Earlier this year I learned about a resource available to us Extension Educators in Kansas. The “Blender Bike” or “Smoothie Bicycle” is not your ordinary stationery bike. It’s a K-State purple bike with an apparatus above the wheel where we attach a blender container. Resistance against the tire when the bike is pedaled spins the blades of the blender. Each time I brought the blender bike out for a demonstration at our recent Barton County Fair it drew a crowd of curious folks.
Smoothie recipes are easy to create. You can choose from ingredients that you like or have on hand. For our smoothies at the Fair I started by chopping one banana and adding 1 cup of frozen fruit. Blueberry/mango or raspberry/mango were the hands down favorites. Then we added a cup of liquid, like any type of milk or 100% fruit juice. We put all of the ingredients in the blender container and fair goers took turns pedaling the bike in order to create the smoothie. I guess you could say I made them exercise for their snack!
Fruit smoothies are a healthy and refreshing snack during the summer. Depending on the ingredients you choose, a 1 cup serving has around 110 calories, 1.5 grams total fat, 8 grams protein, 14 grams carbohydrate, 1-gram dietary fiber, and 115 mg sodium. Smoothies also provide an excellent source of vitamin C and calcium. And while the blender bike was a fun way to make our smoothies you can certainly use your home blender to create a healthy snack for your family.
I noticed some additional recipes that accompanied the blender bike were “Blender Salsa” and “Bicycle Hummus.” The blender bike is currently at a booth in the commercial building of the Ellis County Fair. It will also be shared at farmer’s markets in Hays and Great Bend later this month. The blender bike activity is designed to support and encourage children and families to eat well and be active. It was fun to see the smiles on the faces of the participants who helped make this activity a success!
Donna Krug is the Family & Consumer Science Agent with K-State Research and Extension – Cottonwood District. Contact her at 620-793-1910 or dkrug@ksu.edu.
