Clegg to the left of me, Cameron to the right, here I am - stuck in the middle with brown!

A smoothie to get you through the anguish, uncertainty and excitement of this period as we enter a hung parliament which will probably lead to a coalition government!

For this smoothie you will need:

• 306  Blueberries (with right wing views)
• 258 Strawberries (with mid-line views)
• 57 Fairtrade honey mangos (with liberal views)

You may want to add some other random fruits, in small numbers just for effect – maybe as glass decor?! (Ingredient numbers are approximate… as are their political views).

Smoothiecast in no way advocates the use of fruits for political ends… unless it is to fight for fairtrade!

Ingredients

• 4 small or 2 large Sharon (AKA Kaki) Fruit
• 1 sweet potato
• 1 large Fairtrade mango
• 25 grams oats
• 40 grams protein powder (preferably whey or soy)
• 8 pinches cinnamon
• 4 pinches cayenne pepper

The Recipe

1. Skin and Juice the sweet potato
2. Peel and slice the mango
3. Place chopped Sharon fruits and oats in a pan, cover with water and cook until the oats are nice and plump but not stodgy! (Like King Henry VIII… ok so he was just plump and probably stodgy)
4. Shake protein powder with 200ml water (don’t worry about it being thick).
5. Add all these goodies into your smoothie maker, add the spices and smooth away.
6. Watch your body turn into a muscle machine (ok, it may take a little longer but you get the point!).

The oats and fruit replenish your glycogen stores with medium GI carbohydrates, the Sharon fruits, mango and sweet potato provide a powerful punch of antioxidants to reduce oxidative stress and eliminate free radicals; this is aided by the cayenne which opens up blood vessels to allow more blood to your recovering muscles and faster removal of waste products! The protein powder will provide the protein needed to rebuild your muscles and prevent their breakdown. The cinnamon reduces post meal insulin spikes and cayenne stokes your metabolism, these little additions along with the fibre content make this smoothie a winner for fat loss as well as building muscle; what more could you want?

• 1 Fairtrade Mango
• 1 Fairtrade Banana
• 40g Cooked Oats
• 1 Scoop Unflavored Protein Powder

Chop fruit and throw into smoothie maker (you can place them if your aim is a little shabby!) followed by your cooked oats and then the protein powder!

This will keep you full up for a good 3 hours when your next meal is due! A winner every time!

Protein powder-oats ratio can be changed according to your macro-nutrient needs!

For this zingy and aromatic smoothie you will need:

• 1 fairtrade mango
• 2 guavas
• 300ml passion fruit juice
• 2 handfuls of ice

Chop guava into chunks, cut mango flesh away from stone and add all ingredients to smoothie maker and hit smooth! Serves 3-4

You will need:

• 1 large fairtrade banana
• 2 kiwi fruit
• 1/2 medium fairtrade mango
• 1/2 medium  papaya
• 300ml fairtrade orange juice
• 3 handfulls of ice

Peel and chop up the banana, peel and quarter the kiwis, peel and dice the papaya and mango. Add all the ingredients to the smoothiemaker and pour in the orange juice and ice cubes. Whizz until smooth. Serves 1-2.

To make the Asian Pear smoothie you will need:

• 3 Asian / Chinese Pear (You can use Juice)
• 2 Papayas
• 1/2 of a Fair Trade Mango
• 3/4 Japanese Fuji (optional)
• 300ml Fair Trade tropical juice
• 4 Handful of ice cubes

Cut the asian pear into segments, scoop out the papaya flesh, cut off half of the mango and slice up the fuji and put them into the smoothie maker. Add the tropical juice and ice. Then whizz!

To make this super tasty smoothie you will need:

• 1 Medium mango
• 10 Strawberries (frozen if possible)
• 200ml Pineapple Juice
• 2 Handfulls Ice Cubes (optional if strawberries are frozen)

Peel the Mango and slice off as much soft flesh as possible. Put the pieces in the smoothie maker. Before freezing the strawberries make sure you cut the tops off. If you haven’t had time to freeze the strawberries don’t worry, just add more ice. Put the ice in the smoothie maker then pur in the pineapple juice. Now you’re ready to smooth, hit the on button and start smoothing. Let it run until the ingredients have smoothed, usually 30-40 seconds.

Pour out and enjoy!