Reducing kitchen food waste, saving you money and time while enjoying whole foods for you and your family’s well-being is what I am all about at rejoice.
At the end of the week, we typically have some soft fruits and veggies, those little bulk bags kicking around our pantry, and a few spoonfuls of soon to expire yogurt in the bottom of the container that might end up in the garage at the end of the week. Instead of tossing food and your money let me share with you one of my favourite ways of repurposing what might be food waste into a simple breakfast!
There is NO FANCY FOOD PHOTOGRAPHY HERE! This is me, on a Sunday with my cell phone pulling everything out of my fridge and assembling Smoothie Cubes with you. I have snapped a few pictures along the way to show you exactly how I do this as part of my weekly routine. Uncomplicated and simple food saving and nourishing recipes is what this post is all about. Let’s Dive in!
If you are new to “smoothie cubes” it simply means taking what you have, pairing combinations together, blending it, pouring it into ice cube trays, and then storing these frozen cubes for when you want to make a smoothie later. You have seen those expensive pre-made smoothie cubes at the grocery store, convenient yes, affordable not really plus if you have food sensitives or intolerances it can be hard to find one that works for your unique needs. This is why using what you have and you intuitively know makes you feel your best can be a great choice.
There is no “right or wrong way” of making a smoothie cube. Have fun and get creative with repurposing your end-of-the-week leftovers into something new. If you are not sure where to start, I like to follow a simple blueprint to guide me in the kitchen. By ensuring I include fat, protein, and good fiber in my smoothie I have great sustained energy all morning while being mindful of my sugar content helps to balance my mood and mental wellness throughout the day. This is the simple formula I like to follow for myself and my family.
1 fruit + 1 fat + 2 Veggies + 1 protein
I pull out whatever I have in the fridge at the end of the week that is looking maybe a little soft or like it needs to be eaten before it goes to waste using this formula.
This week the fresh and frozen fruits I had in my fridge to use up was banana’s, berries, and pineapple.
This week I pulled out all my fats I had on hand, which included nut and seed butters, avocado’s, frozen coconut, and I had frozen coconut milk that I froze into ice cube trays so they would not go bad.
For my Veggies, I had frozen cauliflower rice I needed to use up as it was looking like it had some freezer burn, some zucchini, as well as mint and greens that were looking very wilted. I needed to use these up so they did not go to waste.
Finally, the last thing I pulled out of my fridge was any proteins I had on hand to add to the smoothie cubes. I had flax seeds, chia seeds, chocolate hemp seeds, nuts, yogurt, collagen, and protein powder which I wanted to clear out of the fridge. Your nut or seed butter from the “fats” formula can work as a protein as well.
Now I play! I get creative! I have fun.
I try different combos together by selecting one item from each of the nutrition categories and tossing it in my blender. Then I add water or unsweetened coconut water, blend and pour into ice cube trays.
I never waste food by blending up all my end-of-the-week produce this way plus it makes my mornings a breeze.
I made 4 different smoothie cube combinations based on what I had in the fridge (See images below), and you can check out the Rejoice Instagram Reel to see how I made each one. See how I made 4 Balanced Smoothie Cube Recipes (recipes added below too), Watch Video HERE.
How to Make Balanced Smoothie Cubes
Equipment
- 1 blender
- 1 ice cube tray or freezer mold of any kind
Ingredients
Digestive Smoothie Cubes
- 1/2 cup pineapple
- 1 handful any leafy greens you have to use up
- 2 tbsp chia seeds
- 1 small zucchini, chopped
- 1/4 cup frozen coconut or use coconut cubes
- 1/2 cup fresh mint
- 2 cups water or unsweetened coconut water
Very Berry Smoothie Cubes
- 1/2 cup mixed berries
- 1 handful any leafy greens you have to use up
- 1/8 cup yogurt of choice use dairy-free as needed
- 1/2 cup fresh or frozen avocado
- 2 tbsp flax
- 2 cups water or unsweetened coconut water
Creamy Chunky Monkey Smoothie Cubes
- 1 banana great way to use up those soft/black bananas
- 2 tbsp hemp seeds
- 2 tbsp cacao or cocoa powder
- 1/2 cup cauliflower, fresh or frozen
- 1/8 cup frozen or fresh coconut
- 2 tbsp nut or seed butter of choice chocolate hazelnut spread is so good here
- 2 cups water or unsweetened coconut water
Raspberry Zinger Smoothie
- 1 cup raspberries fresh or frozen any other berry works here too
- 1 small zucchini, chopped
- 1 handful any leafy greens you like and need to use up
- 1/2 cup fresh mint
- 2 tbsp walnuts or any nuts or seeds you have
Instructions
- Choose which flavor of smoothie cube you want to make and place those ingredients into the blender and process till smooth
- Pour into an ice cube tray and freeze until set. About 4 hours. Pop the frozen cubes out and store them in a freezer container for up to 3 months. I like to write on the bag or container the name of the smoothie cubes and the date so I know what it is and the date for expiry.
- Now when it's time to use them, take 2-4 cubes based on how you like your smoothie to taste and place it in a blender with 1-1.5 cups of milk of choice and blend. This is when if you want to add a protein powder or anything else of choice you can. Blend and enjoy.
Notes
EACH recipe will make 20-24 cubes. So based on if you use 2-4 cubes per smoothie will determine how many servings you have.