Strawberry Smoothie
This dairy-free Strawberry Smoothie is vibrant and nutritious, and will leave you feeling refreshed and rejuvenated! It’s a delightful concoction of fruit, flavored vegan protein powder, your choice of plant milk and hemp seeds. Blend these nourishing ingredients together for a delicious burst of invigorating energy.
I absolutely love strawberries, and always have. My mother has always told me that when she was pregnant with me, she craved strawberries all the time and was eating them non-stop, which checks out because that’s pretty much how I was my entire childhood!
When my grandma was still around, she would stay stocked up on frozen strawberries at all times. They were a treat for the grandchildren; whenever she knew we would be visiting, she would pull them out of the freezer and allow the to thaw a bit. We would usually visit our grandma and grandpa for lunch or dinner at their house on the weekends, so for dessert we would get a bowl of strawberries with sugar. It was such a treat, and when they were partially thawed, they made a wonderful syrupy texture and practically melted in your mouth!
Now, when I’m not enjoying strawberries on their own, I love chopping them up and topping pancakes and waffles with them, or mixing them in an oatmeal bowl with melted peanut butter and cinnamon. Zeus loves them, too!
As for smoothies, they are a wonderfully healthy, quick and easy breakfast option, and a super convenient way to get a serving of fruit and plenty of protein for the day. This recipe uses plenty of strawberries, making it lower in calories than many other types of smoothies that are mostly banana-based, so this is a great option if you would like a bigger smoothie that will keep you satisfied and full, without weighing you down.
If you prefer to bulk this up and make it more of a meal, you can even make it into a super thick smoothie bowl by using less coconut milk and/or adding more banana. With a smoothie bowl, you can add all types of toppings you prefer, such as sliced strawberries or other fresh fruit, chia seeds or additional hemp seeds, chopped nuts, shredded coconut, granola, or even melted peanut butter (or chocolate!) drizzled on top.
These ingredients are simple, easy to find, budget-friendly and of course super healthy. This smoothie is also packed with fiber, which is important for digestive health, weight management, heart health and blood pressure. Fiber is something that many people are not getting enough of, often due to overconsumption of animal products, which don’t contain any fiber at all!
Frozen Strawberries: Strawberries are, of course, what make this a strawberry smoothie! I highly recommend freezing your strawberries beforehand, or simply buying frozen. (They’re much cheaper that way, anyway!) Frozen strawberries allow the smoothie to stay as cold, creamy and thick as possible as you’re blending it, otherwise if you use fresh strawberries, it may have a thinner, juice-like consistency.
Vanilla or Strawberry Protein Powder: There are many types of vegan protein powders, and when shopping for them, make sure to choose one that doesn’t contain whey, a milk protein. It’s important to get into the habit of reading the ingredients and labels of the food products you’re consuming, anyway, whether you’re vegan or not! In addition to whey, some other non-vegan ingredients to look out for are egg whites, animal-derived collagen, and gelatin. Vanilla is a more widely-available flavor of course, but some vegan-friendly brands that carry a strawberry flavor are Huel, Orgain, and Natreve. For vanilla options, there are Kachava, Vega, Orgain and Sunwarrior, although there are countless vegan vanilla options to choose from!
Frozen Banana: The banana flavor is well-hidden in this smoothie since you’re adding the frozen strawberries and protein powder. The frozen banana does lend its creamy consistency to this smoothie, though. You may use half of a banana instead of a whole one to thin it out a bit, or add extra coconut milk.
Canned Coconut Milk: Not to be confused with coconut milk that’s ready to drink and comes in bottles or cartons, canned, full-fat coconut milk has a very different consistency and is often used in curries, soups, desserts such as pies and ice creams, or smoothies, like this one. You can use other types of vegan milk, but your smoothie may not be as thick and may have a slightly different coloring.
Hemp Seeds: Hemp seeds are a great source of plant-based protein, and also contain healthy fats like omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids (busting the myth that omega-3s are only found in fish!). Hemp seeds also add to the overall creaminess of the smoothie, and will even enhance the flavor with a very subtle nutty taste.
Dates: Dates add extra sweetness, and thicken the smoothie a bit more since you’re using strawberries, which have a high water content. Dates also contain important vitamins and minerals, such as potassium, magnesium, calcium, vitamin B6 and vitamin K. Dates can be purchased with or without the pit, but even pitted dates often have some pits in them that are overlooked in the manufacturing process, so I always cut mine in half to check before I consume them.
Ingredients
1 scoop vanilla protein powder (or strawberry if you have it!)
1 C frozen strawberries
1 frozen banana
½ C canned coconut milk
1 T hemp seeds
3 pitted dates
Instructions
1. Combine all ingredients in a blender and blend at high speed until smooth. You may need to use a tamper if you have one to ensure there are no lumps. Depending on the height and width of the bowl of your blender, it may be helpful to double the recipe and make two smoothies. Blenders with wider bowls sometimes have difficulty blending things in smaller portions if the blades don’t reach out to the sides far enough.
2. Check the consistency and taste of your smoothie once it’s thoroughly blended, and feel free to add more of any of the ingredients you prefer to adjust the ratio and modify either the texture or the taste of the smoothie.
3. Once it is at the taste and thickness you prefer, pour into a glass and optionally top with fresh strawberries, sliced banana, shredded coconut or your choice of additions.
Stefanie is the founder of Life, Veganized, and a passionate vegan and animal advocate. She creates vegan recipes for all palates and resides in Los Angeles with her adorable puggle, Zeus.
