The longevity smoothie

THE Japanese island of Okinawa, often called ‘The Land of the Immortals’, is one of the five so-called Blue Zones — regions with the oldest and healthiest people in the world. Throughout the 20th century, Okinawans had much lower levels of heart disease, cancer and dementia than Western nations and a far higher rate of centenarians — all because of the traditional diet they used to eat. I use the past tense because, sadly, this is a thing of the past. Now home to more than a dozen KFC restaurants, islanders’ saturated fat intake levels have tripled in the years since World War II, as has their salt intake. Indeed, today there are campaigns to persuade Okinawans to eat . . . the Okinawan diet. So what was it? Only 1 per cent of their diet was fish, less than 1 per cent was other meats, and less than one per cent was dairy and eggs, so it was more than 96 per cent plants, with few processed foods. Soy, seaweed, mushrooms, ginger and, above all, steamed sweet potatoes were all key ingredients. To get the benefit of that famously healthy diet, I’ve devised a sweet-tasting, Okinawan-inspired smoothie, packed with nutrients for long life.

SERVES 1

● ½ cooked then frozen sweet potato (purple varieties are even better than the orange one, if you can find them)

● ¼ inch piece of turmeric root

● ¾ tsp matcha

● 1 cup unsweetened soya milk

● 1½ tsp ground flaxseed

● 1½ tsp wheatgerm

● 35g cranberries

● 70g strawberries

● 3 pitted dates

● ¼ tsp mixed spice

● Pinch of cardamom

MICROWAVE the sweet potato on high until it is fork-tender. When it is cool enough to be handled, cut it in half and freeze both halves. (You’ll use half for this recipe and the other half next time you’re craving this smoothie.) Once frozen, place all the ingredients in a blender, and whizz until smooth.