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Heart-friendly breakfast smoothie

Written by Catherine Saxelby on Monday, 27 May 2013.

Ready In: 5 minutes
Serves: 2

HeartActive is a delicious, fat-free milk enriched with plant sterols, which are proven to help reduce cholesterol. Research shows that consuming plant sterols everyday in milk can reduce cholesterol by an average of 10% in three weeks.

Smoothies or milk shakes are one of the quickest healthy breakfast recipes around and a great way to 'disguise' things whether it's fish oil in liquid form or a lot of oat bran, both of which keep your heart pumping smoothly. I like this smoothie as a complete breakfast on the run – it gives you lots of nutrition for almost no saturated fat and about a third of the kilojoules of normal milkshakes. And it's low GI so will keep you fuller for longer. Get the blender ready the night before and you're set to whirl.

Ingredients

2 cups low-fat milk with sterols (eg HeartActive )
1 banana, peeled and sliced
¼ cup oat bran or quick cook oats
squeeze of honey, about 2 teaspoons (optional)
few shakes of cinnamon (optional)
3-4 ice cubes

Nutrition per serve

Kilojoules 845, Calories 200, Fat 1.5 g, Saturated fat 0.3 g, Fibre 4.2 g, Sodium 78 mg

Directions

Place all ingredients in a blender or food processor. Process for 15-20 seconds or until blended and frothy.

Variations

Instead of the banana, substitute ½ cup sliced strawberries or ½ cup fresh or frozen blueberries.

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