The other day I was talking with a couple of my friends about this exact topic. One of them is good friends with a girl who married a London native; apparently they live there now and she is expected to be ready for guests at less than a moment's notice. Like she dresses nicely and always has the table cleared off. I'm imagining she has cookies coming out of the oven and not a dirty dish in sight.
Is that you? If it is, do you want to be my live-in maid? I'll pay you with yummy food.
Maybe it is a cultural thing but the three of us Americans (I could totally be generalizing and please excuse or correct me if I'm wrong) agreed that we certainly need at least a day to really get ready for our guests. For me, it would require making sure all the dishes are cleaned, clearing off old magazines and mail from my kitchen table, giving my toilet and countertops a little scrub, and on most days, making my bed. It would also require the foresight to not come home and immediately change into sweatpants. If you were coming over, I'd probably bake you cookies too.
I promise I won't make you eat this green smoothie if you are frightened of putting spinach into a blender. But I do encourage you in the comfort of your own home, no matter how clean or messy it is, to give a green smoothie a chance. You've probably heard people rave about the nutritional properties and how you can't taste the spinach at all. I'd tell you those same things but you won't actually believe me until you try one. I went with grapefruit and banana and it was quite delicious. There are so many options just like with any smoothie that you can chose whichever fruit you enjoy the most. Try it out!
And I'm totally serious about the live-in maid thing.... any takers?
Grapefruit Green Smoothie
Ingredients:
1 grapefruit, peeled and segmented (with as much of the pith as you want)
1 fresh or frozen banana, sliced
2 cups fresh spinach
1/4 cup water
ice, approximately one handful
Directions:
Combine the grapefruit, banana, spinach and water in a blender. Pulse until smooth. Add ice and pulse again until you have the desired consistency.
Wow, I'm totally shocked about being ready for visitors anytime. We are totally unprepared to visitors at all times! Ditto on changing into comfy clothes immediately upon returning home.
ReplyDeleteI don't know if it's an American thing though. This was the basis of one of the first fights my parents had when they got married. My Mom and her family thought that it was perfectly fine to stop by unexpectedly, but my father found it unacceptable and even rude not to call first. I guess they were always ready for visitors though!
I'm glad you enjoy the green smoothies! I go back and forth on them. Sometimes it seems like a lot of effort, but it's also so healthy and satisfying.
Every time I make a smoothie, green or otherwise, I remember how much I enjoy them. However, I don't make them as much as I should... they are certainly more effort in the morning than yogurt and granola or a piece of toast. And inevitably it means a dirty blender in my sink for the course of the day :)
DeleteI promise to call ahead if I'm going to make a trip to Florida. Which I really want to do because I'm so over winter right now!