#sponsored Dole Get Up and Grow Tour San Antonio Recap...Featuring Banana & Blue Breakfast Smoothie

I'm a blog ambassador for Dole Fresh Fruit and Vegetables, so I had the opportunity to experience first-hand the San Antonio stop of Dole's Get Up and Grow Tour earlier this month. This nationwide 11,700-mile, 115-day journey was created by the Dole Food Company and Blue Diamond Almond Breeze to give Americans information and recipes to make Summer 2015 their healthiest and happiest EVER! They challenged San Antonio-area residents to eat better this Summer to receive some exciting health and wellness rewards. Between now and September, the Get Up and Go Tour will stop at 480 supermarkets and special events across the U.S. The San Antonio event took place from June 13-18 at several local H-E-B grocery store locations. 

I attended a tour event at an H-E-B near my neighborhood, and it was a blast! The Get Up and Grow Tour Caravan featured a sampling tent that offered free recipe samples, a make-your-own smoothie bar for the kids, fun giveaways, expert nutritional advice, and other fun surprises! Visitors also created a customizable, interactive pledge that gave them an opportunity to receive wellness rewards like free DOLE fresh produce, Fitbits®, and even a wellness getaway to California! Participants sampled lots of fresh fruit, veggie, and salad recipes created specifically for the Get Up and Grow Tour. My favorite dish was the colorful, tasty Fresh Fruit Salad with Baby Spinach and Yogurt Poppy Seed Dressing.

I also had the opportunity to take part behind-the-scenes for a television shoot that spotlighted the San Antonio Get Up and Grow Tour. I did the recipe prep work and food styling for a television interview with a Dole representative that aired on a local television station. I had a great time preparing four different Get Up and Grow Tour recipes: a green power smoothie, vegan spinach hummus, yogurt parfaits with grilled bananas, and chilled gazpacho. All of the recipes presented were healthier options for meals and snacking --and all of them featured delicious Dole fruits and vegetables. The representative from Dole was super friendly and very knowledgeable -- demonstrating on camera how to garnish the chilled gazpacho before serving.

Another Get Up and Grow Tour recipe that I tried and enjoyed was the Banana & Blue Breakfast Smoothie. It's an ideal breakfast: quick to make, dairy-free, delicious...and very filling. One of these smoothies for breakfast keeps me satisfied for hours -- thanks to the addition of fiber-rich oatmeal!

Banana & Blue Breakfast Smoothie

from the Dole Get Up and Grow Tour

Ingredients (makes 2 8-ounce servings):

• 1/2 cup old-fashioned rolled oats
• 1 Dole banana
• 1 cup Dole blueberries [NOTE: I like to freeze them overnight]
• 1 cup Unsweetened Original Almond Breeze Almondmilk
• 1 tsp. honey
• 1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon

Directions:

Add oats to blender. Cover; blend until a powder consistency. Add banana and blueberries, then blend until smooth. Pour in the almondmilk, honey and cinnamon. Continue blending until smooth. Pour into two chilled glasses and serve.

That's it...a complete breakfast-in-a-glass that's ready in less than 5 minutes! This filling smoothie makes a great portable, on-the-go weekday breakfast. It's also a great after-school or post-workout snack to help tide you over until dinner. The texture is thick and rich from the addition of oats, and the banana and honey provide the perfect amount of sweetness. I hope you'll give it a try soon. Dole is sharing tons of great Get Up and Grow Tour recipes via the official tour website. You can even find the date and location of a Get Up and Grow Tour event near you while you're there!!

Disclosure: I am an official ambassador for Dole Fresh Fruits and Vegetables. Dole provided me free salad and banana coupons to facilitate this post -- as well as monetary compensation for my time. As always, all opinions expressed in this post are mine.

Share this post