Happy Monday! 
Anything exciting happen over the weekend that you’re just dying to share? Let’s hear it! I saw a movie, got a pedicure and cleaned up my garden. Pretty exciting stuff, really. 
Last night, Ben and I continued our new Sunday night tradition of watching Minute to Win It. If you’re not watching this show yet, you’ve got to give it a go. The contestants play these hilarious games, like blowing cups off a table using only the air they blow into a balloon, which are just a hoot to watch. It’s also semi anxiety inducing when they start to cut it close – eeek!
Well, I decided to start my week on the right foot with a cold and creamy Green Monster for breakfast this morning. 
Last night I combined the usual ingredients in a blender: unsweetened vanilla almond breeze, chia seeds, vanilla whey protein powder, almond butter and spinach, and stuck it in the fridge overnight.
This morning I blended everything up until very smooth, added a frozen banana, hit the “ice crusher” button on my blender a few times, then continued blending.
Unfortunately I made the rookie mistake of not making sure my banana had blended up entirely before pouring my green monster into a glass. The smoothie was super thin and, when I looked into the blender, I saw why. The two frozen banana halves had wedged themselves right above the blades!
Fortunately it’s nothing a good spatula jab can’t cure! A few more pulses and we were back in action. Good, green action! What do you put in your Green Monsters?
Today for lunch I packed a giant Mixed Veggie Salad.
In the mix:
- Mixed greens
- Cauliflower
- Cucumber
- Roma tomato
- Carrots
- Peanuts
Have you put peanuts in your salads yet? My Dad is a genius for giving me this tip – they seriously make the salad. YUM YUM YUM!
A crunchy Fuiji Apple shall be a nice snack after an afternoon walk.
And some popcorn will bring it home. This Jolly Time 100 calorie low-sodium popcorn was on sale at the grocery store for $1 this weekend!
Now I know why…it tastes low sodium. 
I had some after dinner last night and it was SO bland! I sprinkled some green Tabasco sauce over my bowl which made it much, much better!
I brought some with me today so I can duplicate.
Time to get this show on the road – Mama’s gotta work!
Hoping your Monday goes smoothly!
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Do you drink coffee or other types of caffeine to get your day started? Is it a want or a need?
I used to think that I needed to start every morning with coffee, but somehow I got out of the habit of making it at home/drinking it at the office every morning, and found that it was more of a want than a need!
I don’t drink coffee – not really a fan. I have never started drinking it for fear of being dependent on it. I like my natural morning high.
I don’t need coffee but really enjoy my AM cup or two…it wakes me up!
I like coffee in the mornings when I’m reading- it’s a nice combo! And I like to add Ginger to my green monsters;)
I never drink coffee – I jsut don’t really like it
Though the odd latte now and then isn’t bad!
My favourite GM combo is cereal, yogurt, milk, banana, spinach and cocoa powder. AMAZING!
It’s a “want” for me, but I definitely enjoy it. I like it more in the winter because it’s warm and soothing and is a relaxing way to start the day!
It’s a want that I treat like a need.
It’s part of my morning work routine and it throws me off if I don’t have it. I like to read my emails/google reader while sipping on a huge cup. When we run out of coffee at the office I get cranky and run to the nearest coffee shop for some.
But on the weekends when I’m running errands in the mornings I don’t miss it.
I don’t depend of coffee, I can go with it or without. I only have a cup most days and it hits the spot.
I don’t drink coffee…never became a fan of it. And I rarely drink a pop. Really the only caffeine I take in is iced tea, which I love!
What grocery store do you shop at? Hy-Vee? If so, which one? I looked for the TastyBite Good Korma at Hy-Vee in Windsor Heights, but didn’t find it… thanks
Oh, and just wanted to say – as a fellow Iowan, I really enjoy your blog and the references to local events/restaurants.
I have one cup of coffee every morning, but it’s more for the warmth than anything, I don’t need it per se. My office is freezing! I never used to drink coffee until I entered the “real world” though
Not an avid coffee drinker, I like unsweetened ice cold iced tea in the morning!
I started my day with a green monster as well, it included bananas, blueberries, spinach, almond milk, chocolate amazing grass, coconut oil, peanut butter and ice. Twas deelish
I feel like I have to have it. I don’t drink coffee at all I’m talking about my morning pepsi habit. Done it for years & absolutely can’t get by without it. I know it’s wrong but now I’m diabetic & I still must have this nasty diet pepsi now every morning to start my day. It’s a big taste change but I gotta have my caffiene.
Your GM’s always look so VIBRANT! Yum!
I drink coffee in the morning and I think it’s a combination. I want it but if I don’t drink it, I’ll get a headache. I love it but I kind of wish I wouldn’t have started the habit…
i used to eat 94% fat free popcorn all the time, but it was always SO bland! i started tossing in a packet of sweetener (like splenda or truvia) and voila! instant fat free kettle corn!
i NEVER drink coffee in the mornings or at work, yet whenever i am going on a road trip early in the morning and we stop so everyone else can get coffee, i always order one! i dont know what it is but its like an automatic impulse to get that cup of coffee. call it peer pressure, i guess!
I usually drink coffee in the morning, but I have started drinking Komboucha instead. Love that stuff!
Haha, I tell myself its a need but its probably more of a want because I do go some mornings without any coffee. I just really love it though!
I do kinda agree with that statement about coffee. Ever since I started drinking Green Monsters here and there, I stopped drinking coffee on those mornings. I’m so healthy now
Not anything i can live without thought. I’ve been throwing in a handful of blueberries in my GMs ever since I had them in my fridge! I use PB not AB (but I know I gotta give AB a try), I don’t use chia seeds and I use vanilla soy milk lately.
I use to drink coffee every morning. In an effort to change my diet I said so long. I know start my mornings off with the fabulous “green monster!” I love to put flax seed, spinach, a banana and unsweetened chocolate almond milk. On occasion I add blueberries or strawberries if I have them on hand. It definintely perks me up in the morning.
My need/want (because nobody REALLY needs this stuff but gosh I really want it) is a lovely 32 oz. cup of Circle K Diet Coke. WooHoo! I love love love those brown fizzy bubbles. They wake a girl up in the morning like nothing else. I know, this is not good for the bod and I am trying to get off the stuff. It is an addiction really. I am trying to switch to half-caff coffee. Still not the best for me but better. How do people do it without the caffeine boost?
I’ve found that I really don’t need coffee in the morning! I drank it for awhile more because I felt that I was SUPPOSED to, rather then wanting to! In reality, it made me really anxious and jittery-almost shaky! Now I’m much more satisfied having a Green Monster (strawberry banana!) or even just water.
I need coffee. I admit it.
But I also really love the taste of it, so much that I often get a couple cups of decaf throughout the day just for the taste! Have a great day!
I don’t drink coffee (unless its iced) but I do enjoy lattes. I should learn to cut back in the caffeine department but hey- you only live once. If thats my old “bad habit” then so be it….
I’ve never put peanuts in a salad- good idea
I drink coffee every morning and it definitely makes a difference in my energy/ability to focus. If there’s such thing as being addicted to caffeine…I very well could be lol
This is SOOO bad, but I need a Diet Mt. Dew to sip on in the morning at work. Weekends, I don’t even crave it, but if I don’t have one at work, I feel like a zombie!
I didn’t even know they made low sodium pop corn! That is great news for because I love the 100 calorie kettle corn packs for dessert. I have been making so many smoothies lately, but I think I need to get back into adding spinach and kale to them. Yours is such a gorgeous green color!
NEED.
In the form of green tea!
Right now… NEED some caffeine! I’ve been having coffee everyday and if I don’t I get a headache. I know it’s not good but I’m cutting myself a break until I finish my master’s thesis :-/. After that, I’ll cut back. I go through phases and trying to completely cut out coffee but I WANT it many times.
I don’t need or want any sort of caffeine products in the morning. I went thru a short phase in university of drinking coffee as it was “cool” but gagged all the time. I hate coffee so I was part of the nerd crowd after I quite. Now, I sometimes have some tea but all I need in the morning is breakfast. I cannot function without something to eat in the mornings.
Yes, I started adding nuts to my salads after I read it here. And fruit. Honestly, so good. It gives a nice heaviness that I need in a salad as a meal and the extra crunch of nuts is wonderful. Yum!
I drink one cup of coffee every morning. I think it is more of a want thing. It is the little thing that I look forward to in the morning. If I work out in the morning, I don’t usually need coffee. But I like it and a just glad I only want/need one cup a day! Any more than that and I am a crack head!
I don’t like coffee. It smells wonderful, but tastes awful to me.(Although coffee ice cream is pretty good if it’s not to strong!). I have the same feeling about most pop corns. Some taste great..others pretty bad! I bought that same bland pop corn that you did & ended up popping the rest of it & tossing it out for the birds! They loved it! I do get a hankering every day around 10am for an ice cold can of Mt. Dew! Sometimes I can hold out till lunchtime…sometimes not!
Also…I’ve never tried peanuts in my salads…but I do love slivered almonds & dried cranberries! Adds a nice crunch & chewy texture!
I definitely have to get my coffee fix asap in the morning. It is not a good habit, but I look forward to my morning cup every day so I have just sort of embraced it at this point. Although I am living abroad this summer for 6 weeks so I need to kick the habit before I go. I don’t want to be stranded in Strasbourg with those awful headaches!
I want coffee in the morning. It tastes yummy and gets me going strong. I also want to tell you I tried the lime and salt popcorn this weekend and it was soooo good! Thanks for the tip!
The other day I decided to throw in frozen mango to my green monster… sooo good!
I love coffee but Im not dependent on it to kick start my days – yet! I still have a college schedule though, so Im sure when that changes so will my caffeine dependency!
Peanuts in the salad… how I wish I could pack you in my lunch. Unfortunately, working at a nut-free school just doesn’t allow it. I need either a cup of coffee in the morning or a fresh juice. Both give me a gentle, get-this-day-started boost.
Hey Kristin…I used your sweet potato gnocchi recipe a few weeks ago and when I pulled the leftovers from the freezer I made this delicious concoction! Thought you might want to check it out…SOOOOO delish…thanks for the awesome tutorial! http://www.thesweetslife.com/2010/04/pesto-sweet-potato-gnocchi-with-spinach.html
I’m a big fan of mangos, peaches, & vanilla hemp protein in my green monsters.
im obsessed w. that brand of popcorn! kettle popcorn is the best tho- i LOVE that kind! Your green monstas look awesome, as always!
I just did the exact same thing a few minutes ago. My blender is in the fridge with all my smoothie components just waiting for me to hit Pulse in the AM! Love not having to worry about having a delicious and nutritious breakfast for those busy mornings!
Hope you had a wonderful day girl.
Ugh, I don’t LIKE coffee but I DO drink it. I purposely do not own a coffee maker, though it’s on our bridal registry, because I’d make coffee every day! But daily I do have some sort of caffeine… it definitely gives me energy.
Green monster = spinach, almond milk, almond butter, 1/2 banana (frozen), ice (if needed), vanilla protein powder, vanilla extract, cinnamon
What type of vanilla whey do you use?
I’m a big fan of mangos, peaches, & vanilla hemp protein in my green monsters.
right on man you have some unique ideas. i’ll be sharing this on my facebook