoothies that contain yogurt or frozen yogurt. In these smoothies, yogurt is usually mixed with various fruits, though you can find some interesting recipes that include things like peanut butter. As with smoothies made mostly of fruit, yogurt smoothies often benefit from the addition of ice.
If you have a blender, it’s very easy to make a yogurt smoothie at home, especially if your blender has an ice crush feature. Most middle-range priced blenders do. You can choose plain yogurt, which will reduce calories of your smoothies, or other choices like vanilla, maple or honey yogurt. Sweetened yogurts can add good contrast to more sour fruit. If you’re using something like ripe bananas in your yogurt, you really don’t need the extra sweetener because the smoothie will be naturally very sweet.
There are many recipes for yogurt smoothies, which will vary types and amount of ingredients. Consider creativity and add various fruit you enjoy to yogurt, and perhaps a little milk or fruit juice for lots of taste combinations. Bananas and yogurt make a great smoothie, or you can combine bananas with citrus, tropical fruits or berries. Frozen fruits tend to do well in a yogurt smoothie, and if you want a really creamy smoothie, freeze bananas a day before use.
If you don’t have a lot of fruit on hand, you can make a yogurt smoothie with fruit flavored yogurt. Consider raspberry or mixed berry yogurt paired with a couple of strawberries or a banana. Really the only limit to smoothie creativity are the contents of your refrigerator and the limits of your imagination.
When you like your smoothies to have more protein, you can add protein powder or some people prefer additives like nutritional yeast. This can give the drink a slightly different taste, but it does help to boost protein content. Of course when you use yogurt, you are getting higher protein smoothies than when you only use fruit.
Nutritional content is not quite so high when you use most commercial brands of frozen yogurt for a yogurt smoothie. You can mix plain and frozen yogurt, but realize, most frozen yogurt does have higher sugar content, though it can still be lower fat than ice cream. Some people prefer the extra tang of plain yogurt, or they quickly adjust to it. If you’re introducing kids to yogurt smoothies, offer them the recipes with the least sweeteners, as they typically learn to prefer them to highly sweet smoothies.
You’ll find books devoted to smoothie recipes, and lots of recipes on the Internet. Some unusual recipes can be found when you want something creative. Try a pumpkin smoothie with yogurt, or a coffee one if you’re feeling adventurous.
