Apparently, it's book review time over here at Produce On Parade! I obviously couldn't be happier. Having the exciting privilege of reviewing books, making wonderful recipes from said books, and hosting giveaways is so fun.
Tina Haupert from carrotsncake.com is the author of this huge and colorful Part-Time Vegetarian Smoothies and Juices Recipe Book, and I'm excited to share my review with you!
Precaution
I reluctantly admit that I usually don't go in search of smoothie recipe books. My smoothies are more often than not a mishmash of random ingredients I need to use up. Sometimes I'll make a concerted effort to have them taste good, but most of the time they're somewhere in between super-healthy and only moderately-tasty, when making them for myself.
So to be honest, I wasn't really sure how much I would actually use this recipe book, although it is stunning. I'm a skeptic of epic proportions, if nothing else.
As soon as I opened the box, I plopped down on the couch to review the book. After about ten minutes I started to hear laughter from Todd. I asked him what was so funny and he said I was making him laugh! "What am I doing?", I asked. Apparently, I was muttering to myself in a rhythm of page flips and non-stop chorus of "Ohhh this looks so good! Omg, I am totally making this tonight. Whoa, I'll definitely have to tab this one. Oh, my, gosh...this looks amazing. Yummmmm."
So you see, I feel rather silly for having doubted how influential a smoothie book could truly be on me. Todd asked me if I would be making every recipe from the book in the next week...
A Insightful Introduction
Chapter one in this book is titled Getting Started and it gives a short introduction on the benefits of consuming more fruits and vegetables while reducing one's meat/dairy intake. Tina walks the reader through choosing a blender and gives great smoothie tips. Some of the tips one would perhaps otherwise have to learn the hard way. Like how it's a good thing to peel bananas before you freeze them (learned that one on my own, the hard way). Or chopping up aging fruit to use in smoothies instead of throwing it out.
She also discusses how to choose a juicer and the difference between masticating and centrifugal juicers. There's also more great tips like only making as much juice as you'll need and drinking it right away before the nutrients are lost.
A Smoothie and Juice For Every Occasion
I love that the chapters are broken down by breakfast, green, workout, dessert smoothies/juices and so on. It's easy to pick a meal for exactly what you're looking for. The back of the book has an index too. One day I had five, yes five, pears that were all a little worse for the wear. I went to the "P" section of the index and found a smoothie with pears and went to town!
Easy, At A Glance
Perhaps my favorite part about the book, which I confess took me several minutes to discover, is at the bottom of each recipe are circular photos of each ingredient. So, if a juice recipe contains apples, celery, carrots, and parsley...there would be a small photo of each at the bottom so you can see exactly what you need to make it. You know, for us visual people.
There's no super weird ingredients that you'd have to look online for and all the ingredients are clean too. I really like the "Tip" section for each recipe. Tina suggests swapping mint for basil or adding ginger for a kick.
Are They Tasty Though?
I've made three smoothies so far. A muted green Coconut-Kale Smoothie, a vibrant magenta Pearberry Smoothie, and a creamy Banana Foster Smoothie. All were absurdly delicious. The pear one was my favorite and I will definitely be making it time and time again as I can never seem to catch that two minute window where pears are perfect for consumption. Next on my list is the Gingerbread Smoothie and the Cinnamon Butternut Smoothie. Follow along on social media to see how they turn out in the next week or so. Sounds like the perfect after work snack to me!
Would I Buy The Book?
Even though I personally don't have a particular interest in smoothie recipe books...and even though I don't juice at all (why juice when you can eat the veggies and get all the fiber?!), I would STILL buy this book. The recipes are really sound. They're consistent in size and texture, and use everyday ingredients. I love the tips and tricks, and the layout of the book is beautiful. I think this book would also be a great gift idea! Especially since it's labeled "Part-Time Vegetarian", it won't scare away that disapproving Aunt too much (for the record, I have no disapproving aunts). Tina is an immensely talented recipe developer and I know you'll love her smoothies and juices. It'll be only scrumptious smoothies for me from here on out!
Stop by your local bookstore or hop on over to Amazon to purchase The Part-Time Vegetarian Smoothies and Juices Recipe Book for $13! It's time to get some more fruits and vegetables into your diet!
Win This Book!
*DISCLAIMER* PRODUCE ON PARADE IS A PERSONAL BLOG WRITTEN AND EDITED BY MYSELF ONLY, UNLESS OTHERWISE NOTED. MY REVIEWS ARE COMPLETELY BASED ON MY OWN OPINION OF THE PRODUCT REVIEWED. I AM NOT PAID TO WRITE POSTS. THESE PRODUCTS WERE SUPPLIED TO ME AS GIFTS FROM THE COMPANY TO TEST AND REVIEW. OTHERWISE, IF I MENTION A COMPANY BY NAME AND THERE IS NO DISCLAIMER AT THE BOTTOM OF THE POST, I AM MERELY WRITING ABOUT SOMETHING I LIKE, PURCHASE AND/OR USE. THE FACT THAT I DO RECEIVE A PRODUCT AS A GIFT TO TEST AND REVIEW, WILL NEVER POSITIVELY INFLUENCE THE CONTENT MADE IN THIS POST.
