smoothie station

I'm infamous in my house for dirty dishes. I used to make smoothies and leave the sticky blenders on the counter to dry in all their strawberry banana glory. Smoothies kept me occupied during the time before I wasn't allowed to use a knife on a regular occasion. They were more complicated than I expected and I loved trying new ingredients and weird flavors--- and I can only think of one smoothie my mom wouldn't drink although there were dozens I found disgusting.

Now that I've entered breakfast class, we serve smoothies on our buffet and I have the honor of blending up our specials. Each day we feature a dairy and non-dairy option to accommodate those avoiding dairy or those who are lactose intolerant. Here's the smoothies featured so far:

Jeff's Juice (Cranberry Orange--- named after my Florida native class mate): frozen cranberries, orange juice concentrate, orange juice, plain yogurt, milk, half and half, sugar, and ice

Jovany's Jamba (Coconut Banana Tamarind-- named after one of my favorite classmates): coconut milk, frozen bananas, tamarind puree, soy milk, yuzu juice, sugar, ice

Coconut Banana Kiwi: coconut milk, frozen bananas, kiwis, soy milk, pineapple juice, Vanilla Rum, sugar

Chocolate Cherry Banana: chocolate milk, frozen cherries, bananas, Banilla Yogurt (banana+vanilla), cocoa powder, sugar, Creme de Cassis

Mixed Fruit: frozen fruit salad-- honey dew, cantaloupe, pineapple, grapes, strawberries, bananas, strawberry puree, pineapple juice

The mixed fruit smoothie was my favorite so far. The Coconut Banana Kiwi was super good until I added the kiwi, which once blended made the back of your throat itch. My chef warned that there's an enzyme present in kiwi that makes for a really unpleasant feeling. I was careful not to over blend the smoothie and Chef said it was okay, but I don't like kiwis in smoothies.