Lemon Basil Smoothie

Of course the book had to start with one that sounded a little bit risky to my taste buds. I had to pick up some lemon sorbet from the grocery store. I was looking in the ice cream section and am wondering if sorbet is the same thing as sherbert. I thought about asking someone, but you have to understand, I work at this store. If I asked a stupid question, I would never hear the end of it. So I called my Aunt Becky. She knows everything about cooking. When she answered I gave her fair warning I was going to ask a stupid question and she was not allowed to laugh. The first thing she does is laugh and say, "Too late." So I asked my question and discovered it is close enough to the same thing that I was safe. I looked all over for a Lemon Sherbert but none was to be found. As I'm at the very stinking end of the ice cream section I found it!! Lemon Sorbet even!! Problem: it was in one of those small individual size containers that are freaking expensive. Oh well.

At home I put it all together. I even was able to use the basil that I've been growing on my windowsill. Now I've never used fresh basil before. I know, I know. I wasn't quite sure the best way to chop it up. I kept thinking, I don't want big chunks, I don't want big chunks. And my pride would not let me call Becky again. So I used my little hand chopper thing. It didn't work. So I resorted to the old hand and knife method. In the end, it truly didn't matter as my big blender pureed it quite nicely. I blended it up. I poured myself a glass and nervously took a sip. Heaven on my tongue!! It was amazing!! I was so relieved. In a glass it smells a little bit funny. I can't put my finger on what it is, but my tongue was doing a little jig, so it was worth it! Oh P.S. the small individual serving size of lemon sorbet was exactly the amount I needed. So the second one I bought is a treat for me!! I like treats. . .

2 c. Lemon Sorbet *I used fat-free, it was all they had!!
1 c. Fat-Free Milk * I used 1%, it was all I had.
1 6 oz. container Vanilla Yogurt *I used fat-free, again, it was all they had.
2 t. Finely grated lemon peal
1/2 c. freshly squeezed lemon juice (1 lemon)
2 T. chopped fresh basil
1 c. ice
Combine everything together until smooth. Pour into 3 glasses. Garnish with additional lemon peal and basil. Serve immediately.

Starting Smoothies

Last night I watched a really cute movie, "Julie & Julia." If you haven't seen the movie, it is about a woman, Julia, who is feeling like her life isn't very important. After rough days, her meditation, if you will, is to cook. Her favorite chef is Julie Child. She starts a challenge for herself that she is going to cook all of the recipes from the book that Julie Child wrote. There are over 500 recipes and she gives herself a year. In the process, she writes a blog about it.

After watching this, I felt compelled to follow suit. As it is summertime and the weather here is extremely warm, I thought it would be fun to make smoothies. My hubby bought me a Smoothie Recipe book awhile back and I think it would be just the ticket to make them all. Here's the catch: I'm LDS which means that coffee and tea are not optional. This smoothie book has two whole sections devoted to smoothies made out of coffee and tea. My challenge lies in making all of the smoothies LDS approved and edible (well drinkable anyway).

This book has 5 sections: 1)Pucker Up 2)Mocha Madness 3)Berry Fruity and Fun 4)Simply Tealicious and 5)Sippable Sweets. I will make all the smoothies in order. I will give you the recipe so you can try them. I will also make notes of any changes that I made for any of you that would like the altered versions. Well wish me luck! Here goes nothing.