Breakfast Friday: A Smoothie Morning

Summer = smoothies almost every single day.

Earthbound Farm Organic Smoothie Kickstarts | edibleperspective.com
Earthbound Farm Organic Smoothie Kickstarts | edibleperspective.com

Today’s post is sponsored by Earthbound Farm. Product opinions are always my own. If I didn’t love it, you wouldn’t hear about it.Thank you for supporting the occasional sponsored post that helps fund all the deliciousness + behind the scenes action you see here.

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I typically hoard and demolish all of the fresh summer fruit that comes into our house, so for smoothies I rely on frozen fruit. I currently have multiple bags of multiple types of fruit lining our freezer drawers. I grab a few handfuls, add some fresh or frozen veggies, maybe a few other ingredients, blend away, and BAM, smoothie.

Smoothies aren’t really rocket science, but I definitely still blend up some concoctions that I have to choke down. Chard in a smoothie makes me quiver.

But check this out!

Earthbound Farm just upped the ante with their newest frozen product, Organic Smoothie Kickstarts. And now I’m going to talk your ear off about my LOVE for them because they include VEGETABLES right in the package and there is no guessing on ratios of fruit to veggies. It’s all done for you!

First up we have the Kale Berry Smoothie Kickstart. It includes, kale, strawberries, and blueberries. Pretty straightforward stuff.

Ideas to add to the mix:

Keep it simple: with milk, kefir, or orange juice

Mix it up: with banana + milk + yogurt, honey + kefir + milk, banana + avocado + chia seeds + orange juice

Or, try my creation below! I’ve never added lime to a smoothie but OH my gosh it blew my mind. The tanginess and lime flavor are perfect with the orange juice and help give this smoothie an extra punch of summer.

And remember, don’t judge a smoothie by it’s color.

Kale Berry Lime Smoothie | edibleperspective.com
Kale Berry Lime Smoothie | edibleperspective.com

Print this!

Kale Berry Lime Smoothie

gluten-free // yields, 2 medium or 1 large smoothie

Place all ingredients in your blender and turn on medium working to high until smooth. Use the tamper to help keep things moving. Add a bit more orange juice to thin out if needed. Serve. Or, store in a sealed bottle in the fridge for 1-2 days. Shake before drinking.

Kale Berry Lime Smoothie | edibleperspective.com
Kale Berry Lime Smoothie | edibleperspective.com

Next up! A vegan smoothie for your face!

This Smoothie Kickstart includes mangoes, peaches, and carrots. The resulting orange color = happiness in a glass.

This blend would be excellent with just orange juice and milk but below you’ll see I’ve added a few other fun ingredients to jazz things up. I used dates to add a bit of sweetness, coconut milk to add a rich and creamy texture, and turmeric for its anti-inflammatory properties. Drinking 1/2 of this batch was the perfect post workout snack!

Mango Peach Carrot Coconut Milk Smoothie | edibleperspective.com
Mango Peach Carrot Coconut Milk Smoothie | edibleperspective.com

Print this!

Mango Peach Carrot Coconut Milk Smoothie

gluten-free, vegan // yields, 2 medium or 1 large smoothie

  • 1, 8oz package Mango Peach Carrot Organic Smoothie Kickstart
  • 1 cup unsweetened soy milk, or almond
  • 1/3 cup full-fat coconut milk, whisked
  • big splash of orange juice
  • 1 tablespoon chia seeds
  • 1/2 teaspoon turmeric, optional
  • 2 medjool dates, pitted and soaked in hot water for at least 10 minutes, then drained

Place all ingredients in your blender and turn on medium working to high until smooth. Use the tamper to help keep things moving. Add a bit more soy milk or orange juice to thin out if needed. Serve. Or store in a sealed bottle in the fridge for 1-2 days. Shake before drinking.

*Turmeric does not affect the flavor but is a healthy addition with many anti-inflammatory properties and keeps this smoothie bright orange in color.

*If you don’t have dates feel free to drizzle in one tablespoon of your favorite liquid sweetener.

Mango Peach Carrot Coconut Milk Smoothie | edibleperspective.com
Mango Peach Carrot Coconut Milk Smoothie | edibleperspective.com

If you want to know where to find Smoothie Kickstarts in your area be sure to check out EBF’s product locator! They’re a new product, so keep your eyes peeled!

Cheers to breakfast + happy weekend!

Ashley

Whole-Food Protein Berry Smoothie

The whole topic of “protein” can get pretty fierce. Everyone seems to have an opinion when it comes to how much protein to consume each day and what kind of protein—or, proteins—it should be. And when it comes to protein in powder form, that opens up a whole other can of worms.

Whole-Food Protein Berry Smoothie | edibleperspective.com #glutenfree #vegan
Whole-Food Protein Berry Smoothie | edibleperspective.com #glutenfree #vegan

So how about we just make a smoothie to fit [most] everyone’s needs? A smoothie with whole-food ingredients, chock full of healthy properties. Nothing processed, nothing added, just 8 simple ingredients.

Whole-Food Protein Berry Smoothie | edibleperspective.com #glutenfree #vegan
Whole-Food Protein Berry Smoothie | edibleperspective.com #glutenfree #vegan

While I don’t rely on soy in my diet as a main protein source, I probably eat 1-3 servings per week and sometimes not at all. I know soy isn’t right for everyone but it seems to agree with me just fine. I source non-GMO, organic soy products. Always. I don’t mind spending more on eggs, soy, + dairy I can trust and feel good about consuming. And since I don’t buy animal protein I look at it as my “meat money,” haha.

That said, my very favorite brand of soymilk is by Eden Organic because the ingredients are, water + soybeans. How much simpler could it get? [Not sponsored, just love it.]

I can find it for $3/qt which is on the pricey side, so this is definitely a once in awhile purchase for me. My go-to for milk is typically homemade almond or hemp milk.

If you’d rather use dairy over soy, feel free! You can also use any unsweetened nut or seed milk you like. My next choice would be almond or hemp. The protein count if using hemp milk is still at 24 grams!

Whole-Food Protein Berry Smoothie | edibleperspective.com #glutenfree #vegan
Whole-Food Protein Berry Smoothie | edibleperspective.com #glutenfree #vegan

I mentioned that I’ve been doing quite a bit more weight-lifting lately, and I have made a conscious effort to up my protein just a little bit at each meal. So I wanted to show you one of the ways I’ve done it without the use of egg whites, protein powder, meat, eating entire blocks of tofu, etc.

Enter, this smoothie. It’s fruity and nutty and not overly sweet, just the way I like my smoothies to be! It boasts 34 grams of protein and is a definite meal-in-a-glass. You could even portion this out between two days if you want to eat it as a hefty snack or enjoy it as part of your lunch or breakfast. And my favorite part? No protein powder chalkiness!!

Beyond the protein these ingredients pack a lot of other healthy goodness like, fiber, magnesium, iron, manganese, vitamin A/C/K, and more.

I tend not to focus on nitty gritty nutritional facts when I create my meals but with a protein specific smoothie I thought I’d calculate it out for you to see [follows the recipe below]. I have made this a few times but this was the first time I checked out the nutrition details and I was kind of shocked to see how it added up.

Whole-Food Protein Berry Smoothie | edibleperspective.com #glutenfree #vegan
Whole-Food Protein Berry Smoothie | edibleperspective.com #glutenfree #vegan

Print this!

Whole-Food Protein Berry Smoothie

gluten-free, vegan // yields ~24oz - 1lg or 2sm smoothies

  • 1 1/2 cups unsweetened soy milk
  • 1 heaping cup frozen blueberries
  • 4 large frozen strawberries, chopped
  • 1/2 medium frozen banana
  • 2 tablespoons shelled hemp seeds
  • 1 1/2 tablespoons chia seeds
  • large handful baby kale or spinach
  • 1 teaspoon cinnamon

Place ingredients in your blender and blend until fully smooth. Add more milk if desired.

notes: If you’re not using frozen fruit make sure it’s at least chilled and add a cup of ice. If your fruit isn’t very ripe/sweet feel free to add 1-2 teaspoons of pure maple syrup or 1 pitted medjool date [soaked to soften]. Feel free to sub out soymilk for 2% or whole milk for about the same protein content. To keep it vegan but soy-free, use unsweetened almond milk or hemp milk. Note the protein will decrease [~3g for 1 1/2 cups almond and ~6g for 1 1/2 cups hemp].

nutrition info: calories: 547 fat: 24g fiber: 16g protein: 34g *with Eden Organic Unsweetened Gluten-free Soymilk

Whole-Food Protein Berry Smoothie | edibleperspective.com #glutenfree #vegan
Whole-Food Protein Berry Smoothie | edibleperspective.com #glutenfree #vegan

If you let the smoothie sit in your glass for just a few minutes it thickens up to a spoonable consistency that I love. Thank you chia seeds.

Happy Thursday!

Ashley