What Makes This Smoothie Easy
What I love about this smoothie is that it’s so easy to make with just two ingredients. I used frozen mixed berries and milk. If you’re watching your carbs, try to find a lower carb milk, which is sometimes called A2 or in with the ultra-filtered options. Otherwise, you can use 2% milk or non-dairy milk. What can be easier than milk and your favorite fruit?
Dark Chocolate & Almond Milk Smoothie Recipe
In case you want to satisfy your sweet tooth while consuming something healthy, you should consider making this smoothie. Keep in mind that dark chocolate is a very healthy snack when eaten in moderation. They are among the best foods for improved cognitive function thanks to the high number of antioxidants they contain. It can boost your focus and memory while reducing the risk of dementia and Alzheimers disease.
The flavonoids found in dark chocolate may have a positive effect on your circulation and may even lower your blood pressure. These compounds are so strong that they can play an important role in cancer prevention.
What Youll Need
- 2 ounces dark chocolate
How to Prepare
If you want to gain weight, you should add one or two tablespoons of almond butter into this smoothie. Otherwise, just pour the milk into your blender, followed by the banana and dark chocolate and blend for one minute. This recipe makes one smoothie.
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Strawberry Banana And Coconut Smoothie
For 4 glasses you need:
- approx. 400 ml coconut drink
This is how it works:
Put all the ingredients in the blender and puree. If the strawberry-banana smoothie is too thick, you can add some coconut drink.
Tip: It gets super tasty and wonderfully refreshing if you replace half of the fresh strawberries with frozen ones.
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What Can I Replace Milk With In A Smoothie
Next on how to make a smoothie without yogurt or milk is using a good milk alternative. Milk is great for smoothies because its a healthy liquid that helps your smoothie be thin enough to drink through a straw.
If you dont use enough liquid in your smoothie it will be super thick and wont blend well. Youll end up with big chunks and you wont be able to drink it.
Here are some good milk substitutions for your smoothie.
Defrosting In The Refrigerator
The frozen fruits can be defrosted in the refrigerator. This is a lengthy process but it works. Typically it takes 6 to 8 hours. If youre in hurry then you shouldnt follow this. If you have time then its okay.
Its better to take only the amount of frozen fruits you need to use. The thawed fruits shouldnt be refrozen. So try not to take an excessive amount of fruits. Otherwise, the leftover fruits will be wasted.
Put the fruits in a bowl or on a plate to avoid dripping. Then keep them in the refrigerator.
Leave the fruits inside the refrigerator for 6 to 8 hours per pound.
Turn the package or fruits every hour to accelerate the process. If you dont do this the fruits may not thaw equally. Moreover, it will take more time.
Note: Keep the temperature of your refrigerator at 40°F or less during the whole process.
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Are Frozen Fruit Smoothies Healthy
Frozen fruit smoothies are relatively healthy as frozen fruits still retain much of their nutritional value and taste. Many people prefer to get their daily intake of fruits and vegetables through smoothies because its so convenient and tasty. You should know that fruit smoothies can be high in sugar due to the natural sugar content in fruits. While smoothies are a convenient meal replacement, you should still try to eat fresh fruit and vegetables wherever you can.
Why We Love This Recipe
- Refined sugar-free. Made with unsweetened dairy-free milk and yogurt ensures its free from refined sugars and lets you control the sweetener.
- Healthy snack or light meal. Full of nutrients , this smoothie can be served as a light breakfast, snack, or pick-me-up any time of day.
- Quick & easy. Its ready as fast as you can gather the ingredients and blend!
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Whats Wrong With Dairy
Nothing if youre one of the 30% of the worlds population that doesnt have a dairy intolerance. Yet if youre like me, then dairy often gives you issues with digestion. Instead of suffering through the painful side effects of consuming dairy, I started searching for non-dairy options.
Discover the incredible world of plant based milk and dairy free smoothies along with me!
How To Make A Smoothie Thicker
I love using frozen fruit to make my smoothies thick and delicious. If your smoothie is too thin, add some more fruit or even ice!
Bananas can help make it thicker . To keep it thick, I try to add as many frozen items as I can . If we have yogurt near the expiry date, I freeze it into cubes as well.
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What Are Some Great Smoothie Recipes
Alright, now that youre fully versed on how to make a great smoothie, let me share with you some of our absolute favorite combos! Click on any image to jump over to that specific smoothie recipe.
Classic Simple Smoothies
These smoothies are a great place to start. No weird ingredients that you have to special order, just fresh, real food that you can find at any typical supermarket.
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What Do I Need For Your Mixed Berry Smoothie Recipe
In all likelihood, you already have everything you need in your kitchen! Youll need:
- Frozen bananas. The banana will up the fruity flavor, while also adding sweetness and creaminess.
- Frozen berries. You can use whatever frozen berries that make you happystrawberries, raspberries, blueberries, blackberries, or a mix! If you head to the frozen fruit section at your local grocery store, youll probably spy a few bags of mixed berries. These are my favorite for this smoothie!
- Milk. Any kind of milk will workcows milk, soy milk, coconut milk, unsweetened almond milk. Whatever you have!
- Plain Greek yogurt. Not only does yogurt make the smoothie even creamier, but it also gives it a boost of protein, so you arent hungry again 30 minutes after finishing your drink.
- Honey or maple syrup. You may or may not need this one, depending on how ripe your banana is.
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How Do You Make A Smoothie Thicker
One last thing to address in this post is how to make a smoothie thicker.
Smoothies in my opinion are all about texture.
I absolutely do not like runny, gritty smoothies.
I prefer my smoothies to be super thick and creamy, almost to ice cream texture.
This way it feels like a treat when I am drinking it!
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Only Have Fresh Fruit
If you only have fresh fruit, then you have a couple of options.
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What Other Healthy Ingredients Can You Add In
The great thing with smoothies is that its easy to slip in an extra healthy ingredient or two without it being easily noticeable which is especially wonderful when you have kids.
A few of my favorites are fresh spinach, kale, chia seeds and ground flax seeds. My kids love their smoothies and think they are a treat. They have no idea that they are enjoying something super nutritious or drinking spinach. I love being sneaky like that!
How Else To Reach Your Daily Fruit Goal
For me, the trick is to make the fruit very presentable. The prettier the presentation, the more I eat/drink. This Strawberry Smoothie Without Yogurt worked for me because I beautified it with frozen berries on top. I look at it with hearts in my eyes and then dump it. I guess thats called auto-brain-washing, haha.
Another way that works great for me is a pretty fruit platter. Ive got tons of tips on how to arrange a beautiful fruit platter.
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Easy Frozen Fruit Smoothie Recipe
We love making fruit smoothies. They are so delicious and I would eat them every day if I could. It is a great way to get your fruit servings in each day.
This is my basic recipe to create what I call the perfect fruit juice smoothie. It is such an easy smoothie recipe. You can do all water for your liquid, but I suggest you add some sweetener to it.
This recipe is so versatile and can be customized to what you like. It calls for a cup of frozen fruit and I typically use strawberries or blueberries. However, you could use banana, pineapple, mango or a combination!
This Spinach Pineapple Green Smoothie is another favorite plant based smoothie I absolutely love! Once you start making smoothies, you will be hooked!
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Water In Smoothies Really
Yes, it is true you can have an excellent smoothie experience with water. Whenever we think of smoothies, it comes with yogurt, almond milk, coconut water or at least milk. It is impossible for us to imagine this beverage with water.
However, if you know how to make a smoothie with water and fruit, you can have all the health benefits with taste. The water itself is refreshing. When you add it in your fruits and veggies blends, the beverage becomes refreshing too.
Moreover, water maximizes nutrition intake. It helps to dissolve all the goodness of smoothies so that your body can absorb it. If you are thinking of losing weight, take water-based smoothies. It will only cut your plump without cutting down nourishment.
Let us look at the 5 reasons that will make you add water in your next smoothie fest.
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How To Make A Strawberry Smoothie Without Yogurt
Most smoothies use either yogurt or juice and ice as a base to make it creamy. You dont have to choose one or the other though. Juice spikes up the fruit sugar content unnecessarily so always try and stay away from smoothies based on juice.
Yogurt is a great source of protein if you dont have any dairy tolerance issues. If you do, however, you dont have to go for the juice option. There is other ways. You can use coconut milk for example to obtain that creamy texture and flavor. I use light coconut milk for my smoothies so they dont sit in my stomach too heavy.
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Where Can I Get Frozen Spinach
They are readily available as frozen spinach packs in stores, and we can also pack fresh spinach leaves in an airtight ziplock bag and freeze the bag to use in various recipes.
Generally, store-bought frozen spinach is blanched and frozen in air-tight bags, making it easy to use instantly in cooking.
We can also make an instant spinach puree and freeze it by making spinach cubes in an ice tray.
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Variations For Frozen Fruit Smoothies
Just like any other food, fruit smoothies have the option of being healthy, or not as healthy, depending on the ingredients used. If you add yogurt, using plain yogurt is healthier than a flavored yogurt that has a higher amount of sugar. The same thing goes for any type of milk you might use: dairy, rice, almond, etc. If you choose a flavored option, such as vanilla, the sugar count increases and its not as healthy. When you buy frozen fruit, make sure there is no added sugar.
Adding flaxseed meal, chia seeds, and spirulina is one way to add some nutritional benefit to your smoothies!
Dont feel limited by fruit, either! I have added avocado into my fruit smoothies and it adds a lovely creaminess to the texture, as well as healthy fats! I have also added cucumbers, zucchini, celery, a handful or two of leafy greens Its fun to experiment with, and usually, you cant even taste the veggies! If anything, it just adds a crisp, fresh green taste to the mix!
Why Use Frozen Fruits In Smoothies
Its so convenient!
Most supermarkets sell frozen smoothie packs these days.
Theres no need to wash or cut the fruits. Everything is done for you already. Its a huge timesaver!
You wont even have to defrost the fruits before making smoothies. Just open the bag, add some to your blender and youre good.
Just because its convenient doesnt mean its less healthy!
Fruits are picked and frozen at peak ripeness. Studies show again and again that frozen fruits retain at least as many vitamins, minerals, as fresh fruits. Some fruits can even retain more vitamins when theyre frozen than when theyre bought fresh.
Using more frozen fruits also means less spoilage.
Frozen fruits are good for months, instead of just days. You can easily enjoy your favorite fruits at any time of the year.
Using frozen fruits actually makes your smoothies taste better.
Some people like to use ice cubes in their smoothies, I like using frozen fruits. A chilled smoothie simply tastes better, theres no question about it. Save the ice, and add some frozen fruits instead.
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Key Ingredients And Substitutions
Frozen strawberries make your smoothie thick and ice-cold. No need to add ice cubes that will water down. You can use part fresh strawberries if needed.
Water helps the blending process. You can replace it with plant-based milk if you prefer.
Cashew butter makes the smoothie super creamy and has a relatively neutral taste that youll barely notice.
Strawberry jam is totally optional but beautifully enhances the strawberry flavor of the smoothie. It makes it taste so good without the added flavoring agents that you can find in store-bought smoothies. If you dont want to use jam but would like to lightly sweeten your smoothie, you can replace it with pure maple syrup.
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Homemade Healthy Yogurt Berry Smoothie
Staying on track with healthy eating during the holidays can be tough, but smoothies are a great way to keep your diet in check during the holiday season and nourish your body with stuff thats good and good for you! Drinking a smoothie in between meals helps me stay full throughout the day and keeps me from snacking. They are also an easy way to add extra fruit into your diet. This is one of my favorite smoothies that I keep in constant rotation. Loaded with tons of protein to keep you full throughout the day, this smoothie is a great on the go breakfast or midday snack. All you need is some frozen or fresh bananas, blueberries, blackberries, Greek yogurt, and soy milk to get a perfectly creamy, thick consistency.
Whats even better is that this smoothie contains no added sugar! It gets its natural sweetness from the bananas and berries.
This Yogurt Berry Smoothie recipe is quick, easy and super healthy because its loaded with fiber, vitamins and protein. This smoothie is gluten-free and has only 5 ingredients!
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Can I Use Any Blender To Make A Strawberry Banana Smoothie
I am using my high powered Vitamix professional series 750 blender in copper. I saved up for years to buy this thing, yall.
The Vitamix is a dream come true. It is beautiful, powerful, and it works great!
I will say that I have made this same recipe in many other blenders and it has worked out great. There may be a rogue strawberry chunk here and there, but it works great in most cases.
How Long Do Frozen Fruit Smoothies Last
Frozen fruit smoothies, and all smoothies in general, will last up to two days in the refrigerator.
Its best to keep them in airtight containers. Mason jars, for example, can help to prevent the fruits from oxidizing.
Keeping your smoothie in the freezer will guarantee a longer storage period. You can pour it into a freezer-safe jar and leave it to defrost an hour before drinking it.
Or you can keep them in popsicle molds. It creates a more fun and convenient experience.
Alternatively, you can store the frozen ingredients separately instead. You wont have to wait hours before defrosting to get your smoothie ready.
Plus, it may result in a fresher frozen fruit smoothie.
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What You Need To Make A Frozen Fruit Smoothie
All you need is some frozen fruit, liquid, yoghurt and a blender.
In just minutes, you can have a cool, refreshing drink thats perfect for breakfast or a snack.
The ingredients below are enough to serve 2, if you want to make just 1 serving, simply halve the ingredients. Likewise, if you want to make 4 servings, double it!
- 300ml liquid this can be juice, milk or even just water
- 300g frozen fruit any combination of frozen fruits will work
- 150ml yoghurt optional
- High-speed blender I used a Ninja Blender