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Carrot Cake Green Smoothie
Carrot Cake Smoothie
This one is practically a salad hidden inside of dessert.
Gluten free if gluten free oats are used
Vegan if vegan protein powder and non-dairy milk are used
½ banana
ice
1 cup baby carrots
¼ cup oats
¼ cup raw cashews
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 scoop vanilla protein powder
4 drops liquid stevia
2 tbsp. nonfat plain Greek yogurt or reduced fat cream cheese (optional, only if non-vegan)
1-2 tsp. pumpkin pie spice
greens
milk
Get this and 29 other dessert flavored green smoothie recipes for only $.99!
Have Your Cake and Spinach Too: Dessert Flavored Green Smoothies for Health & Weight Loss
Only $.99 on Kindle!
Green smoothies are gaining in popularity as people realize that they are a great way to increase your consumption of leafy greens in a easy and great-tasting smoothie.
You may be amazed to discover that spinach can be make to taste like a mint chocolate chip shake or that kale can be blended into an apple crisp smoothie! Green smoothies are a great, easy way to eat (okay, actually drink) your veggies while enjoying great flavor and the convenience of a shake.
Leafy greens are low in calories yet high in vitamins, fiber and minerals. Their high water content means that it is difficult to eat them whole and raw in large quantities but this same characteristic makes them very blendable. It is quite easy to make almost half a pound of greens disappear into your smoothie!
In addition to the greens, these smoothies are chock full of other healthy ingredients: fruits, nuts, seeds, spices and even dark chocolate. These filling foods mean that these smoothies make a great snack or even a meal and can be a great component of a weight loss plan.
Many of these recipes are kid-friendly and can be a great way to encourage a greater intake of fruits and vegetables.
One of my favorite benefits of green smoothies is that they are easy. The greens don’t require any special prep. The oven is never turned on. All I have to do is throw a bunch of ingredients in the blender and let the machine do its job. It doesn’t get any easier!
This collection of recipes is sure to please your palate and your health!
Carrot Cake Greek Yogurt
I’m in the process of writing a book of green smoothie recipes. This means my belly has been sloshing over the past few weeks as I test and retest various recipes and the fridge is always full of mass quantities of spinach and kale.
The cold front that pushed through this afternoon convinced me to take a break from the smoothies tonight. However, I still wanted something sweet after my bowl of soup and the house is empty of my usual choices. As so often happens, the lack of a clear option led to innovation. The impulse concoction was good enough that I thought I would share it.
I threw the following in the Vitamix (a food processor would work as well):
1 cup baby carrots
1 cup plain nonfat Greek yogurt
1/2 tsp vanilla
1 tsp pumpkin pie seasoning
2 tbsp ground flax seed
1/4 cup oats (I used gluten free)
2 tbsp Splenda brown sugar blend (other sweeteners would work too)
Sorry there’s no photo – it disappeared too quickly! 🙂
Right This Moment
Since last April, my daily breakfast has consisted of a green smoothie: 1/2 a banana, frozen mixed berries, protein powder, cinnamon, vanilla, kale, spinach, almond butter, and almond milk. Prior to last spring, I consumed my pumpkin oatmeal every day for almost 5 years: oatmeal, pumpkin, blueberries, flax seed, protein powder, almond milk, and walnuts. I’ve loved the switch to the smoothie. It still fills me up until lunch and it helps me increase my consumption of leafy greens without the time commitment needed for endless salads. I’ve loved the smoothies. Until today.
Georgia welcomed its first real cold front of the season last night. I awoke to a cold house, the wind blowing through the cracks in the windows and reaching up through the floors to wrap itself around my ankles. I poured myself out of bed, wrapped my body in layers of rediscovered winter clothes, and went to make the coffee. While I was enjoying my coffee, I realized I was dreading my breakfast. Dread or not, I made my smoothie and drank it down, which led to a subsequent drop in my core temperature with accompanying shivers. I usually meditate after breakfast, but this morning that was replaced with a mad dash to a hot shower.
Those smoothies, in all their green-powered awesomeness, are perfect in the warmer months. But, perhaps, I need to recognize that just because something was right for me yesterday, does not necessarily mean that it is right for me today. I suppose I will need to revert to my pumpkin concoction for the next few months or invent a new breakfast. Spinach oatmeal, anyone?
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