Smoothie banane-mangue

Break the peeled bananas into chunks and cube the mango, cutting the flesh away from the flat seed in the middle. For the thickest, creamiest smoothie, freeze the fruit chunks for at least 1 hour before blending (this also means you can skip the ice).

Put the banana, mango and milk into a blender. Blend on high for 30–45 seconds, scraping down the sides once, until completely smooth with no fruit lumps left.

Add the ice cubes if using and blend again for 15–20 seconds until thick but pourable. If it's too thick to drink easily, loosen with a splash more milk; if too thin, add a few more frozen fruit chunks and blend again.

Taste the smoothie: ripe fruit should make it sweet enough on its own. A tiny squeeze of lime juice can lift the flavour without needing any sugar.

Pour into short, chubby cups little hands can hold. For picky eaters, you can add a simple face on top: dice a little extra mango into pieces no larger than 1/2 inch, and cut a small piece of banana lengthwise into thin strips or quarters (never round coins) to arrange as a smile. Only serve this topping to a child who is sitting down and supervised, and remind them to eat the fruit pieces with a spoon rather than trying to sip them through the drink.

Drink straight away for the best texture. Leftovers keep in a sealed cup in the fridge for up to a day (stir or shake before drinking); for a lunchbox, freeze in a small insulated bottle so it's slushy and thawed by snack time.