I didn’t really expect to like it when I first heard about Green Monsters but curiosity got the better of me so I went ahead and bought the ingredients.

Basic Green Monster smoothie

1 cup milk (any variety you like- almond, soy, cows… I use full fat cows milk)
1 banana
2 cups spinach
optional – sometimes I boost it with 1-2 scoops protein powder or you could sweeten it with a little bit of honey
ice

I put the spinach closest to the blades and then weigh them down with the banana and milk in order to hold it down.

You can then add whatever you want like raspberries or cantaloupe melon. Be aware though that the colours might turn ugly as the fruit mixes with the green.

It’s actually really tasty. I can’t really taste the spinach in it at all even though I use quite a lot of it.

This recipe for cottage cheese pancakes is really easy to make. It’s perfect as a light lunch or as a snack. I think it’s really lush when it’s topped with a mix of fresh fruits and as a bonus the cottage cheese makes it loaded with protein. I haven’t used any sweeteners at all in this recipe as I think it’s enough with the sweetness from the fruits. But if you know that you have a sweet tooth you might want to add some sugar or maybe honey to the batter before frying the pancakes or you could drizzle a little bit of maple syrup on top of the fruit.

Ingredients for the pancakes:

• 1 medium sized egg
• 6 1/2 tablespoon cottage cheese (slightly less than 1/2 cup)
• 1 tablespoon flour

Topping:

• 1/4 cup low-fat plain yogurt
• 1/2 cup mixed fruit

Directions:

1. Combine all the ingredients for the pancake. If you want a completely smooth pancake you can mix the batter. I usually just mush it all together with a fork and break any large curds.
2. Heat a frying pan over medium heat. Add a little fat/butter/oil to prevent the pancake from sticking to the pan. The fat is not included in the nutritional information below as it depends on what kind of fat you use.
3. Pour in the batter, either as one large pancake or divide it into several smaller pancakes.
4. When the pancake is nicely coloured and the side that is up is starting to set, flip the pancake over and let it cook until that side has a nice colour to it as well.
5. Serve the pancake with your choice of topping or as I like to eat it, with yogurt and fresh fruit.