How to Make Smoothies Thicker

Flavored yogurt adds another level of thickness to your smoothie.

Creating the perfect smoothie can be a bit of a balancing act with ingredients. Experiment often until you find a formula that works for you. Adding too much liquid or ice to a smoothie can water it down considerably. Use a combination of fruit, yogurt and juice to create a thicker smoothie. Use thicker fruits like mango, banana and pineapple as a base, and add about a half a cup of yogurt per serving. Use liquid sparingly and add ice to the glass instead of the blender, if you even need it. The number one thing you can do to make a thicker smoothie is to use frozen fruit.

Things You'll Need

• Blender
• Milk (soy, coconut, almond or regular cow's milk)
• Juice
• Fresh fruit (kiwi, pear, mango, plum, peach)
• Frozen fruit (banana, blueberries, strawberries)
• Yogurt

Instructions

1. Plan ahead and place peeled bananas in plastic wrap and freeze them. One banana per serving will create a thick fluffy smoothie. Other ideas for frozen fruit include strawberries, blueberries, raspberries and mangoes. Place half of the frozen fruit in the bottom of the blender topped with about half of the liquid you will be using.

2. Layer fresh fruit, yogurt and remaining liquid into the blender on top of everything else. Pulse the blender until the frozen fruit is chopped. Proceed blending the smoothie to a silken consistency. Test it about half way to see if more juice or milk is required. Thick smoothies are great, but you still need to drink them. Test the consistency by carefully tilting the blender carafe. You want the smoothie to move slowly not slosh around.

3. Pour the smoothie into chilled glasses and garnish with a straw and a piece of fruit. Choose a garnish from the fruit you blended into the smoothie. Orange slices and strawberries can be speared together with a toothpick or a decorative sword, straw or umbrella.

Tips & Warnings

• To limit the amount of juice or milk you add to the smoothie, blend it in stages adding only as much juice as you need to. If you use frozen fruit you will not need ice cubes. Frozen bananas are the best frozen fruit to use.

• Test the smoothie as you go along, once you have thinned it too much it is hard to go back. Place the frozen fruit in the blender first or it will be difficult to blend it to a smooth consistency and may result in a lumpy smoothie.

References

• Happy Juicer: How to Make a Smoothie
• A 2 Z of Health Beauty and Fitness: How to Make a Smoothie