“Freedom from obsession is not about something you do; it’s about knowing who you are. It’s about recognizing what sustains you and what exhausts you. What you love and what you think you love because you believe you can’t have it.”
― Geneen Roth
Over the past couple months I have received several requests for plant-based desserts. Unfortunately, I am not much of a baker and in recent years my sweet tooth has been replaced by a love for salty and savory food. It may be due to the fact that I eat a lot of fruit and that my body and taste buds have adjusted to not consuming refined sugar very often. When I do get a sugary urge for something, other than a piece of fruit, I assemble healthy ingredients in my Vitamix blender and mix up a smoothie.
Since I have had recent requests for desserts, I decided that I would share some of my non-green smoothie recipes. The combination that I am sharing today tastes more like a milk shake than a smoothie. It tastes creamy, indulgent, but because it is made with frozen fruit and coconut water, it still has a refreshing edge to it.
When I first started experimenting with a plant-based diet, I started buying coconut and almond milk as a dairy substitute. I have noticed that these products have gained popularity, and not just for those who are lactose intolerant or those who follow a plant-based diet. I know that many of my Weight Watchers members gravitate toward it because the unsweetened varieties are lower in Points Plus than cow’s milk. However, if you are concerned about the nutritional value of food and trying to eat as cleanly as possible, I recommend that you look at the ingredient list on the packaged version of these dairy substitutes. Unfortunately, many of the products carry a long list of ingredients (most of which we do not recognize as real food). I do not imagine that almond milk contains many almonds because if it did they would have to charge much more for it (you know this if you have purchased almonds lately since they carry a relatively high price tag).
What I have been trying to do is to make my own nut based milks with raw nuts and my Vitamix. I have bought dairy substitutes on occasion for convenience. The couple times that I did purchase almond milk, most went down the drain since I do not use it often.
For Weight Watchers members who are concerned about the PP value of this smoothie, I find that smoothies or shakes that I make with raw nuts (instead of dairy substitutes) tend to be much more filling. Nuts do have healthy fats and supply protein as well. So not only is this shake a great way to satisfy a sweet tooth but it is also strong nutritionally speaking. It is well worth the PP since it is real food.
For this shake I decided to use plain coconut water and raw nuts as the base. I used a mix of nuts (walnuts, cashews, almonds, macadamia, and pistachio) and I soaked them overnight (but they can be soaked a couple of hours in advance). Soaking raw nuts helps increase their enzymes and nutritional value, makes them easy to digest, and will make them softer and have a less gritty texture in recipes.
PEACH & RASPBERRY COBBLER SHAKE
- 1 cup frozen peaches
- 1/2 cup frozen raspberries
- 1/4 of a frozen banana (I added this after a quick taste of the shake because it needed to be a touch sweeter for my taste. If you want the shake sweeter add more banana)
- 1/4 of raw, soaked nuts
- 1 teaspoon real vanilla extract
- Cinnamon to taste (I added approximately 1/2 a teaspoon and sprinkled more on the top before blending)
- Ice cubes (I added a few)
- 3/4-1 cup of plain coconut water (I made sure it was cold and added 1/2 cup at first and added more until it was the consistency that I wanted. My shake was very thick and resembled a milk shake in texture)
- Optional ~ 1 Tablespoon organic coconut flakes for garnish
Blend well. This shake is versatile and you add your choice of fruit, but I recommend freezing the fruit first so the shake is thick.
Printable Recipe: Peach & Raspberry Cobbler Shake
Pin it HERE.
Finding healthy ways to satisfy our cravings is simple if you use the right ingredients. I love to experiment with different combinations and enjoy being able to share my findings with you. If you like this shake you might want to try my Guilt Free Chocolate Pumpkin Shake and my Chocolate Covered Strawberry Smoothie.
If you enjoy my blog please stop by my Facebook page and give it a like and join the conversation. I love hearing from those who try my recipes and the tweaks made so they fit one’s personal taste and lifestyle. Healthy and delicious food is one of my passions and I am so thankful for the opportunity to share and learn together. I look forward to hearing from you. Cheers to our health!
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