Almond Butter Pumpkin Protein Smoothie

Protein + Pumpkin AND Almond butter all blended up in a lovely, healthy fall smoothie…

As soon as the first leaf falls, my fall weather senses are alive and well!—and so are all my pumpkin ones!!  In my head, all things pumpkin are usually desserts. Pumpkin pie, pumpkin bars, more pumpkin pie, pumpkin pecan bar. you get the point.

My goal this season is to come up with pumpkin things that are NOT only dessert. Ok, maybe dessert like but a tad bit healthier. Ya know…healthy(ish).

When we first moved to the city, I ventured into this little smoothie shop…somewhere. I have NO clue where it could have been. [that is how all of my delicious creations begin…some smoothie shop somewhere and now I want to re-create it].

I ordered a pumpkin almond butter one and gulped it down right then and there. I asked the buy behind the counter what the ingredients were. He told me. Then I asked him the amounts of each ingredient. He told me that too:) So here we are we a delicious smoothie that some smoothie shop in 2015 came up with!

I jotted it down in my notes and still have it. Call that a saver or a keeper or whatever but it DOES sometimes benefit me. I just found it and it is from june 15, 2015 ha!

This is what my note reads from 2015:

cookie scoop almond butter
2-3 dates
2 almond milk(?)
pumpkin spice
vanilla 
himalayan salt
banana

yes, clear as a pumpkin smoothie without pumpkin ha! I tweaked and tweaked until i found the right proportions and made it my own. And making in the FALL means I could add REAL pumpkin puree to it.

So, there you have it, it can be made with OR without actual pumpkin!

Is this Pumpkin Spiced Protein smoothie a Milkshake or Breakfast??

Once you make this you will be thinking…wait. This is a milkshake! And then you’ll be slapped silly when you realize it’s made with UNSWEETENED ALMOND MILK and sweetened with DATES! …no processed sugar involved. The consistency can be made to LOOK like a milkshake or to be more milky like. Your choice. Depending on the ratio of almond milk cubes to milk.

STEPS:

#1: Puree the dates BEFORE adding everything else

Pureeing your dates is key to the smoothness of your shake. If you don’t pre-puree, you run the risk of blending so much that your frozen drink becomes thin like a drink. And you still might have grainy texture from the dates.

Because I make my own nut butters using this twister jar, I add my pitted dates WITH my whole nuts prior to blending. (1/4 cup whole almonds + 2 dates = perfect large cookie scoop of almond butter) It sounds like you are blending rocks but I promise it is worth it to blend the dates BEFORE adding it to your other ingredients. If you purchase your nut butter….you still puree your dates before. Just add the right amount of nut butter to the blender and blend your dates with your nut butter. If it’s too thick, simply add some of your liquid.

Doing it this way will make your dates comes out smoother than you would ever guess when you hear those rocks bouncing around in the blender.

#2: Add the other ingredients

After you have the smooth dates/almond mixture, then add everything else.

Depending on how sweet you like your smoothie, you can use 1/2 a banana or a whole banana. You can also use a frozen banana for even a thicker shake!

#3. Finally the Frozen Unsweetened Almond milk cubes

Add these last so your shake will be cold and frosty:)

• WHY FREEZE the ALMOND MILK??

Freezing unsweetened almond milk in my ice cube trays makes a smoothie the perfect creaminess. I, at all times, have one ice cube tray full of unsweetened almond milk and one tray with ice. That way, when my cravings for a “milkshake” hit? I’m ready.

The tricky part is, however…if you use TOO many frozen unsweetened almond milk ice cubes, it won’t blend. You need a little liquid for it to blend. Depending on your blender power and if you have a twister jar, you may have to stop your blender and help it blend.

If you don’t have frozen almond milk ice cubes however, you can use regular ice cubes in place of the almond milk ones. It won’t be as creamy but the smoothie will still be cold and smoothie like.

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