Tag: medjool dates

Soothe your soul and calm your nerves with this smoothie.  Medjool dates, banana, almond milk, vanilla, and a handful of chocolate chips give it a luxurious taste and lots of important vitamins and minerals.  Normally I would crave a warm drink in the middle of winter, but for some reason, this smoothie hits the spot right now.  Maybe my body is craving the minerals that dates and bananas contain.  And almond milk is so smooth and creamy.  In any case, it tastes decadent and comforting, though it is really quite healthy.

Maybe it’s partly because of the New Year, and maybe it’s partly because my husband will have knee surgery soon, but I have been searching for new ways to eat well.  (We already eat really well, but there’s always room for improvement!)  He and I want to find  foods full of nutrition to help his body heal faster after his surgery.  He recently got a new book called “Thrive Energy Cookbook” by Brendan Brazier.  This book looks really interesting, and has all plant-based recipes.  I am not wanting to go completely vegan or gluten-free at all.  However, I am always interested in expanding my knowledge of food and how what we eat affects how we feel, and I would love to incorporate more plant-based foods into my diet.

Using dates in a smoothie is something new for me, and I really, really like it.  This smoothie recipe is very loosely adapted from a recipe I found in the “Thrive” cookbook.  I say very loosely, because I changed it quite a bit, except for the idea of using dates in a smoothie, for which I am very grateful.  It tastes sweet and flavorful without using much sugar (just from the little bit of chocolate chips, and the almond milk is unsweetened), because the dates are naturally sweet.  If you are wanting to cut back on dairy, or just like the taste of almond milk, this is a great option.  Or to make this a vegan smoothie, just substitute vegan chocolate chips for traditional chocolate chips.

Smoothies are so easy to throw together, and this one tastes delicious–kind of like an ice cream shake, yet it is full of lots of nutrition to make us feel good, and the creamy, smooth texture is calming.  It feels like a tonic for my sometimes-frazzled nerves.  This recipe is for just one serving.  If you are making smoothies for more than one person, just double or triple the recipe accordingly.  I hope you all have a great weekend! Fiesta Friday is happening right now, and I am taking this recipe there! As always, coordinated by Angie, and co-hosted this week by Sonal @ Simply Vegetarian 777 and Petra @ Food Eat Love.