October 4th, 2011
I try to eat as local as possible and in the summer the vast majority of what I eat comes from within 100 miles. But bananas are always the exception. Dave and I always have a smoothie for breakfast and it always has 2 bananas in it, so we go through a lot of bananas! But, I discovered last fall that frozen pears are an excellent substitute for bananas in a smoothie. So for a few glorious weeks in early Fall, we’re able to have a completely local smoothie for breakfast.
For those of you with an abundance of local pears in season right now, try using them in place of bananas in your next smoothie!
Local Breakfast Smoothie (serves 2)
2-4 pears, chopped into large chunks and frozen
¼ cup hemp seeds (I buy local hemp seeds in bulk from Cool Hemp)
2 large handfuls of dark leafy greens (spinach or kale are my fav)
2 scoops protein powder (optional, not local)
1 cup frozen mixed berries (I still have a freezer full of berries I picked this summer!)
sweetener to taste
Add all the ingredients to your blender along with 1-2 cups of water or almond milk and blend until smooth and creamy. Taste and add sweetener if necessary. I find the pears are not as sweet as bananas so I usually add a bit of stevia or agave. If you don’t have hemp seeds, substitute with 2 tbs ground flax or chia seeds.
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October 2nd, 2011
I have been meaning to make a coffee smoothie for pretty much ever and just never get around to it. The problem is that I have never in my life made a pot of coffee. I know that it’s something that most people can do while they’re half asleep, and I know that it’s not hard and that I’m perfectly capable of doing it. But when it’s first thing in the morning and I’m hungry, the thought of attempting to make coffee and then waiting for it to chill is just too overwhelming so I always just resort to my regular morning smoothie.
But then the Ontario election came along (my second election in 6 months) and Vegan MoFo started and the idea of a coffee smoothie just sounded like the perfect way to start sleep deprived my day. Plus, I stumbled upon the concept of cold brewing coffee. This is where you just brew your coffee in room temperature water over night and strain in the morning. What a perfect concept for a morning coffee smoothie. So, last night I put some coffee to soak and looked forward to my yummy and highly caffeinated breakfast!
Now I still wanted this to be a breakfast, fueling me for the day kind of smoothie. Not a decedent dessert type smoothie. So I used protein powder and hemp seeds. If you care more about taste than nutrition, use cashews instead of the hemp seeds. This was a delicious first try at a coffee smoothie and I’ll definitely be continuing to experiment with this recipe.
Coffee Smoothie (serves 2)
1 batch cold brewed coffee (1/3 cup ground coffee mixed with 1 ½ cup water)
¼ cup hemp seeds (cashews are a good substitute if you don’t have hemp seeds)
2 bananas, frozen
2 scoops vegan vanilla flavored protein powder (I used Sun Warrior)
The night before you want your smoothie, add your ground coffee and water to a french press. Press in the morning and voila, you have some awesome cold brewed coffee! Blend all the ingredients until smooth and creamy. Add 1 to 2 cups ice cubes and blend again. Enjoy!
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