Simple Green Smoothie

I’m back with some more smoothie goodness! This time we have a new color coming up to Maple Alps - green! Yes, I’m here with a green smoothie.

The first time I had a green smoothie, I was in high school. When they became more popular, I counted it as old news. ;-)

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Some tips for green smoothies:

1. Blend the greens in the milk before adding in the rest of your ingredients. This will help avoid bits of leafy greens you’ll end up chewing in your smoothie.

2. If you don’t use your greens fast enough, you can freeze them so they don’t go bad! I actually like to make packets with all the smoothie ingredients for quick mornings some seasons.

3. Spinach and kale are both great to use - kale has a stronger taste though, so you decide what you prefer!

This recipe will make enough to share with your favorite friend - or you could just enjoy it on your own, I suppose. I’ve been know to add flax/or chia seeds (chia seeds pictured below) to my smoothies for some fiber too. I know someone who even puts spinach in this smoothie! It’s optional for you, however. Just know that you can’t actually taste it if you choose to add it (chia seeds you will be able to feel the texture).

By the way, we do not add any ice to our smoothies, because we find that it takes away from the creaminess of them (that, and we never have ice on hand!). Instead, we use frozen fruit to achieve a similar effect. Feel free to use a few blocks of ice if you prefer, however.

Simple Vegan Green Smoothie

what you need:

• 2 cups non-dairy beverage (I use soy milk)

• 1 large banana (use a frozen banana for a thicker smoothie)

• 1 cup fresh spinach or kale

• 1/2 cup cubed mango (use frozen for a thicker smoothie)

• 1/2 cup cubed peach (use frozen for a thicker smoothie)

• 1 tsp ground flax seed (optional)

• 1 tsp chia seeds (optional)

• 1/2 inch fresh ginger (optional)

what to do:

1) Add all ingredients to a blender and process until everything is well mixed.

2) Serve immediately and enjoy!

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Do you enjoy a good smoothie? What is your go-to? Let me know in the comments!

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Chocolate Peanut Butter Delight Smoothie (vegan)

Have you ever just craved something sweet but didn’t want all of the calories? Well, I have a treat for you today! Seriously!

You didn’t think I was going to start sharing smoothies and skip out on my favorite dessert ingredient, did you?

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We love having popcorn and smoothies and Saturday nights, and this is our usual go-to for it. It’s sweet, creamy, tasty, and hits all the right spots. Plus, it isn’t one we usually have in the mornings, so it feels like an extra special treat.

This recipe will make enough to share with your favorite friend - or you could just enjoy it on your own. I’ve been know to add flax/or chia seeds to my smoothies for some fiber too. I know someone who even puts spinach in this smoothie! It’s optional for you, however. Just know that you can’t actually taste it if you choose to add it (chia seeds you will be able to feel the texture).

By the way, we never add any ice to our smoothies, because we find that it takes away from the creaminess of them (that, and we never used to have ice on hand!). Instead, we use frozen fruit to achieve a thicker smoothie. Feel free to use a few blocks of ice if you prefer, however.

Chocolate Peanut Butter Delight Smoothie

what you need:

• 2 cups non-dairy beverage (I use soy milk)

• 1 large banana (use a frozen banana for a thicker smoothie)

• 1 TBSP cocoa powder

• 1 TBSP peanut butter

• 2 tsp ground flax seed (optional)

what to do:

1) Add all ingredients to a blender and process until everything is well mixed.

2) Serve immediately and enjoy!

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Do you enjoy a good smoothie? What is your go-to? Let me know in the comments!

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Classic Strawberry Banana Smoothie (vegan)

Did I tell you about the time my husband won a year’s worth of free smoothies? The first 50 customers at an opening smoothie shop was offering free smoothies (one a week for a year). He went out at 5am as kind of a joke to see if it would even work out, and ended up being #48 or something like that. Crazy, right? The sad ending of this story was that he was greatly disappointed in the quality of the smoothies and we ended up moving away anyway.

Why did I share this story? I don’t know. But…

One thing that is sure in our home is that the blender will be whipping up a smoothie every day. It’s part of the reason we had to upgrade our blender early on (that, and I kinda of made our old one die…). We love experimenting with different combinations of flavors and textures, but there are smoothies involved. Smoothies are a great way to get some nutrients in and even stay somewhat hydrated. They are also easy to customize to your own specific needs. ALSO, they taste way better than any of the ones we’ve bought from stores and they don’t cost $6/smoothie. Yikes.

This summer, I’ll be sharing some of our favorite smoothie recipes with you, starting with a classic.

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Strawberry banana was probably one of the first smoothies I ever made on my own way back when. It has remained an easy favorite.

It was kind of weird to measure out exactly what we put into this smoothie, but I think it was worth it to be able to share it with you. Honestly, eyeball the heck out of this smoothie, because it will still taste great! This is a great smoothie to start out your day with or to end it - I won’t judge.

This recipe will make enough to share with your favorite friend - or you could just enjoy it on your own, I suppose. I love adding flax/or chia seeds to my smoothies for some fiber too. It’s optional for you, however. Just know that you can’t actually taste it if you choose to add it.

By the way, we never add any ice to our smoothies, because we find that it takes away from the creaminess of them (that, and we never have ice on hand!). Instead, we use frozen fruit to achieve a similar effect. Feel free to use a few blocks of ice if you prefer, however.

Strawberry Cream Smoothie

what you need:

• 2 cups non-dairy milk (I use soy)

• 1 large banana (use a frozen banana for a thicker smoothie)

• 1 cup strawberries (use frozen strawberries for a thicker smoothie)

• 1 tsp ground flax seed (optional)

what to do:

1) Add all ingredients to a blender and process until everything is well mixed.

2) Serve immediately and enjoy!

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Do you enjoy a good smoothie? What is your go-to? Let me know in the comments!

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Vegan Hot Chocolate Mix

The holidays are not the holidays to me if hot chocolate is not involved. There is just something about snuggling up in the couch with a hot mug of love in your hand. Of course, it's not hot chocolate if it’s not magically light and creamy at the same time.

As much as I hate to see Summer go, there’s not much better than cuddle weather. Sweaters and blankets make me happy, and the best thing to complete that is a hot drink. I enjoy tea most days, but sometimes I like something sweet - like a chai latte or hot chocolate. When I don’t have time to melt down some dairy-free cocoa, it’s nice to have this mix ready and available in my cupboard! Well, let’s be real - we take hot drinks really seriously in our house, so more like our hot drink station.

With Christmas around the corner, and the cold weather already here, I figured I’d better buckle down and write down my pantry version of vegan hot chocolate mix to share with all of you!

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All of my favourite Christmas traditions revolve around hot drinks (and not just hot chocolate, mind you!). Decorating the tree with one at hand was a must. Watching Home Alone doesn’t count unless you have one to keep warm. It’s just something you need to have - something that isn’t as enjoyable when the weather outside is hot. It’s special.

And it’s customizable!

This is quick and simple to mix up, and is subject to all sorts of variations. We like adding cinnamon to our mix, and a tad of almond essence to it when we add hot water. You can stir it with a candy cane, top with marshmallows or whipped cream, and even add soy nog! Dip a Christmas cookie in it! You do you! I finally found some dairy-free Reddi Whip in the store, so I’ll be topping mine with that!

Enjoy your hug in a mug!

Vegan Hot Chocolate Mix

what you need:

• 1/2 cup cocoa powder

• 1/2 cup dairy free powdered milk (I used coconut. Here’s a link to a similar one on Amazon)

• 1/4 cup organic cane sugar

• 1 tsp cinnamon (optional)

what to do:

1) Add all ingredients to a food processor and process until everything is well mixed.

2) Transfer to a airtight jar (I like these flip top ones from Amazon) and keep in your pantry for 3 months.

3) To use, add 3 TBSP of the mix to 8oz. (1 cup) of hot water and enjoy! You can adjust to your sweetness preferences.

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Do some of your favourite Christmas traditions revolve around hot drinks or the other way around? I’d love to hear about some of them!

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