When I recently read the ingredients of a particular children’s protein shake, I realized I had to share a healthy alternative to PediaSure®. A milkshake that’s marketed to parents as a healthy drink but is filled with sugar, oxidized oils, and synthetic vitamins is certainly not what I would give to my own kids. As a liquid meal replacement, there are much better options.

paleo pumpkin smoothie recipe

As we settle into fall, I find myself craving my paleo pumpkin pie smoothie. It’s like a pumpkin spice latte, without the caffeine jitters and dairy intolerance issues. I made this smoothie for some friends on my tennis team last year and it was a winner!

This liquid nutrition was actually part of an assignment I did for the Academy of Culinary Nutrition. I focused on an autoimmune condition and developed recipes specifically targeted towards nourishing these clients. A key focus for clients with autoimmune disease is to support the immune system, increase anti-inflammatory foods, and improve metabolic function. This smoothie offers a range of nutrients to aid in healing and help increase energy levels.

pumpkin spice smoothie

KEY INGREDIENTS AND NUTRIENTS:

  • Pumpkin: provides a wide range of micronutrients
    • Vitamin A helps vision, immune, and inflammatory systems.
    • One cup of baked winter squash will provide you with approximately 340 milligrams of omega-3 fats in the form of alpha-linolenic acid (ALA), useful for brain health.(1)
    • One cup pumpkin is 20% of DV of Vitamin C. (2)
    • It’s a key food that can help with hormone balance throughout a woman’s menstrual cycle.
  • Hemp Seeds: offers a perfect  3:1 ratio of omega-6 to omega-3
    • Offers a complete protein source of essential fatty acids
    • Great for brain health
  • Bananas: a natural sweetener with benefits:
    • potassium helps prevent muscle aches
    • fibre is easy to digest
    • helps increase energy level with a high amount of B6 (3)

My paleo pumpkin pie smoothie is a great way to start your morning routine, or recharge after a workout. What’s even better is that this smoothie is also kid-approved in my house. Those bananas make it sweet, so feel free to decrease to your taste.

HOW TO MAKE PUMPKIN PUREE

To make homemade pumpkin puree, slice the top off of a pie pumpkin and then cut the pumpkin in half through the middle. Remove the seeds and then cover the pumpkin pieces with some coconut oil and roast for 30 minutes cut side down on a baking sheet in an oven at 400 degrees. Scoop out the insides and reserve pumpkin for smoothies or soup. If you use store bought pumpkin puree, look for the organic version sold in cardboard boxes instead of cans. (See this option here.) The reason to skip the metal can (even BPA free) is to reduce your exposure to metal, which is an issue for women dealing with autoimmune sensitivities.

Learn more about what a health coach can do for you.
Paleo Pumpkin Pie Smoothie

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Paleo Pumpkin Smoothie Recipe

paleo pumpkin smoothies

Paleo Pumpkin Pie Smoothie

This smoothie is like a guilt-free slice of pumpkin pie! My paleo pumpkin pie smoothie is both dairy free and gluten free.
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 5 minutes
Total Time: 10 minutes
Course: Breakfast
Cuisine: American
Keyword: pumpkin, smoothie
Servings: 2
Author: Emily Roach

Ingredients

Instructions

  • In a high speed blender, add all ingredients in the order listed.
  • Add a large handful of ice cubes if you prefer an even thicker smoothie.
  • Blend on high till thoroughly combined. Enjoy.
Tried this recipe?Mention @emilyroachwellness or tag #erwellness!

pumpkin smoothie with cacao nibs

I add cacao nibs to my smoothies to give them a little crunch! Did you know cacao nibs provide you a dose of both iron and magnesium. These two micronutrients are important to replenish during the menstrual phase of a women’s cycle. Give your body some energy and help balance those hormones with a little support from these little bits of chocolate goodness.

You can find my recipe to make homemade almond milk herehomemade vanilla extract here, and my favorite place to get the pumpkin pie spice is Trader Joe’s.

paleo pumpkin pie smoothie ingredients

I hope you enjoy your paleo pumpkin pie smoothie this fall. It’s a great way to nourish you body, and get that pumpkin fix covered.

Sources

  1. By Roasting Them for a Relatively Short Time at a Low Temperature You Can Help Minimize Damage to Their Healthy Oils. Linoleic Acid (the Polyunsaturated Omega-6 Fatty Acid) and Oleic Acid (the Same Monounsaturated Fatty Acid That Is Plentiful in Olive Oil. “Squash, Winter.” Squash, Winter. World’s Healthiest Foods, n.d. Web. 01 Nov. 2016.
  2. Ware, Megan, RDN LD. Medical News Today. MediLexicon International, n.d. Web. 01 Nov. 2016.
  3. “Vitamin B6 – Pyridoxine.” Vitamin B6 – Pyridoxine. World’s Healthiest Foods, n.d. Web. 01 Nov. 2016.paleo pumpkin pie smoothie (1)

This is a compensated post in partnership with DOLE and the Mom It Forward Blogger Network. All opinions shared are my own. 

Go Green Spinach Smoothie

Spring has finally sprung! After leaving town for a couple of days, I was amazed to come home and see flowers everywhere. The trees are pink and the tulips are all standing at attention. It’s days like this that I love being a stay at home mom and get to relax and watch the kids play in the backyard for hours.

My other favorite thing that happens in spring is snack time takes place outside. Two less rounds of crumbs to clean up in the house! It’s the little things that make me happy in the spring.

The kids were excited when we tested out a new smoothie recipe shared with us from DOLE Pineapple Juice. I usually don’t add juice to our smoothies, but I was happy to learn that Dole’s juice is 100% juice and GMO-free. Two great things in my nutrition playbook. Plus with the “pollen tsunami” taking place, increasing our Vitamin C intake can be a helpful remedy for allergy symptoms.

Silly smoothie facesThe Go Green smoothie won over our neighbor’s daughter who isn’t always a green smoothie fan. The silly green mustaches everyone was wearing at the end of snack time was a sign of success!

One note, since we try to avoid GMO’s I swapped out the soy milk for almond milk. It can be tricky to find organic GMO-free soy milk so almond or coconut milk are alternate suggestions.

How to make a green smoothie

Healthy Green Smoothie Recipe

Go Green Smoothie

An energizing green smoothie to kick start your day.
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Total Time: 5 minutes
Course: Smoothie
Cuisine: American
Servings: 2 servings
Author: Emily

Ingredients

  • 1/2 cup DOLE pineapple juice chilled
  • 3/4 cup vanilla soy milk or almond milk
  • 4 cups baby spinach
  • 1 cup frozen mango chunks partially thawed
  • 1 banana peeled
  • 1 tablespoon whole ground flaxseed meal

Instructions

  • If you have a high speed blender, add all ingredients to blender starting with the Pineapple Juice.
  • If you have a traditional blender, add juice thru spinach and blend before adding the balance of ingredients.
  • Blend and enjoy!
Tried this recipe?Mention @emilyroachwellness or tag #erwellness!

 

You can make your own Go Green smoothie and get coupon here for your next sunny day smoothie snack break!

  • $1.00 off #coupon for any 46oz or 6oz 6-pack of DOLE Canned Pineapple Juice.

Learn more about what you can make with healthy pineapple juice on DOLE’s Pinterest boards, Twitter channel or facebook page. I’ll be checking out some fun summer cocktail recipes here so I can use up my leftover pineapple juice. You can also buy the small cans and have them in the pantry for when inspiration strikes.

Healthy Green Smoothie Recipe

What’s your favorite activity to do in the sunshine?

Share the love of sunshine! Click to Tweet: Try this Go Green Pineapple Smoothie! @DolePackaged #ad #dolepineapplejuice #ayearofsunshine #smoothie http://bit.ly/1EqW2RE

Green Smoothie Recipes Your Kids will Love

I pulled together our list of green smoothies your kids will love. My kid’s favorite snack lately is a smoothie, always with a dose of greens. My two year old runs into the kitchen saying “moothie” until I make him one. Smoothies are a great way to sneak additional vegetables and fruits into your kids diet, and your own if needed. We usually make one large smoothie and split it up between the three of us in the afternoon. Both kids like the green smoothies and I’ll share today some super simple recipes that are kid-approved.

The good news is both kids drink green smoothies. The bad news is they often want them before I get dinner on the table so I find it can affect how much they eat when we sit at the table. I’m slowly trying to find a balance between offering them healthy vegetable-filled snacks and not take away from eating vegetables on the plate. The fiber isn’t lost when you make a smoothie, but I do think it’s important for kids to continue to experience the different textures of cooked or raw vegetables on their dinner plate.

 

We are using the Blendtec blender that I received as part of a Stonyfield yogurt campaign. The blender really is amazing and I think I’ll always have one of these high speed blenders from now on. We are using the Wildside Blendtec Blender.

Green Smoothie ingredients

There are a few key ingredients I use when I make smoothies for us:

  • Spinach
  • Coconut Milk
  • Yogurt
  • Frozen Fruit
  • Bananas
  • Oranges
  • Melon
  • Chia seeds (optional)

I generally never add any sweetener (like honey or agave) as I don’t want to give the kids a taste of a sweeter option. If something tastes too “green” I can soften the taste with the addition of more citrus or an apple. Yes, there is still sugar in the fruit but there are also a ton of vitamins that are beneficial.

Wondering how we serve our smoothies? I use our pint size mason jars and these glass smoothie straws (only one has broken in 3 years of using glass straws with the little kids). JJ loves his blue one and Madison has pink! If we are on the go, I also serve the smoothie in our favorite reusable squeeze pouch.

Here are just a few of our favorite recipes. Combine in the order listed and blend well.

If you want ALL of my smoothie recipes in one handy printable recipe book, click here. All recipes are kid-approved!

Green Monkey Smoothie

Green Smoothies Your Kids Will Love

*where it says water, you can sub in coconut milk to make it creamy, almond, oat, cashew or your favorite type of milk.

Mango Monkey

1/2 cup coconut milk

2 cups spinach

1 banana

1 cup frozen mango

Alligator Surprise

1/2 cup water

1/2 a medium avocado scooped out (we make this to use up leftover avocado)

2 cups spinach

2 cups frozen pineapple

 

Green Queen

1/2 cup of water

2 tablespoons of flaxseeds (or chia seeds)

2 clementines, peeled

1 banana

2 cups spinach

1/2 cup frozen pineapple chunks

Berries and Spinach smoothie

The Blue One

(which really comes out more purple than blue)

1/2 cup water

1 cup yogurt (we use our homemade yogurt)

1 cup spinach

2 cups frozen berries

Head over here for one more bonus green smoothie: Coconut Kale Smoothie!

If the kids are not into anything green, you can also try my Paleo Pumpkin Pie Smoothie recipe.  Happy blending! I hope these green smoothies your kids will love helps make getting more vegetables into them a lot easier for you.

Smoothie Summit RandomRecycling

Ever since we received a Blendtec blender, smoothies have become a regular part of our day. Sometimes it becomes a meal replacement on busy days, other times it’s the perfect snack in the afternoon to hold us over till dinner. The kids get to pick their color and we go from there.

Everyone started artfully arranging their ingredients. I just went straight to the blender.

Everyone started artfully arranging their ingredients. I just went straight to the blender.

Last week I attended a “Smoothie Summit” at Whole Foods Fresh Pond in Cambridge. A group of local Boston bloggers got together to share and test out some smoothie recipes. The results were amazing!

Green Smoothie RandomRecycling.com

My drink of choice is one called the Green Machine. I love the balance in flavors I get when I blend spinach with fruits. When I have a smoothie without spinach, I often find it too sweet now.

Green Machine Smoothie RandomRecycling.com

A Smoothie Throw-down at Whole Foods

Course: Smoothie

Ingredients

  • 1/2 cup guava juice
  • 1 cup Stonyfield Greek Yogurt
  • 2 bananas
  • 1 navel orange peel and cut into quarters
  • 1 apple cut into quarters but not peeled
  • 2 cups spinach
  • 1 cup frozen mango

Instructions

  • Add everything into a blender in the order above.
  • Blend on smoothie setting until desired consistency.
  • Serve immediately.
Tried this recipe?Mention @emilyroachwellness or tag #erwellness!

As our group of bloggers recipes come online, I’ll share them here as well. Thank you Whole Foods for hosting us, it was a wonderful experience to test out some healthy recipes. There were a lot of new ingredients tossed into those smoothies that may find their way into my kitchen too.

Boston Social Media Peeps

 

Leah’s Spring Egg Cream Smoothie Recipe

I had a great time hanging out with Lori from Groovy Green Livin, Sharon from ViolaCay, Julia from It’s Not Like a Cat, Sharon from umommy and KidNosh, Jessica from Don’t Mind the Mess, Isra The Frugalette, Niri of Mommy Niri, Leah from Oh Baby Boston, and Jean The Shopping Queen.

It may be winter, but a delicious smoothie still is a perfect snack. My kids are loving them and I am happy to use up some leftovers produce from the refrigerator. Our new favorite recipe is the spiced pumpkin smoothie recipe. It offers a healthy dose of vitamins A and C, which helps support a healthy immune system. Perfect for this time of year!

SPICED PUMPKIN SMOOTHIE RECIPE

Course: Smoothie

Ingredients

  • 3/4 cup orange juice
  • 1 cup low-fat vanilla yogurt Stonyfield French Vanilla blends was great
  • 1 cup pumpkin puree
  • 1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
  • 2 bananas quartered and frozen
  • 1 cup ice cubes

Instructions

  • Add ingredients to the blender in the order listed.
  • Select "Smoothie" setting on a Blendtec, or a comparable setting.
Tried this recipe?Mention @emilyroachwellness or tag #erwellness!

 

Spiced Pumpkin Smoothie Recipe