Choco Coconut Almont Banana Smoothie

Chocolate! Coconut! Almond! Banana! In a smoothie! This is my go-to quick breakfast of late, but it could also double as a dessert!

Makes 1 Super Delicious Smoothie

1 banana
1 cup coconut milk
1 tablespoon almond butter
1 tablespoon unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 teaspoon vanilla (optional)
1 scoop unsweetened protein powder (optional)
1 teaspoon flax seed meal (optional)

For breakfast smoothie, I include the protein powder and flax. For dessert smoothie, I omit those and include the vanilla.

1. Add all ingredients to a blender and mix on high until well blended. For an icy treat, add 4-5 ice cubes to the blender.

Green Smoothies

I was thinking of buying a juicer so I could drink my vegetables. I even had a juicer all picked out and ready to buy. Then I came across Tera Warner's Green Smoothie Challenge. Instead of juicing her veggies, Tera just blends them up into what she affectionately calls "lawn mower pulp". No expensive, messy juicer required. And by blending your veggies instead of juicing, you keep all that wonderful fiber!

For green smoothie newbies, Tara recommends the following green concoction:

Green Smoothie for Newbies

1 cup water
1 banana
1 handful spinach

Add water and banana to blender and blend until smooth. Add in spinach and blend together.

Instead of water, I had some Green Goodness juicer from Bolthouse Farms. It added a bit of extra sweetness and made the spinach much more palatable.

My next green smoothie experiment included even more greens:

Orange, Red and Green All Over

1/2 cup carrot juice (or carrot/fruit blend)
1/2 cup water
2-3 strawberries
1 handful spinach leaves
1 stalk celery, roughly chopped
1 handful fresh parsley leaves

Add liquid and strawberries to blender and mix well. Add in spinach, parsley and celery and blend on high until everything is pulverized and juicy green!

Next up I'm going to try kale. I'm not sure how that one will go but I'm willing to try it out!

Smoothie of the Day - Carrot Banana Blueberry

Part of my regular routine when I'm working is a morning smoothie. Everyday I mix up something different based on what I have on hand. This is what I came up with today:

Carrot Banana Blueberry Smoothie:

- 1/4 cup carrot juice
- 1/2 cup unsweetened almond milk
- 1/2 cup frozen blueberries
- 1 whole banana, broken into pieces
- 2 tbsp plain cultured coconut (a.k.a. coconut yogurt)
- 1 tsp fiber supplement

Toss everything in a blender and blend until smooth! The orange from the carrot juice mixed with the blueberries makes a strange dark purplish-brown colour. It doesn't look too appetizing but it tastes just fine.

Peach Kombucha Smoothie

Kombucha is a fermented tea beverage that is thought to have similar health benefits as Kefir and other cultured foods. It has been served for centuries in Europe and Asia, where it is considered a health tonic. Read more about Kombucha here.

I have read much about this supposed wonder drink but I had yet to try it myself. I bought two bottles ($3.49 each!) and set about taste testing.

Kombucha is, in a word, bad. It smells like vinegar and tastes about the same. But that didn't deter me. Instead of drinking it straight up, I did what I do with Kefir and poured it into a blender to make a smoothie. The results were pretty darn tasty. This particular smoothie is vegan but you could add a bit of greek yogourt if you wanted. I added a bit of flax seed meal to boost the fibre.

Peach Kombucha Smoothie

Serves 2

- 1/2 cup water
- 1 cup Kombucha (plain or peach flavour)
- 2 whole fresh peaches, skin on, sliced or 2 cups frozen peach segments or combination of fresh & frozen peaches to equal 2 cups
- add ins of your choice, about 2 teaspoons (flax meal, chia, protein powder, wheat germ etc)
- 1 cup ice

1. Add the first 4 ingredients to a blender and blend well.

2. Add ice and blend again to crush. Pour into two tall glasses.

Hibiscus Tea Smoothie

Hibiscus Tea is often referred to as the "Super flower" tea. It is said that Hibiscus Tea can lower blood pressure, lower cholesterol and, since it is rich in vitamin C, contribute to a healthy immune system. Sounds great, right? Only one problem. I can't stomach Hibiscus tea. The smell is too floral and overpowering so I have a very hard time getting it down. Instead I thought I would try to mask the strong scent by using the tea in a smoothie of frozen berries and yogurt.

Marianne has been looking for pure Hibiscus Tea all over Vancouver. I found mine while visiting the States (can't remember if it was in Palm Springs or North Carolina). If you have trouble finding Hibiscus Tea (or any other variety), check out The Republic of Tea.



Their Be Well Red Tea Collection is great; the Get Clean Tea for daily detox is my favourite. It's red rooibos based with milk thistle seed, sarsaparilla root, danelion root, chicory root and other things to help flush out your liver and kidneys. It's all natural and flavoured with a hint of vanilla and almond. Much tastier than drinking straight dandelion root tea!

Anyway, back to the Hibiscus Tea Smoothie...

Makes 1 large Smoothie

3/4 cup strongly brewed Hibiscus Tea, cooled slightly
1/4 cup milk
1/2 cup plain or Greek yogurt
1/2 cup frozen berries (I used blueberries & strawberries this time. Raspberries are great too!)
1 tbsp ground flax seed or flax oil

1. Add everything to a blender and blend until smooth. Pour into a glass and enjoy!

Try Green Tea or other herbal teas in place of Hibiscus!

Strawberry Dessert Soup

After a failed experiment making vegan black bean cakes (think crab cakes but with black beans), I needed something sweet to cheer me up. From The Healthiest Meals on Earth comes my version of Strawberry Soup. Made with a mix of fresh and frozen berries, probiotic yogurt and raw honey, this soup was the perfect pick me up. It's also the perfect make ahead dessert.

Serves 4-6 or 1 with lots of left overs!

1 1/2 heaping cups fresh strawberries, washed & trimmed
1/2 heaping cup frozen assorted berries (I used blueberries, blackberries & raspberries)
2 tbsp fresh orange juice
2/3 cup plain organic pro biotic yogurt
1/4 cup raw honey (raw = unpasteurized = unprocessed! Look for unpasteurized creamed honey in the store.) You could also use agave syrup.

1. Puree berries in blender with orange juice. Add yogurt and honey and blend on low until thoroughly mixed and smooth. You want the consistency of a thick, pureed soup. If the consistency is too thick (more like a smoothie), add a tablespoon of water or orange juice.

2. Pour into glass serving bowls and serve immediately. Garnish with sliced berries or fresh mint leaves.

Variations:

- Do as the french do and add a splash of sparkling wine to each bowl when serving, making a fun bubbly treat.
- Do as the original recipe called and add 1/4 cup dry red wine to the finished puree and stir gently to mix (omit the orange juice).
- Add a 1/4 tsp of cinnamon, cardamom, or other sweet spice to the blender, or even a splash of vanilla.
- Instead of serving as a soup, pour into a glass bowl, cover and freeze for 2-3 hours for a fresh, fruity frozen yogurt/sorbet.
- Make a dessert smoothie by lowering the liquid to fruit ratio to produce "soup" with a thicker consistency. Pour into glasses and serve with a straw.

Or do as I did... dessert soup the first night and frozen yogurt/sorbet the next!