My green "not-smoothie"

I LOVE my Blendtec. It's power. Speed. Superior blending abilities. Let's just say it leaves nothing to be desired.

One thing that it's great for is making smoothies. Of the Jamba Juice caliber. Smooth, creamy, absolutely no chunks. And in less than 60 seconds. It's pretty amazing.

However, while I like smoothies, and have bouts of green smoothieness, I typically prefer to chew my food. So, instead of throwing all of this

into a blender, I chew it. Satisfying and delicious. Something about chewing, I tell ya (but I still use my Blendtec all the time, for so many other things, like making flour, dressings, dips, soups, etc.). You could easily throw this into your Blendtec (omit the craisins though), add some water and a few ice cubes, add some optional stevia for sweetness, blend, and you've got yourself a green smoothie. For me, I'll take the salad most days (unless I don't have time to sit down and chew, which in that case, a green smoothie is a lifesaver).

Here's the recipe for one of my favorite quick quick super salads. Strawberries were on sale at my local natural foods store, so I wanted to make good use of them. Nothing like berries and greens to satisfy that craving for sweet.

Berry Berry Mixed Green Salad

Serves 1-2

• Lots of spinach (about 5-6 cups)
• Lots of pre-washed mixed greens (same amount as spinach)
• 1 pint strawberries (about 2 cups)
• 1 cup frozen blueberries (I get mine from Costco)
• 1/2 cup frozen blackberries (again, Costco!)
• 1/2 cup fresh or frozen pomegranate seeds
• 2 TBS. craisins
• 2 TBS. slivered almonds

Layer in order above and serve with your favorite sweet dressing. Personally, I just used a good balsamic vinegar, which was more than enough zing, since the fruit really is what really "dresses" the greens. You could always blend 1/2 cup of those strawberries with 1/4 cup of balsamic vinegar, add some stevia or other sweetner, and you've got a simple strawberry dressing to go with it.