Are you in a smoothie rut? If you’re like me and like to have a smoothie for breakfast most days, then you’ll appreciate how important it is to vary up your smoothie ingredients to avoid getting bored and to ensure you reap the most nutrient diversity.
Why cherries? Why not! Cherries are a great source of potassium which plays an important role in fluid balance and keeping blood pressure in check. Cherries are also packed with powerful anti-cancer nutrients including beta-carotene, vitamin C, ellagic acid and anthocyanins. Besides all this, cherries are also just a nice antioxidant alternative to blueberries and strawberries in a smoothie!
Adding a dark leafy green like ruby red Swiss chard kicks the nutrition up a notch as well! Swiss chard is similar to spinach with a bright red stem. Like your fruit, it’s important to vary your greens – again, to get the most broadest range of nutrients. I usually rotate spinach, kale, watercress, leaf lettuce, and Swiss chard. Unlike kale, you don’t need to “de-stem” Swiss chard.
Another amazing ingredient in this recipe is the lemon-flavored fish oil I add. You’re probably shaking your head in disgust right now, but bear with me for a sec! You will not make your smoothie taste “fishy” by adding a flavored fish oil to it, I promise! Flavored fish oils actually disguise beautifully in a smoothie. But the lemon flavor combined with the roasted almond butter in this smoothie is simply delicious and crucial to the awesome flavor in this recipe! This is the fish oil I use.
I usually blend my smoothies with some kind of unsweetened dairy-free milk. Again, I rotate my nut milks all the time, so between almond, coconut, cashew, and Ripple (milk made from peas). Most other nut-based milks are very low in protein, which is why I like to use Ripple. Next to soy milk, it’s the only other plant-based milk that offers just as much protein per cup as regular milk.
Hope you enjoy this one!
Cherry Almond Smoothie
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup frozen organic cherries
- 1 large ruby red Swiss chard leaf
- 1/2 frozen banana
- 1 tablespoon roasted almond butter
- 1 teaspoon Nutrasea lemon fish oil
- 1 cup non-dairy milk beverage like almond milk, coconut, Ripple, etc.
- 1 tablespoon chia seed or ground flax
- 1-2 scoops collagen protein powder or if you prefer vanilla vegan powder, or grass-fed whey
Instructions
- Combine all ingredients until smooth in a high-powered blender. Add water to thin out consistency if desired. Enjoy immediately!
