Morning smoothie

I made this chocolate green smoothie this morning.

It's amazing!

It's rich, but has the tang of berries. It tastes luxurious, but is super healthy and chocolaty.

I'll be making it again, ahhhhhh maybe tomorrow. Yes, definitely tomorrow.

The Ultimate Chocolate Green Smoothie 

So what's in it I hear you ask and why is it so healthy?

Let's start with ripe juicy pears, then add a creamy avocado and then some kale.

The chocolate flavour is organic cacao powder and the extra nutrients come from baobab powder and wheatgrass powder although these are optional.

It's topped up with water and ice, then whizzed until smooth and sipped through a paper straw with a smile.

WARNING: If you don't have a power blender DO NOT ADD ICE! You will burn out the motor. Add it afterwards to your glass instead.

Funnily enough my son quite liked the slightly bitter flavour of the chocolate and finished a large glass of smoothie before heading to school.

My husband Graham, the wuss that he is, found it too bitter, so to stop him pouting, I added some agave nectar to sweeten it a little.


Love juices in the morning? Check out my Beginners Guide to Juicing

Froothie Optimum 9200 Blender

Of course I made my smoothie in my favourite gadget, my power blender.

I actually have a new beast in my kitchen. He's the Optimum 9200 Next Generation. He's even more powerful than the Optimum 9400. If you can believe that?

Have a look at this comparison with the Vitamix Pro 500. It's quite something. I always thought the Vitamix was a powerful beast, but I had to think again.

The 9200 Next Gen is also much cheaper than the Vitamix and on sale  just now with a price tag of £329 (that's £100 off).

It may seem like a big price ticket, but it's worth every penny. I use mine every day. My dishwasher is the only kitchen gadget I use more and my beast (blender) doesn't even need to go in the dishwasher as he's self-cleaning.


A difference between the 9200 next gen and the 9400 (which I've been using up until now) is the 9200 has a programmable timer and it's really easy to use too.

All it has is 3 speeds, 3 times and a pulse button. You can choose a  speed and blend for as long as need to, select one of the time buttons or use the pulse button for short bursts.

SLOW Speed: To chop or juice. Always switch to slow speed when adding food or liquid during blending.

MEDIUM Speed: Good for harder to blend mixtures and to avoid the contents heating.

FAST Speed: Use this to grind grains, chop ice and blend frozen fruit as well as whole fruit and vegetables.

What can you make in a power blender?

This is what you can make in a power blender

1. Smoothies
2. Shakes
3. Soup
4. Sauces
5. Purees
6. Dips
7. Spreads
8. Cocktails
9. Frozen cocktails
10. Ice cream
11. Slushies
12. Nut milk
13. Peanut butter
14. Nut butters
15. Homemade nutella
16. Cake batter
17. Bread dough
18. Pizza dough
19. Falafel 
20. Burgers

You can also chop fruit and veg.

Have I missed anything?

Oh yes, it makes amazing jam and curd. No standing over a pot stirring, just pop the ingredients in, turn it on, walk away and let it do the business.

Green Smoothie Recipes

1. Green Smoothie - Hungry Healthy Happy  
2. The Post Workout Green Smoothie Quencher - Fuss Free Flavours
3. Key Lime Pie Smoothie with Barleygrass - Little Miss Meat Free   
4. Pear, Almond & Coconut Green Smoothie - Simplify Your Health
5. Green Mango and Spinach Smoothie - Tinned Tomatoes
6. Green Ginger Peach Smoothie - Recipes from a Pantry
7. Green Valley Elvis Smoothie - Allotment 2 Kitchen
8. Spring Tonic Nettle Smoothie - Tin and Thyme

Disclosure: I was sent the 9200 to review. If one is bought through my affiliate link I will gain a commission. I was not expected to write a positive review and any opinions expressed are my own. I truly do love these blenders. Move over Vitamix, the big boys are in town!