It is spring and I am so ready for fresh fruit in my diet! The sun is shining and the kids are playing outside more. In fact, we just got back from a little spring family getaway at Wisconsin Dells, a resort destination not far from the Chicago area that is touted as “The Water Park Capitol of the World”. (Ever been there?) It was SO much fun! Just the transition that my family needed to leave that horrendous winter behind us as we look forward to summer.
So when spring comes around, my tastes in what I eat shift to lighter fare including fresh fruit. Our past few posts have focused on incorporating fruit into your food.
And one type of fruit that I really enjoy eating as much as possible when it’s in season is berries!
I absolutely love incorporating berries into my diet during the day as much as possible. Berries are such a super food for your health too. If you pay attention to any nutrition experts these days they all say that berries are so rich in micro nutrients that you should strive to eat them every day.
I find that one of the easiest ways to incorporate berries into my diet is in the morning. Berries work perfectly when layered with yogurt and granola in a delicious parfait. Or when frozen, they are easy to blend into a tasty smoothie with yogurt and almond milk.
It is easy to make pretty yogurt parfaits for a crowd when you use clear plastic cups so you can see all the lovely layers.
We make smoothies easy by preparing our berries by washing them immediately after purchase and mixing them together in small plastic bags and immediately storing them into the freezer so that they are ready to blend into a smoothie in the morning.
I love the gorgeous flecks of blueberries, blackberries, and raspberries in this colorful, healthy, delicious smoothie.
And the smooth yogurt blends so nicely with the crunch of the granola and juice of the berries in these lovely parfaits.
It is so easy to incorporate delicious, juicy, colorful berries into your diet in the morning. Start your day off right, with a beautiful layered berry parfait or a satisfying, tasty berry smoothie and enjoy the fresh tastes of spring!
Join us tomorrow as we end our fresh fruit series with a giveaway for Harry and David’s!
Ingredients
- 1 32 oz container of yogurt or greek yogurt (I used Chobani, vanilla)
- 12 oz of berries ( I used blueberry and strawberry)
- 2 cups of granola (I used Bear Naked vanilla almond crunch)
- Layer all ingredients in clear plastic cups
- Makes 4 servings
- 1 cup of frozen berries ( I used blueberries, raspberries, and blackberries)
- 1 cup of almond milk
- 1 banana
- 1/2 cup of yogurt (I used Chobani Greek yogurt, vanilla)
- Place all ingredients in a blender (We use Vita Mix) and blend until smooth.
- Makes 2 smoothies
WOW! These look delicious!
Thanks so much!! 🙂
That’s a great idea to freeze berries immediately for great breakfasts like these! I’m so into fresh berries right now. 🙂
Thanks Marcie! I’m so with you on the berries right now! Can’t get enough of them!! 🙂
Yum, this looks like the perfect breakfast!
Thank you Jessica! 🙂
I love berries in the spring time too! Especially now that they are much more affordable. Those yogurt parfaits are so pretty! Great idea using clear cups. Then you can really see all the pretty layers : )
Don’t you find yourself craving lighter meals in the spring/summer!! Thank you for the compliments Natalie!! 🙂
Yum! I love how healthy these options are, and they look delicious. I have a refrigerator full of berries at the moment (hooray!), so I can’t wait to try these. Pinned!
Thanks so much Blair! I love having a fridge filled with berries!! 🙂
THE perfect breakfasts. I don’t know which one I would rather have more! Both the smoothie and the parfaits look absolutely gorgeous, Renee!
Both of these breakfasts look great! I LOVE berries, whether it’s as a snack, in a dessert, or in a breakfast!! This looks so good!
I just made berries and cream for dessert, Looks like I could have had it for breakfast too. 🙂
I love berries too, and both of these look delicious!
Thank you Kara! 🙂
So glad you were able to get a away from the wintery weather Renee – your trip sounds wonderful 🙂 I love fresh berries in the spring and summer too and would be happy with both of these for breakfast – they both look delicious and healthy 🙂
Yum – trying the parfait tomorrow
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