World-renowned supermodel, mother and author Gisele Bündchen knows what it takes to sustain a healthy lifestyle and is sharing a plethora of her family's favorite delicious and nutritious dishes, plus self-care routines, in her debut cookbook, "Nourish."
The Brazilian-born fashion icon joined "Good Morning America" in the kitchen to recreate two recipes from "Nourish: Simple Recipes to Empower Your Body and Feed Your Soul: A Healthy Lifestyle Cookbook."
Check out Bündchen's full ingredients and instructions below for her daily smoothie -- plus everything you need to know about choosing the right fruits -- and homemade pesto chicken lettuce wraps to make at home.
Gisele Bündchen's next chapter includes new cookbook 'Nourish'"I used to do cleanses when I was run down -- but I've found a new routine that gives me tons of energy, has overhauled my gut health, satisfies my sweet tooth, and is easier to execute: drinking a daily smoothie made with sweet fruit. As I learned from the Valente Brothers -- different types of food take different amounts of time and enzymes to be processed by our bodies," Bündchen wrote in the cookbook alongside this recipe.
"Therefore, simplifying food combinations can help to simplify digestion. So these smoothies include only three or four ingredients: one 'solid' sweet fruit for bulk, the juice of one 'liquid' sweet fruit, and sometimes dates for sweetness. This combination blends easily without water, which keeps it nutritionally dense. I also add almonds or unflavored protein powder to make a complete meal. Since I use frozen fruit, the texture is super thick, a bit like ice cream, which my kids and I love."
"The following recipes are three of my favorite combinations, but experiment using the list of 'liquid' and 'solid' fruits (see page 54). While these smoothies are designed to be digested easily and quickly, you can always deconstruct them and eat the fruit and nuts unprocessed, if you would rather chew your meal -- this gives all the same health benefits with just a bit more time needed to digest. (Note: Eating these ingredients unprocessed will likely mean you will eat less than the amounts called for.)
"I like drinking these banana smoothies in the daytime, as the banana tends to be more binding. My favorite 'liquid' fruits for this smoothie are watermelon, honeydew, or unsweetened coconut water."
Ingredients
About 4 cups frozen peeled, halved bananas (about 4 large bananas)
About 3 cups juice from a "liquid" fruit
1/4 cup soaked and peeled almonds, blanched almonds, almond cream, or ground almond solids (from making almond milk), or 1 scoop unflavored protein powder
Directions
Place the bananas in the blender with the juice and almonds. (Or you can prepare the juice ahead of time and store in the fridge for up to 24 hours, then quickly blend with the remaining ingredients the next morning.)
Blend until creamy and smooth. If desired, strain through a fine-mesh sieve to remove the tiny banana seeds for easier digestion. Enjoy!
Quickest smoothie: The fastest and simplest smoothie is a banana smoothie made with unsweetened coconut water and blanched almonds. I strain the smoothie for optimal digestion, but you don't have to. This smoothie requires no juicer or other prep ahead of time -- perfect for the last minute.
"The Valentes categorize sweet fruits as 'solid' fruits and 'liquid' fruits. Every smoothie requires frozen 'solid' fruit to bulk up the smoothie, 'liquid' fruit to aid in the processing of the solid fruit, and other additions (almonds, dates, etc.). The exact recipes include some of my favorite fruit combinations -- experiment to find your favorites."
'Liquid' Fruits
"Other than coconut water and apple juice, these 'liquid' fruits need to be put through a juicer to remove seeds and fibers. If you do not have a juicer, you can process these in the blender until very smooth, then strain using a fine sieve."
Honeydew
Cantaloupe
Watermelon
Apples (not green)
Unsweetened coconut water
Unsweetened pure apple juice
Note: fruits processed at home are best, but purchased organic juice is fine in a pinch
'Solid' Fruits
"All the 'solid' fruits are frozen for the best smoothie texture."
Pears, cored, roughly chopped
Papayas, seeded, pulp scooped from the skin
Bananas, peeled
Apples, not green (see Note), cored, roughly chopped
Red guava, halved, peeled
Jackfruit, interior flesh only
Coconut meat
Acai
Note: Sweet red apples can function as a "liquid" or "solid" fruit, depending on whether you need liquid to aid in the blending process or want the fiber and texture.
Serves 2
"My kids eat very well, but Benny, my firstborn, had the benefit of my exclusive attention when it came to his early meals -- I made them as nutrient dense and clean as possible. As our family grew (and grew up), I realized my idealized meals weren't always practical or popular across the household. Even if I had wanted to eat mostly simply prepared vegetables, sometimes my kids didn't want that. Behold the power of a lettuce wrap! For children, there's something exciting about being told to eat with your hands, and as a mom, I'm just thrilled that they enjoy lettuce leaves stuffed with shredded carrots and zucchini, lean chicken, and other good-for-them ingredients. Super-nutritious and kid-friendly, these are a win-win."
Ingredients
2 cups thinly sliced or shredded cooked chicken
3 tablespoons pesto (recipe below or store-bought)
Extra-virgin olive oil
12 large Bibb lettuce leaves (from about 2 heads)
1 medium carrot, coarsely shredded
1 medium zucchini, coarsely shredded
1 1/2 teaspoons apple cider vinegar
Fine sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup microgreens (optional)
Pesto
1/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese (optional)
2 tablespoons toasted pine nuts or toasted walnuts
1 garlic clove, coarsely chopped
Fine sea salt
1 cup packed fresh basil leaves
1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for storage
Directions
For the pesto
Feel free to double the recipe to use for a couple of applications.
In a blender or a food processor, combine the cheese (if using), nuts, garlic and a pinch of salt, pulsing until the mixture is ground. Add the basil and process, pushing the mixture with the tamper or scraping down the sides a couple of times, until the basil is evenly chopped. With the motor running, slowly pour in the olive oil, processing until the pesto is as smooth as you like.
Taste, adding additional salt, if needed. Store, covered, in an airtight glass container in the refrigerator, topped with a thin layer of olive oil to prevent it from turning brown, for up to 4 days.
To make the wraps
In a medium bowl, combine the chicken and 2 tablespoons of the pesto, stirring to coat. In a small bowl, thin out the remaining tablespoon pesto with 1 to 2 tablespoons olive oil -- just enough to be sauce-like.
Divide the lettuce leaves into 6 piles of 2 leaves stacked on top of each other. Arrange little piles of the carrot and zucchini on top of each 2-leaf stack, then sprinkle each stack with a bit of vinegar and a couple small pinches of salt and pepper.
Divide scoops of the dressed chicken over the vegetables, and then drizzle each stack with a bit of the pesto sauce. Garnish with a few microgreens, if using, then serve.
Recipes reprinted with permission courtesy of "Nourish" Copyright © 2024 by Gisele Bündchen Co. Food photographs copyright © 2024 by Eva Kolenko. Lifestyle photographs copyright © 2024 by Kevin O'Brien. Published by Clarkson Potter, an imprint of Crown Publishing Group.
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