grape juice

It is simply gorgeous outside here today. And for that reason, I will not be long winded here. (And there was much rejoicing…) My kids are standing on the porch, pressing their faces against the window asking me when I’ll be out. They’re also waiting for their smoothies so I have to make like a bird here, and fly.

When I was a wee thing my favorite snacks and desserts were milk shakes, purple cows, and my Mom’s version of an Orange Julius. There is something so exciting about using the blender to whip up dessert. It seemed like such alchemy to put all those bumpy, multi-textured ingredients into the carafe and spin it into perfectly smooth thing of beauty. Plus I just dug anything I could drink with a straw.

A couple years ago I realized -and not for the first time, I might add- that my mother is a genius. Look at the list of ingredients that go into a Purple Cow: plain yogurt, frozen bananas, and grape juice concentrate. That’s it. It’s cheap. It’s simple. It blows the doors off of most other snacks in terms of nutritive value. The yogurt gives you protein, calcium, magnesium, riboflavin, vitamins B-6 and B-12, and vitamin D. The bananas give you vitamin B6, vitamin C, potassium, dietary fiber, and manganese. The grape juice concentrate gives you a power punch of vitamin C and antioxidants. Not only that, but Purple Cows take 5 minutes or less, start to finish. Thank you, Mom.