arugula (rocket) smoothies - Your help is needed

[Elena S]

Hi,

I have turned my non vegetarian (although he eats vegetarian and mostly vegan at home—I don't buy, cook, or store animal products as that was a part of the deal before moving in together)  partner into a morning smoothie drinker.  At first, he was adamant and made faces at my concoctions, but now he gets upset, if I do not include him the daily smoothie routine.  With one exception:

 

Today, I made a great tomato, red bell pepper, arugula, small cucumber, raw apple cider vinegar, and a drop of olive oil smoothie (with a bit of Himalayan salt).  I was truly good.  He, however, thought it was horrible, and asked me to leave him out if I make it again. I suppose that the peppery taste of the arugula was too much for his non-vegetarian taste buds.

 

The funny thing is that he does great with most greens: Parsley, lamb's quarters, lamb's lettuce, spinach, Swiss chard, all lettuce varieties (even the bitter ones), cabbage,  etc.. 

 

I actually want to incorporate the arugula because I live in a small mountain town in Austria and wintertime is not the best for obtaining organic greens.  I figured that the arugula (it being available, when others are not ) would add variety and other nutrients to the mix.

 

So, after this long introduction  (my apologies), I was wondering if anyone had recipes that incorporated arugula, but might taste better to him?   I thought that adding sweet fruits might work, but then I wasn't sure how that would work with the strong arugula taste.

 

I should also tell you that fruits (in the winter months) are also scarce.  I can always, however,  get mangoes (which I use with spinach or chard), sometimes pears (for the parsley/pear smoothie - delicious), apples, oranges, lemons, and bananas. 

 

Thanks in advance for any suggestions you might have.

[Antony Heaven]

I think wriggle in a smoothie is a real challenge because it has a strong flavour, but I woud thing pear would go well and maybe lemon? They work in a salad. But I'd want to add spinach as well to lighten the taste.

[Emily G]

Maybe if you present it like a soup, with a spoon, and warm it up a little on the stove he will like it better... I would make the base really heavy on tomatoes and just add a few leaves of arugula, and maybe a bit of ginger and lemon.

[Elena S]

Thank you!  You may be right.  Perhaps it is better to offer it to him in soup or salad form.

[Lisa MB]

I haven't really used arugula in my smoothies yet, but I believe that any bitterness in greens can be brought down with lemon, apple, pear, and certainly mango would be helpful. 

[Marie-Paule]

I regularly drink a grapefuit smoothy with arugula (roquette) and add 1 or 2 cloves of garlic. It's a bit acidic for the enamel of your teeths but I love the taste. Can you get grapefruits in the winter in Austria?

Let me know if you try this mixture, you either love it or hate it...

 

[Elena S]

Thanks Marie-Paule for the suggestion.  We do have grapefruits available in the winter, so it is worth a try.  I have a bit of a garlic aversion, but my better half might like this.  I happen to love arugula every which way, so I am sure that leaving the garlic out for me will certainly please my taste buds. :)