Raw Vegan And Gluten Free Satsuma Orange And Pear Smoothie

Satsuma oranges and pears team up for this high fiber, flu fighting smoothie.
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Raw Food in the Winter
     Although we crave more hot, cooked meals in the cold winter months, it's important to continue to eat raw fruits and vegetables all year long. At least 1/3 of my diet is raw in the winter with 1/2 of my diet being raw in the spring and fall. In the summer, when fruits and vegetables are readily available and the weather is warm, I try to consume about 3/4 of my food raw. I will be writing about this seasonal food plan in my upcoming book. (Yes, one of my new year's resolutions is to finally finish it!)
     The easiest way to include raw food in your winter diet is to have a raw smoothie for breakfast, lunch or after a workout. 
     
Satsuma Oranges and Pears
     This delightful combination of fruits is readily available in winter time. Both high in fiber, one serving of this smoothie provides almost 11 grams of dietary fiber, over 40% of your daily requirement. Satsumas are lovely to look at and their thick skin makes them so easy to peel. Each serving of this smoothie contains an entire orange and provides your daily requirement of vitamin C. Just in time for cold and flu season!

Satsumas and pears are readily available in the winter.

Many satsuma oranges are seedless but just to make sure, slice them horizontally and look for seeds before blending.

Soaking Raw Nuts
     You'll notice that many raw food recipes call for soaking the nuts. One of the reasons they do this is to remove the phytic acid contained in the nut's outer layer. Phytic acid, if not removed by soaking, can combine with calcium, magnesium, iron, zinc and other minerals and block their absorption. These minerals are very important in our diets so everything we can do to increase their consumption and absorption is a good thing.

Soaking nuts overnight will remove mineral-binding phytic acid.  

Satsuma Orange and Pear Smoothie

Raw Vegan, Gluten Free

[makes 2 (2 cup) servings]

1 ½ cups cold, filtered water

7 English walnut halves, soaked overnight

1 packet GF stevia extract, optional, for added sweetness

1 banana, sliced and frozen

2 satsuma oranges, peeled and seeds removed 

2 medium pears, cored and quartered

The night before, soak walnuts and place sliced banana in freezer.

To remove seeds easily, slice the Satsuma horizontally after peeling and pick out the seeds. Many of them are seedless so this may not be necessary.

Rinse walnuts and place them with water and stevia in a high-speed blender and blend until smooth and milky.

Add frozen banana, oranges and pears and blend until smooth. Serve immediately.

Per serving: 261 calories, 5.3 g fat, 0.4 g saturated fat, 0.7 g ALA omega-3 and 2.8 g omega-6 fatty acids, 0 mg cholesterol, 3.5 g protein, 56.6 g carbohydrates, 10.6 g dietary fiber and 3 mg sodium. 

VARIATION: You can substitute English walnuts and water with 1½ cups non-GMO soy, hemp, coconut or other prepared non-dairy milk for a “mostly raw” smoothie.