The Ultimate Mounds Bar Breakfast Smoothie

No actual Mounds Bars were harmed in the making of this smoothie but I did technically have some chocolate for breakfast. I blame it on the third trimester. You come up with your own excuse and make this too. Actually, who needs an excuse to have a nice healthy fruit smoothie with a tad of chocolate sweetness in it? Not me. So feel good about having little chocolate in your breakfast. Just don’t sub Nutella for the Justin’s, there’s a huge difference in the sugar content. Nutella has almost 3 times as much sugar. In fact the first listed ingredient is sugar whereas with Justin’s hazelnuts and almonds come before the organic cane sugar.

It seriously does taste like a Mounds! Try it!

• 2 cups unsweetened almond milk
• 1 – 6 ounce container coconut yogurt
• 1/4 cup unsweetened coconut flakes
• 2 tablespoons chia seeds
• 3/4 cup frozen cherries
• 2 frozen bananas, broken into chunks
• 3 tablespoons Justin’s chocolate hazelnut spread

Method

• Place all ingredients in a high speed blender in the order listed. Run on “smoothie” setting. Serves 2.

Cherry Coconut Milk Smoothie

I’m in the midst of estimates. The estimates for flooring are over. Contractor chosen. Start date set. Now, we’re getting painting estimates. So far I have had 3 done and 2 more scheduled for tomorrow. It’s going to be a lot of work moving all of our small stuff out of the way and having contractors bombard our house for the next 3-4 weeks but it’s going to be so much fun to see our house transform into what we want it to be!

My craving for coconut has been out of control lately. From coconut yogurt, to coconut water, to coconut in protein bars and coconut flakes sprinkled on just about anything. I figured I needed to do something about it and incorporate more of it! I bought a coconut creme flavored protein powder and after two not so spectacular smoothie attempts, this version happened this morning. And may happen again tomorrow…

Strawberry Coconut Milk Smoothie

• 1 1/2 cups unsweetened almond milk
• 1/2 can full fat coconut milk (save the other half for the next days smoothie!)
• 1 apple, core removed, cut into large chunks
• 1 heaping cup frozen cherries
• 1 large frozen banana, broken into chunks
• 4 scoops Jarrow Formulas Greek Yogurtein coconut creme flavor
• 1/2 tsp vanilla extract

Method

• Place all ingredients in a high speed blender in the order listed. Run on “smoothie” setting. Serves 2.

Tropical Coconut Matcha Smoothie

Another yummy smoothie recipe to share! Made with healthy (and pretty popular right now) Matcha green tea powder and packed with protein from the yogurt (13 grams per serving) this smoothie is guaranteed to keep you going until lunch. It worked for me and I’m always hungry right now!

“The health benefits of matcha tea exceed those of green tea because when you drink matcha you ingest the whole leaf, not just the brewed water. One glass of matcha is the equivalent of 10 glasses of green tea in terms of its nutritional value and antioxidant content.” (Source)

• 2 cups unsweetened almond milk
• 2 – 6 ounce containers Siggi’s coconut yogurt
• 1 cup frozen pineapple chunks
• 1 large frozen banana, broken into chunks
• 2 tablespoons flaked coconut (plus 1 tablespoon for garnishing)
• 2 teaspoons matcha green tea powder

Method

• Place all ingredients in a high speed blender in the order listed. Run on “smoothie” setting. Serves 2.

Double Blueberry Probiotic Smoothie

I was extremely disappointed a couple of weeks when I got a call from my OBGYN that I had a bladder infection. One, I was scared. I had kidney infection when I was pregnant with my son that had me in the hospital for around 5 days. Please don’t let that happen again! Two, I didn’t want to take any pills! They prescribed a weeks worth of antibiotics. This to the person that struggled with a bad headache all day in my first trimester and wouldn’t take a Tylenol! So frustrating! Not to worry, I took the prescribed pills but I also added a few things to my diet to try to replace the lost good bacteria. Kefir in my smoothies, yogurt on mornings that I don’t make smoothies, a kombucha or probiotic drink (like Kevita) once a day and double the water. Ok, not always water, hot tea counts. I already drink a lot! Hello trips to the bathroom! The prenatal vitamin I’ve been taking for almost a year also have probiotics. Crossing my fingers for no more infection.

On a happy note, I have this pregnancy habit of taking my coffee and breakfast back to my bed every morning. It’s cold out and the warm spot keeps calling! Bonus: you can see what I keep on my nightstand! Jewelry tree, books, candle, coaster and my baby’s first rattle from Aunty Zan! Not shown: lamp, belly oil, belly lotion and chapstick.

• 1 cup unsweetened almond milk
• 1 cup blueberry flavored kefir (I used Siggi’s)
• 1 cup frozen bluberries
• 1 frozen banana, broken into chunks
• 2 tablespoons almond butter
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

Method

• Place all ingredients in a high speed blender in the order listed. Run on “smoothie” setting. Serves 2.

Per serving: 1/2 billion probiotics 🙂

 

 

Chocolate Avocado Banana Smoothie

I thought the only fruit available for my smoothie this morning was bananas. I looove smoothies with “only” bananas. Was getting ready to blurt out the recipe for my banana spice smoothie but I’ll save it for another day…

Avocados are a fruit, so I was wrong, I did have another fruit besides bananas. I made an avocado smoothie a few months back and didn’t like the combo and just never tried again. Today the combo was excellent. Ripe avocados + frozen bananas (they must be frozen so the smoothie will turn out cold and thick) + chocolate protein powder + a little honey for sweetness = drinking it faster than usual because it’s so good.

• 2 cups unsweetened vanilla almond milk
• 1 ripe avocado
• 2 frozen bananas, broken into chunks
• 1 heaping scoop chocolate protein powder (I use Garden of Life)
• 2 tablespoons local honey

Method

• Combine all ingredients in a high speed blender (like a Vitamix) on “smoothie” setting. Instagram it! Serves 2. Enjoy!

Smoothie Pina Colada

In my thoughts I had named this smoothie “Tropical Smoothie” but that’s before I tasted it. I always clean the blender before I enjoy my morning smoothie, so before taking my first sip Travis made an announcement. “It’s like a smoothie pina colada,” he said. Duh, YES. I totally thought of that first. Hello.

This yogurt is thick and rich and made better by whirling it into a smoothie. Then you have yogurt perfection. (there I go stealing lines again)

The yogurt is full-fat (13 grams per serving) and I’m sure that’s part of reason it kept me full until lunch. The protein in the almond milk and the banana and pineapple in there helped too!

Where’s the rum?

For 2 smoothies:

• 2 cups unsweetened, vanilla almond milk
• 1 cup frozen pineapple chunks
• 1 large banana, frozen and broken into chunks
• 2 containers of Liberte coconut yogurt perfection (hahaha)

Method

• Place all ingredients in high power blender on “smoothie” setting. ENJOY responsibly! 🙂

Weekly Eats

The latest installment of my week in food:

Sunday

Breakfast: smoothie with almond milk, peaches, banana, cinnamon, flax seeds and organic peanut butter

Lunch: Leftover tuna steak and noodles with kimchi on the side

Dinner: Spaghetti night! The noodles were DeBoles organic artichoke pasta (angel hair). The sauce was organic marinara from Fresh Market. The meat was garlic, parsley and orange zest sausage from Sausage Craft. Served with Whole Foods frozen Mediterranean blend veggies…corn, edamame, shredded carrots and broccoli…GOODNESS!

Monday

Breakfast: smoothie with almond milk, blueberries, blackberries, banana, chia seeds, cinnamon and organic almond butter…very bitter…I think it was the blackberries

Lunch: General Tso’s vegan chicken (from Whole Foods) and edamame pods sprinkled with sea salt

Dinner: Alamo – chicken burrito (salsa, rice, black beans, guacamole, cheese)

Tuesday

Breakfast: smoothie with almond milk, blueberries, pineapple, banana, flax seeds and organic almond butter

Lunch: tuna and avocado sushi made with brown rice and red quinoa…from Whole Foods and eaten in the car on the way home from shopping!

Dinner: Sauteed turbo fish. It was on sale at Whole Foods and the fish-monger recommended it. It was ok but compared to all the fresh fish we had in the past month it lacked in flavor. Served with roasted brussel sprouts and quinoa mac-n-cheese

Wednesday

Breakfast: granola bowls

Lunch: Leftovers

Dinner: turkey meatloaf, potato salad (at Travis request…I ate only a spoonful) and peas

Thursday

Breakfast: smoothie with almond milk, blueberries, banana, flax seeds, cinnamon, cardamom and organic almond butter

Lunch: Sushi from Ellwood Thompson

Dinner: Eat your greens Asian chicken salad

  

Friday

Breakfast: smoothie with almond milk, blueberries, banana, strawberries, navel orange, flax seeds, cinnamon and organic almond butter

Lunch: Chipotle burrito bowl. I tried the new vegan marinated tofu…de-lish!

Dinner: The Boathouse – raw oysters, a wedge salad and a fire-roasted crab, brie and asparagus pizza…all shared with my man!

Saturday

Breakfast: smoothie with almond milk, blueberries, banana, pineapple, flax seeds and organic almond butter

Lunch: scrambled eggs with mixed sliced mushrooms and goat cheese. I also ate some edamame a couple hours later.

Dinner: Kona Grill with friends! Happy 36th birthday Chris!!! 

Weekly Eats

The latest installment of my week in food. We’re still in sunny, perfect Key West!

Sunday

Breakfast: smoothie with almond milk, blueberries, banana, protein powder and almond butter

Lunch: 6 Toed Cat – a “hogfish” benedict with tons of avocado and tomato and perfectly runny eggs.

Dinner: Half Shell Raw Bar – we had to do the cheap happy hour seafood again! Oysters, clams, shrimp and tuna!

Monday

Lunch: Went by Cuban Coffee Queen about 9:30am because it’s right by Conch Harbor Marina where our friends and their boats are. We had a day of deep sea fishing planned and this is where I made a pit stop for 2 cuban sandwiches for lunch on the boat. I also got us both an iced coffee and a smoothie. Amazingly delicious!

Here are some of the fish we caught:

Dinner: Freshly caught fish, steamed broccoli and an iceberg lettuce-cucumber-tomato-onion salad!

Tuesday

Breakfast: smoothie with almond milk, blueberries, banana, peaches and PB2.

Lunch: I went to Big Pine Key with my friend Emily for the day. We left my house before I had a chance to eat so my lunch was a Cliff bar and a banana. I also ate some smarties by the pool!

We took a 2 mile walk on a trail that her grandfather made. How awesome-sweet is that? He has been spending the winter in the same campground for 38 years. The rest of the time he lives in Iowa. These are some Gumbo Limbo trees near the end of the trail.

I also got to feed and pet a Key Deer (no pics!) and we went to a small state park where 2 alligators live but they didn’t surface for us to see them. We saw turtle though!

Before we headed back to Key West we stopped in No Name Key at the No Name Pub for a drink. Sangria!!

Dinner: More of the freshly caught fish, steamed spinach and more of that ravioli with sweet potato and kale (like I had last week). We also had a sourdough bread roll.

Wednesday

Breakfast: smoothie with almond milk, blueberries, banana, peaches and almond butter

Lunch: We headed over to Simonton St. beach for about 4 hours on Wednesday. We rented a couple of beach loungers and played with our dogs, got in the water and soaked up the sun. There is a little cafe there called Lagerheads Beach Bar and everyone was raving about their fish tacos so that’s what I had to try. Tons of fresh tuna topped with cabbage, finely diced mango and tomatoes and drizzled with some yummy special sauce. On the side was a slice of cantaloupe and a chocolate chip cookie. YUM-ME!

Dinner: Old Town Mexican Cafe – veggie tostada with corn tortillas, squash, onions, greens, beans, olives, tomato, guacamole, cheese and sour cream.

Thursday

Breakfast: smoothie with almond milk, blueberries, banana, peaches and protein powder

Lunch: 6 Toed Cat – AGAIN! This time a crabcake benedict with tons of avocado and spinach and gooey-ooey runny eggs (I didn’t eat the hashbrowns). I also shared some granola, fruit and yogurt with Travis.

Dinner: We ate dinner in 2 parts. Dinner #1 was for happy hour appetizers at Half Shell Raw Bar. We had raw oysters and clams and a drink. Then, since it was our first rainy night during our trip, we went home and ordered delivery from The Cafe. We both had the lasagna special: mushroom, eggplant and a cilantro ricotta. That came with a side salad with carrots, cabbage, tomato and sprouts all topped off with a balsamic vinaigrette!

Friday

Breakfast: A carrot cake Cliff bar

Lunch: A spinach salad with strawberries, walnuts, blue cheese, onion, shrimp and raspberry vinaigrette.

Dinner: Blue Heaven – seared scallops, wild rice, corn salsa, green beans and cornbread. This place usually has a long wait but we went in on a whim and not only were seated right away but got a table right next to the live music. I hugged the hostess!

Saturday

Breakfast: a Mango smootie and iced coffee from Cuban Coffee Queen

Lunch: Half of a cuban sandwich from Cuban Coffee Queen (extra pickles!) and a half of a granola bar.

Dinner: More of our freshly caught fish. I baked it with salt, pepper and taco seasoning. Then we created fish tacos with lettuce, sour cream, jalenpenos, salsa, avocado and cheese. We also ate a mix of corn and lima beans on the side.

Weekly Eats

We have been in Key West Florida for the past week! Sunny days. 80 degrees. Palm trees. Beaches and pools. Fishing and friends. Here’s what I ate…

Look at all those doggy paw prints in the sand:

Sunday

Lunch: Subway – 6 inch turkey on wheat with fixin’s

Dinner: The Cafe – stir fry bowl with soba noodles, squash, red & green cabbage, celery, broccoli, edamame and shrimp

Monday

Lunch: Bad Boy Burrito – burrito with chicken, queso fresco, cabbage, red onion escabeche, avocado and mango habenero salsa. We also shared a green smoothie with kale, spinach, banana and pineapple.

Dinner: Abbodanza – penne primavera with broccoli, cauliflower, peas, spinach, zucchini, squash and mushrooms!

Tuesday

Lunch: Fishing trip day! I thought we would only be gone for 3 hours but that turned into 6 hours so this is all I had until dinner: 1 cup of coffee, a half of a Kind bar (the other half went through the holes in the basket of my bike!) and a pack of peanut butter crackers.

Dinner: Old Town Mexican cafe – Snapper served with sauteed spinach, rice and black beans. I also had a side of guacamole with my chips and salsa.

Wednesday

Lunch: Lobo’s – I got the “#1″…a veggie wrap with spinach, romaine, sprouts, mushrooms, avocado, green peppers, tomato and a dill sauce.

Dinner: Fresh caught black-belly-rose-fish (from Tuesday’s trip) served with sauteed spinach and some ravioli with sweet potato and kale that I bought at the store.

Thursday

Lunch: La Creperie – La Veggie with spinach, mushrooms, chives, tomatoes and goat cheese. I added avocado.

Dinner: Half Shell Raw Bar – raw clams, oysters and peel-n-eat shrimp. The best happy hour prices ever! You can pig out on fresh seafood and have to try hard to spend $50!

Friday

Lunch: Banana Cafe – tuna nicoise salad. Can you say key lime vinaigrette? Tangy awesome-ness!

Dinner: Lobo’s – a quesadilla packed with veggies like spinach, onion, mushrooms and avocado.

Saturday

Lunch: an authentic cuban sandwich with extra pickles from Ana’s Cuban Grocery. I think this had the most meat that I ate all week!

Dinner: sushi, edamame and miso soup from Origami before going on a late night fishing trip!

Peach Banana Smoothie

I make smoothies just about every morning. This is one of those mornings where the measurements were just right and I was like, “remember to make that one again.” Now if I could become a better photographer…

• 2 cups unsweetened vanilla almond milk
• 1 frozen banana
• 1 cup frozen peaches (8-10 slices)
• 2 tablespoons sunflower seed butter
• 1 heaping scoop Garden of Life vanilla protein powder
• 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon

Method

• Add ingredients to Vitamix (or other high powered blender) in the order listed above. Process on “smoothie” setting. Serves 2.