After my candida prevention protocol, following my wisdom teeth surgery, I wasn’t eating fruit. I may have consumed a few dates here and there but I largely stayed away from fruit. I finally feel like my body is in a better place where it can tolerate fruit so I’m siked to enjoy some of my old favorite foods!
HELLO ACAI SMOOTHIE BOWLSSSS 💃💃💃
My elimination diet showed me that ripe bananas aren’t all that great for me. Barely yellow bananas are more tolerable but the nice, sweet, RIPE bananas I enjoyed before throw off my blood sugar. Therefore, I’m choosing to keep my banana intake to a minimum. So how else can you get a smoothie bowl to taste sweet and creamy sans bananas? I’m about to show you! 😉
Frozen fruit & veg – As you may remember from my Sweet & Fluffy Smoothie Bowl post, FROZEN ingredients are always the way to go to make a smoothie thicker. I also make sure to include a powerhouse fruit like MANGO to help compensate for the flavors banana would otherwise provide.
Yogurt– A game-changing ingredient that provides some creaminess and body. Use whatever kind you like but this Forager Project one is the best dairy-free kind I’ve tried!
Superfoods– I like to throw in some flax mixed with water—a “flax egg”—for creaminess and fiber. The addition of protein powder also helps to provide staying power and more substance than the typical acai shop bowl. I like a neutral-tasting protein powder such as hemp because it allows the acai and fruit flavors to take center stage.
If you’re into lower sugar or alternative ways to make your favorite sweet treats, then you’ll love this bowl! Tell me what your go-to smoothie order or combination is in the comments down below 🙂
If you haven’t yet made a flax egg, add the tablespoon of ground flax plus three tablespoons of water to the blender and wait 5 minutes for it to thicken.
Then, add all of the other ingredients to a blender or food processor (my lazy go-to) and blend until thoroughly combined.
Serve in a bowl with whatever fresh toppings your heart desires! I like berries but you can totally skip fruit toppings and opt for low-sugar granola, nut butter, bee pollen, and coconut. (Okay, usually I add coconut but I forgot this time!)
Note: *If using fresh blueberries, your smoothie bowl will be a little more liquidy than frozen but it is still delicious!
Have you ever wondered how to make your smoothies ultra thick and fluffy but just end up with a flat fruity liquid? Stay tuned for my top fluffy smoothie tips!
As I write this, I’m currently at home, in my comfy clothes, and with a mouth full of stitches. Okay, that sounds dramatic but, with all seriousness, I did just get my wisdom teeth removed. I know the thought of dentists and teeth weirds some people out so go ahead and skip to the bottom if you’re just here for the recipe.
Ever since November of last year, I knew 2018 was going to be the year I would get my wisdom teeth removed. My dentist has been telling me they were surfacing and close to pushing on my other teeth. So, after my last dental check-up, I just bit the bullet and made an appointment.
I’ve never had cavities or any big problems with my teeth so I can’t say I had too many concerns going in. Obviously the pain was concerning. Also, the fact that I would need to take some days off of work for recuperation was concerning (since I’m currently on my first year probationary period). Though, the real fright came the day of my wisdom teeth extraction when I got some news sprung on me.
While I was prepared to get all four of my teeth pulled out, I was not prepared for was the information my dentist gave me that day. Apparently, my two bottom teeth were literally grazing the top of a very sensitive nerve canal in my jaw. Basically, my dentist said, if the nerve gets damaged during the extraction, I could end up with numbness for a few weeks, months, or even a lifetime.
Perfect timing to break this to me, doc.
The chances were super slim. Apparently 99% people who have that occur will regain feeling within six months. So, I mean, my wisdom teeth were still wreaking havoc in my mouth… I figured I just needed to go through with the procedure as planned.
Thankfully, I’m here three days later and I’m okay. My cheeks are super swollen but I hardly have pain so that is good. I was even able to eat some solid (but soft) food today! Yay!
Let’s keep up the spirit of celebration by talking about this Sweet and Fluffy Smoothie Bowl, yeah?
Sometimes a drinkable smoothie is good. Sometimes a thick frozen puree is calling my name. And sometimes, I’m craving a fluffy cloud for breakfast. Anyone else?
If you have trouble getting your smoothie fluffy, use these ingredients:
Frozen banana – a usual suspect in smoothies but undeniably the best creamy and naturally sweet addition.
Chia seeds – add a tablespoon to your smoothie liquid (milk or water) to soak before adding the rest of your ingredients. Trust me. The soaked chia makes ALL the difference.
Ground flaxseed – follow the same method for the chia seeds for an easy, nutritious way to add body to a smoothie.
Frozen mango – serves to add thickness and fluff, and sweetness, just like banana.
Frozen cauliflower – the trendy fruit-free smoothie thickener. When mixed with other berries, spices, or flavored powders, it will remain unrecognizable in your smoothie. Try my Sweet Potato Cinnamon Peach Smoothie!
Frozen zucchini – you’ve seen me use this in previous smoothies like my Green Banana Tahini Shake and Zucchini Smoothie Bowl. I love using this light and easily digestible vegetable to give my smoothie some body.
Protein powder – it’s hard to get a fruit-only smoothie to be fluffy but add in some protein powder and suddenly it becomes a thick shake-like texture.
And for a new fluffy smoothie ingredient discovery of mine…oat milk!
Oat milk – make your own by soaking half a cup of dry rolled oats in 2-3 cups of water. Blend and strain as you would nut milk (reserve the oat pulp for overnight oats!). The starchiness from the oats releases into the water which helps add incredible thickness to any smoothie.
This list of ingredients is not comprehensive but it does include my go-to choices for making a delicious, thick smoothie. Tinker around with whichever ingredients sound good to you. Mix one or two with your favorite fruit or greens and let me know what you think!
If you want a little inspiration for how to combine some of these fluff-boosters then look no further.
The addition of Minimalist Baker’s Rawnola, bee pollen, and ground flax make this breakfast bowl a real treat.
Sweet and Fluffy Smoothie Bowl
Recipe Type: Breakfast
Cuisine: Vegan
Author: Melanie
Prep time:
Total time:
Serves: 1 bowl
I use a combination of my top fluff-boosters to make this ultra creamy, dreamy, and fluffy smoothie bowl!
Add ¾ cup of the milk and frozen goods to the blender. Process until everything is nice and smooth.
Add the protein powder and, if needed, the remaining milk to the blender.
Let the blender run for at least a minute. The longer it blends, the more the ingredients get whipped (aka FLUFFY).
Once your smoothie is sufficiently fluffed, pour it into a bowl and add whatever toppings you like. I’ve been loving rawnola and bee pollen lately but coconut or fresh fruit would also be good! Enjoy!
3.5.3251
Thanks so much for reading! I am living off of pureed soups and smoothies these days but you definitely don’t need to have your wisdom teeth pulled out to enjoy this baby. If you give it a try—or if you try using any of my favorite fluff-boosters—let me know what you think! xoxo
I’m such a fan of sweet potato. I used to eat whole sweet potatoes all by myself, multiple times a week, every week. Oh, the good days. Now, I sync food with my cycle phases so I mostly consume sweet potatoes during my luteal phase. The more I cycle-sync, the more I’ve adapted my cravings to phase appropriate foods. So, this shake is a mash-up of WomanCode recommended luteal foods like sweet potato, cauliflower, and peach. More deets about cycle-syncing here, but you don’t need to follow WomanCode to enjoy this smoothie!
The Sweet Potato Cinnamon Peach Smoothie does require a bit of prep work for the veggies but once you have these items in your freezer arsenal, you will be able to reap the benefits of many future smoothies! So, I promise it’s worth it!
First up is the cauliflower. Raw cauliflower can wreak havoc on the tummy so I steam and freeze it for smoothies. It’s also easy to rinse and chop cauliflower and then stick it in the microwave for 3-5 minutes until tender. Let it cool to room temperature before freezing it on a tray to avoid clumps. Then, move it to a freezer bag or container. In a frozen state, the cauliflower makes a neutral and thick base!
Is there anything more delicious than roasted sweet potato? I think not. Roasting brings out the natural sweetness and caramel-like flavors in sweet potatoes so don’t skip this step. Once roasted and cooled, you can slice it into large cubes (to make it easier on your blender later) and freeze. The sweet potato can be used roasted and cold but frozen creates thickness to make this smoothie shake-like.
I also throw some dark leafy greens into my smoothie. Be warned: fresh ones will have a greener taste. Frozen greens, on the other hand, can hide their taste a little better in the smoothie. Both methods, fresh or frozen, and any leafy green should work.
I always prefer frozen over fresh produce for smoothies because frozen goods make a cold and frosty smoothie. Though, for this recipe, I’m taking advantage of summer peaches and using it fresh. The fruit is extra sweet when used fresh, just like how the fresh leafy greens taste extra green. I haven’t tested with frozen peaches but be sure to add more liquid if you go that route.
I cut out the flesh from aloe vera leaves (as shown) and throw it into my food processor. Once blended, the aloe becomes a sticky liquid which I pour into an ice cube tray. I fill each slot 3/4 of the way so that I can easily pop a cube into my smoothies each day.
Aloe Vera is the last and the optional addition to the Sweet Potato Cinnamon Peach Smoothie. Lately, I’ve been into adding a tablespoon’s worth of frozen aloe Vera gel to my smoothies. Supposedly the plant has crazy health benefits. My Mexican ancestors used to vouch for the spectrum of benefits cactus has. It can help everything from your skin to your digestion and even help your immune system. Though, store-bought aloe should also work if you want to incorporate it into this smoothie (or any other smoothie recipe)!
Sweet Potato Cinnamon Peach Smoothie
Recipe Type: Breakfast
Cuisine: Smoothie
Author: Melanie
Prep time:
Total time:
Serves: 1 smoothie
Here is where summer and fall meet. Warm flavors of sweet potato and cinnamon combine with the fruity freshness of peach to make a delicious smoothie. Admittedly, I like my smoothies thick so this recipe is more shake-like but smoothie sounds more pleasant in the title. 🙂
Ingredients
3/4 cup frozen sweet potatoes
1 cup frozen cauliflower florets
A large, fresh white peach
2 tbsp almond butter
1 cube frozen aloe vera gel, optional
A handful of greens
1 scoop vanilla protein
½ tsp cinnamon
½ tsp maqui berry powder, optional
About ½ cup water or milk (plus, more to thin to desired consistency)
Instructions
To make the layered smoothie, start with the base of sweet potato, cauliflower, peach, almond butter, aloe, and cinnamon. I like to blend these up with water before adding the protein powder. Otherwise, the protein powder seems to absorb the liquid without leaving any for smoothing out the ingredients.
Next, add the protein powder, and blend again, scraping down the sides if necessary.
Once smooth, pour almost half of the mixture into a serving glass. To the blender, add the maqui berry powder and blend again.
Add half of the maqui berry layer to the top of the first layer in your glass. Reserve the remaining contents for the green layer.
Scrape down the sides of the blender and add the handful of greens. The smallest splash of water also helps get the mixture going. When the greens layer is smooth, pour it into your glass.
The top layer will taste very GREEN so be sure to stir it up after taking a picture 😉
Notes
The prep time does not include freezing time. Most of the main ingredients are frozen except for the peach. See the post for preparation tips and why I use frozen vs fresh.[br]If you don’t have maqui berry powder, skip the middle layer and just make one larger green layer. It doesn’t contribute much flavor-wise, anyway.[br]If the layering business is too much of a fuss, the smoothie also tastes awesome when it is all blended up together at once.
My love for tahini is almost a year long affair. It’s wild to think I hadn’t ever tried tahini prior to that. Heck, I was not even a fan of peanut butter two years ago. YES. I’m not kidding. This girl was not a fan of nut butter.
I once heard that our taste buds change every 7 years. I’m not sure how accurate that is so don’t take my word for it but I know our tastes are cyclical. Whenever my last taste bud change last occurred it made me a fan of dark leafy greens, too. Leafy greens used to taste like dry, bitter plants to me but I’ve come a long way. Look at me now, putting both of them in my smoothie!
If you’ve seen or tried my classic Banana Tahini Shake, then you’ll be a fan of this one! It is similar in texture but uses a few different ingredients to make it thick and shake-like. Smoothies and shakes are both breakfast favorites of mine but, unlike smoothies, shakes are nice and thick!
Also, I’d describe the flavor of this shake as being refreshing. It’s lightly sweetened but it tastes fresh thanks to the peppermint extract. You could use fresh mint, or simply omit. Though, I recommend it for a flavor booster! You could even experiment by substituting your favorite food-grade extract.
Let me know what you come up with if you give this recipe a try!
Green Banana Tahini Shake
Recipe Type: Breakfast
Author: Melanie
Prep time:
Total time:
Serves: 1 shake
Ingredients
1 tbsp chia seeds
1 tbsp ground flax seed
½ cup water or milk of choice
A cube of frozen aloe vera juice, optional
A large handful of fresh baby greens ~ 1 heaping cup
1 cup frozen cauliflower
½ frozen banana
1 ½ tbsp tahini
4 drops peppermint extract
1 scoop chocolate or vanilla protein powder ( I used chocolate)
1 tbsp cacao powder, for enhanced chocolate flavor
Instructions
Add the first three ingredients to the blender and let sit for 5 minutes. This will give the seeds a chance to expand and, thus, provide a thickening power to the shake. You can also prep and soak the seeds overnight, if desired.
After the seeds have expanded, add the fresh greens and blend until smooth.
Next, toss in the remaining ingredients and blend. If necessary, pour in an extra splash of water or milk.
For the best experience, pour the shake into an empty tahini jar to enjoy!
Oftentimes, I make some really fantastic smoothies and I don’t measure. If you know me, I’m all about cooking with as few utensils as possible! Simply, a handful of frozen this or that and a dollop of nut butter save me from having to wash measuring cups. As much as I love smoothies, I dislike having to wash the blender and blades so I want to minimize dirty dishes! For the sake of perfecting my beet and greens smoothie, I whipped out the measuring cups.
As you know from my Beet Brownies and Beet-filled Recipes Round-Up, beets are one of my favorite vegetables to cook with. Previously, I’ve added beets to smoothies but they have a way of taking over and overwhelming the smoothie. They are just as sweet as berries and filled with antioxidants so I decided to try subbing my usual berries for a quarter of a roasted beet. That was the perfect subtle way to sneak in the beet and keep the smoothie lightly sweet.
Also, just like my Carrot Mango Tumeric Smoothie, this Beet and Greens Smoothie is a thinner consistency. I like my thick shakes but right now I’m on a kick with these drinkable smoothies. Though, it’s not so thin that you couldn’t use a spoon—I still do! 😉
Additionally, I’ve been adding ashwaganda and maca powder to my smoothies for the past few months. I use Maju Superfoods brand which is affordable and a little bit of powder really goes a long way. They are not necessary for taste but they have health benefits, such as hormonal regulation, that I enjoy. It’s a little soon for me to see benefits but smoothies are the easiest way to incorporate them! Of course, you can totally make the smoothie without the boosters.
Let me know what you think if you try out this Beet and Greens Smoothie! 🙂
Beet and Greens Protein Smoothie
Recipe Type: Breakfast
Author: Melanie
Prep time:
Total time:
Serves: 1 smoothie
This smoothie makes perfect use of the beetroot and its greens. Any leafy greens will work though! The ingredient combination makes for one modest-sized smoothie. It’s sweet and zippy and so refreshing!
Ingredients
2 handfuls ~ 1 cup fresh or frozen leafy greens (I used beet greens)
¾ cup cashew milk or chai tea*
½ cup sliced and frozen zucchini
½ medium frozen banana
¼ large roasted and frozen beet root ~ ¼ cup
½ inch knob of frozen or fresh ginger root
a cube of frozen aloe vera juice (optional)
1 tsp cacao powder
a scoop chocolate plant-based protein
1 tbsp ground flax
½- 1 tsp cinnamon
1 tbsp almond butter
½ tsp ashwaganda root powder (optional)
½ maca powder (optional)
Instructions
First, add the greens and liquid to a blender and blend up until smooth. I find this prevents difficult-to-break-down greens from leaving flakes in the end result. If you have a high powered blender, feel free to throw everything in at once.
Next, add in the all of the rest of the ingredients and powders, if using. I find it best to throw the frozen ingredients on top of the powders so that they don’t fly up and stick to the sides of the blender.
Finally, enjoy the smoothie as is, with a sprinkle of extra cinnamon, coconut flakes, or some granola on top.
Notes
*Milk is the preferred choice in a smoothie but I tried some brewed and cooled chai tea in it and that tasted wonderful! Feel free to use chai or herbal tea for an added depth of flavor!
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