Dang, Michelle Fagone is non-stop these days!  It seems like I was just writing my review of her ebook, Ladle.  This time, she's her with a paperback specialty:  an entire publication of 150 recipes for green smoothies, ALL.  PALEO.

I know smoothies seem to have a rep for being the "easy health thing" to do now, but 150 completely different recipes is a tough thing to do.  On top of that, Fagone has made all of them paleo-compliant, meaning no yogurt crutches.  And they all utilize green fruits and veggies.  Okay, I'm officially impressed.

This book is really nice for those who tend to get into ruts with their snack routine (me).  There are two parts to this book, the first of which has three chapters.  The first is an intro section that explains the paleo deit, like most cookbooks now do.  But the science nerd in me loves the following two sections.  Chapter 2 contains explanations on what makes a smoothie "paleo," plus the benefits of green veggies and fruits, specifically.  There are summaries of the overall benefits, plus elaborations on each of the main minerals and vitamins included in these foods.  Chapter 3 goes into more detail about the fruits and "extras" you can mix into the smoothies with your greens.  These have extra vitamin and mineral benefits of their own, plus the advantage of being more palatable in drink form than vegetables alone tend to be for most people.  If you're like me and want to know why these foods are good for you, you'll love these concise chapters.  If not, they're only a few pages each and the majority of the book is what you paid for: the actual smoothie recipes!

The recipes section is also broken into chapters, 11 in total.  They are targeted at all sorts of eating goals, from workout nutrition to prenatal care to simple everyday smoothies.  Each one is laid out cleanly, with each recipe getting its own page with clear ingredients and directions.  There are even calorie and macronutrient (carbs, fat, and protein) breakdowns on each recipe.  Simplicity without leaving out important informatino is definitely the goal with this book - and I'd say that goal is reached beautifully!

In the last few pages, Fagone includes a measurement conversion appendix.  I always think these are underrated resources, but they really do allow for a book to be used more globally.  It was smart of her to include this, again playing into understandability of this book.

I think you want a recipe from this book, because I would, too.  Michelle has been kind enough to let me choose which one to share.  Since I just finished leg day, I'm going to go with a post-workout smoothie catering to just that!

Leg Day Recovery Smoothie

Yield: 3-4 cups

Ingredients

2 cups kale

2 cups frozen mixed berries

1 banana

1 tsp almond butter

1 large, pastured egg

2 cups coconut water

Nutritional Information (per serving size)

Calories: 89   Fat: 1.8 g Protein: 2.9 g Sodium: 52 mg   Carbohydrates: 16.8 g   Sugar: 10.6 g   Fiber: 2.4 g

If you would like to purchase a copy of Paleo Green Smoothies, it is available now on Amazon.