These days there are too many tempting adverts on TV, in comics, billboards etc which are all tailored to entice kids to their particular products. Of course we are not trying to say don’t ever buy anyone of them, but what we are trying to say is try and tempt your kids away from certain things, such as cola, fizzy drinks, sweets etc.

Most children enjoy a glass of milk, so why not try making them a smoothie for a change. This way you know that your child is getting fruit and vegetables into their diet.

A friend of mine asked her son if he would like a banana, he instantly replied “No, I don’t like them”. I suggested she make him a simple banana smoothie made from 1 banana and a large glass of fresh milk just to see if her son would drink that instead. She passed the smoothie to her son, he took a sip at first then gulped the rest down saying that he loved it! So please don’t give up trying to get your children to eat fruit and vegetables there are other ways, you just have to make them look more inviting to them.

To take a closer look at the strawberry mug and design just click on the image and it will give you further details and information. You can have the option of having the image on the left, centre or right of the mug and many other options are available for you to choose from.

I’m Feeling Fruity Strawberry Mug by flowercarole
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Whatever your preference, here is one smoothie for Christmas you must try. This smoothie is the perfect recipe, especially as we are now leading up to that festive time once again.

Try our spiced apple smoothie recipe today. Let us know your thoughts and if you too think this is the perfect Christmas smoothie recipe.

At the start of the year we asked how many of our smoothie readers were on their January diets, and a large number of readers said they were. Dare we ask… have you kept to your diets? or did you fail on your diet? Either way we are sure you are still eating and drinking lots of fruit…otherwise you wouldn’t be here reading this!

We have a tempting Christmas Morning smoothie recipe which tastes superb, is low fat and a breeze to make. This particular smoothie contains strawberries, mint, melon, a banana and ice cubes, delicious!
Browse through our extensive range of free fruit smoothie recipes because we are sure you will find something that tempts you!

If you have or are planning to fit into that little black dress for Christmas do you need to lose just a couple of pounds or so before then? If so, start making your fruit smoothies again because as you know they fill you up and they are an excellent source of fibre, vitamins etc and best of all you can get all of your 5 portions of fruit / veg in just one smoothie!

Drink up, be happy and look after yourself – your body is a temple you know!

It didn’t matter what was wrong with me, be it a stomach upset or a rogue spot, the remedy prescribed by Senegalese friends was always the same. Baobab fruit – and lots of it.

Usually it was administered in the form of a Senegalese smoothie, the fruit pulp mixed with water to make what is known in the local Wolof language as bouye. The white drink delivered hints of velvety yoghurt with a flick of tart sherbet to the tongue. And it was not only mighty tasty, it left Western anti-diarrhoea fixes, such as Imodium, lagging and was soon an ever-present item in my fridge.

The baobab fruit has three times as much vitamin C as an orange, 50 per cent more calcium than spinach and is a plentiful source of anti-oxidants, those disease-fighting molecules credited with helping reduce the risk of everything from cancer to heart disease. Until recently, this super-fruit was off limits to British consumers, unless they fancied a shopping trip to Africa. But now the baobab fruit has won approval from EU food regulators, expect it to be winging its way to a supermarket shelf near you.

The baobab tree is an integral part of the African landscape. Nicknamed the “upside-down tree”, it looks like it has been planted on its head, with its roots sticking up into the air to produce a somewhat eerie silhouette.

Bush legends about the baobab abound. One has it that the god Thora took a dislike to the baobab growing in his garden and promptly chucked it over the wall of paradise; it landed below on earth, upside down but still alive, and continued to grow. In another popular myth, the gods get so irritated by the vanity of the baobab, as it tosses it branches, flicks its flowers and brags to other creatures about its superlative beauty, that they uproot it and upend it to teach it a lesson in humility.

Today, many Africans refer to it as the “Tree of Life”, and it’s not hard to see why. With a trunk that can grow up to 15m in circumference, a single tree can hold up to 4,500 litres of water. Fibres from the bark can be turned into rope and cloth; fresh leaves are often eaten to boost the immune system; and some hollowed-out trunks have been used to provide shelter for as many as 40 people. And then, of course, there’s the fruit.

Read the rest of this article from The Independent here.