Thickalicious Christmas Cake Smoothie

Thickalicious Christmas Cake Smoothie

This Thickalicious take-off on a Christmas Cake as a smoothie
When designing this 'cake' smoothie, I wanted to get the essential flavour "idea" of Christmas cake but without having to expand the recipe to include all the not-so-healthy ingredients you might find in a typical Christmas cake (and I'm not referring to the commercial ones).  There is NO butter, so you don't have to worry about that... in fact, like all of the Christmas smoothies, this one is also vegan which means no yogurt either, or other dairy products.  Of course, if you are not vegetarian, you can go ahead and put in whatever you like from the animal by-product arena.  I'm hoping that the almond milk and the oatmeal carry the mouth-appeal for all the fats-- milk, butter, eggs-- in this smoothie.

I also have skipped most the rum or brandy and the raisins and/or currants.  Instead I'm using frozen  seedless grapes and I believe that these little gems do the trick as a much healthier, tastier sub.  Along with the grapes, the dates provide wholesome sweetness (I also added a packet of Sweet Leaf stevia, and you can opt for more sweetener of your choice, or just stick with the dates).  Too, I kept the spices to a minimum, using a small amount of nutmeg and a more pronounced portion of cinnamon.

I like it-- it satisfies my Christmas Cake urges in a more satisfactory way, and I don't have to start putting it together in October! (I vaguely remember that regimen from my long-ago Trudy Traditional days).

Thickalicious Christmas Cake Smoothie (serves 2)
Put the following in your blender carafe and whirl up:

• 1/2 C. Rolled Oats (Gluten-Free if preferred)
• 1/4 tsp. ground Nutmeg
• 1 tsp.   ground Cinnamon
• 9 pitted Dates (or more if desired)
• 1 C. Frozen Seedless Grapes
• 2. C. Almond Milk (or 1 C. Almond Milk and 1 C. Water)
• 1 pkt. Sweet Leaf Stevia powder (or sweetener of choice and how much you want-- optional)

Try these other Christmas Smoothies too!

Cranberry-Apple, Green Grape and Chia Christmas Smoothie

Cranberry Lassi with Coconut Milk, Cumin, Chia and Ginger Smoothie

Mandaringo-Ginger Smoothie

Luscious Eggless Nog Smoothie

Sweet Pumpkin Pie Smoothie

Chocolate-Mint Smoothie

Mandaringo- Ginger Smoothie

This Mandaringo Ginger Smoothie is the third of seven Christmas Smoothie Recipes... if you want the others sent directly to your email box, please sign up under this recipe.

When I was a small child in the 50s and 60s in Canada's Rural Heartland there were certain foods that were pretty much only eaten during the Christmas season, because that is the only time they were available in local stores.  Turkey and mandarin oranges are in that category.  Mandarin oranges were a great treat in our family.  Small children felt so independent in that they could peel the little suckers all by themselves.  They were refreshing and delicious and we couldn't get enough of them!  There was always at least one mandarin orange in our Christmas Stocking.

We now live in a world where those of us in privileged nations can generally find a huge range of fresh fruits and vegetables almost any time of year.  My husband just picked up a box of organic Mandarins and we are teaming them up with frozen organic Mangos from Costco.  The flavours of Mandarin Orange and Mango blend very nicely together, plus the Mango provides the emulsion that any smoothie needs (keeps all the fruit juices from going off their separate ways). Fresh grated ginger provides that lovely warming and zing.  A frozen banana brings in some additional sweet and smooth.  Hope you enjoy!

Mandaringo-Ginger Smoothie (serves 2 - 4 people)

Put the following in your Blender Carafe:

• 1 C. Frozen Mango
• 2 Mandarin Oranges, segmented
• 2 inch peeled, chopped Ginger
• 1/2 to 1 Frozen Banana, chopped

Enjoy!  

Here are the other 6 Christmas Smoothie Recipes for you to sample!

Cranberry-Apple, Green Grape and Chia Christmas Smoothie

Cranberry Lassi with Coconut Milk, Cumin, Chia and Ginger Smoothie

Christmas Cake Smoothie

Luscious Eggless Nog Smoothie

Sweet Pumpkin Pie Smoothie

Chocolate-Mint Smoothie

Cranberry Lassi with Coconut Milk, Cumin, Chia and Ginger (Vegan, Gluten-Free)

This delicious, delightful Cranberry Lassi  is the sixth "Christmas Smoothie" in our series of 7 Daily Christmas Smoothies.

A Lassi is an Indian drink generally made with cultured milk, either yogurt or kefir, and flavours from the 5 basic groups: salty, pungent, sour, sweet and bitter.  If you are not vegan/dairy adverse, you could use either of these for the coconut milk/lime juice in following the recipe.  Seeing cumin and cayenne (or chili powder) in a more or less dessert-y type smoothie is a bit of a shock, or was for me.  But the combination, in concert with the bitter cranberries, is just perfect (my husband thinks so).  I used a recipe for cranberry chutney for ideas of workable blends, but you will be happy to recognize that I did not include garlic or an entire chili pepper.

Cumin has been used throughout history in perfume-making, so you can attribute the lovely fragrance partly to that, and partly to the ginger (a wonderful digestion-helper) and other ingredients.  I was left with a very nice after-taste and a warming feeling.  This is not a drink to bolt down, but to savour over a family get-together early in the morning.

Cranberry Lassi 

 This makes about two (2) good-sized Adult servings.
 Put the following in your Blender Carafe:
* 2 C. Coconut Dream (or similar ready-to-drink Coconut Mylk)
* 1+C. Fresh or Frozen Cranberries (Frozen berries act like ice cubes)
* 1 tsp. Chia Seed (ground in Coffee Grinder)
* 1 tsp. Cumin Seed (ground in Coffee Grinder)
* 1 Small Handful Unsweetened Coconut Shreds
* Fresh-squeezed Lime Juice (1/2 Lime)
* 1 tsp. Grated fresh Ginger
* 3 T. Coconut Palm Sugar
* 1 packet Stevia "Sweet Leaf" powder (Optional)
* Pinch of Salt (I use Celtic Sea Salt for the 82 minerals)
* Pinch of Cayenne or Chili pepper
Merry Christmas!  Happy Holidays!

Here are the other 6 Christmas Smoothie Recipes for you to sample!

Cranberry-Apple, Green Grape and Chia Christmas Smoothie

Mandaringo-Ginger Smoothie

Christmas Cake Smoothie

Luscious Eggless Nog Smoothie

Sweet Pumpkin Pie Smoothie

Chocolate-Mint Smoothie

Cranberry-Apple, Green Grape and Chia Christmas Smoothie (Vegan, Gluten-Free)

This Cranberry-Apple, Green Grape and Chia Smoothie is tart, but refreshing!  I add a packet of stevia (Sweet Leaf brand) just to give  it a little extra sweetness.  But otherwise, it is dyn-o-mite!  I'm kicking off the Christmas Smoothie Week here-- we will start every day with a lovely, high antioxidant smoothie to fend off the bugs and do some mild detox.  Hope you will join in!  If you are not already on the list and would like to be over the 7-Day Christmas Smoothie-ton, please just sign up below the recipe!
Cranberry - Apple, Green Grape and Chia Christmas Smoothie Recipe: This recipe makes enough smoothies for 2 - 4 people depending on how much smoothie you imbibe! Put the following in your blender carafe and whirl up:

• 1 - 3 C. Fresh Cranberries
• 1 - 2 C. Frozen Seedless Grapes (mine are Green, but any table grapes will do!)
• 1 - 2 Apples, cored and chopped (washed well but not peeled)
• 1 T. ground Chia Seed (grind it in a Coffee Bean Grinder)
• Filtered Water to the 1/2 Mark on your Carafe
• 1 packet Sweet Leaf Stevia with Inulin (Optional)

To Your Health AND Merry Christmas!  ~Cynthia

Here are the other 6 Christmas Smoothie Recipes for you to sample!

Cranberry Lassi with Coconut Milk, Cumin, Chia and Ginger Smoothie

Mandaringo-Ginger Smoothie

Christmas Cake Smoothie

Luscious Eggless Nog Smoothie

Sweet Pumpkin Pie Smoothie

Chocolate-Mint Smoothie

Mango Coconut Chai Smoothie

Mango-Coconut-Chai Smoothie

This lovely bright yellow (thanks to the superfood, turmeric) Mango Coconut Chai Smoothie is just the thing if you are looking for a bit of sunshine in a gloomy morning-- or even a way to celebrate a gloriously sunny morning!  And, of course, this is a super-healthy smoothie!  The phytochemicals and vitamins in the fruits, the medium-chain essential acids in the coconut, and the antioxidants in the spicy chai add up to a powerful start to your day!  It doesn't hurt, either, that this smoothie is one of the most delicious ones you'll ever drink!

Chai tea is an ayurvedic drink traditionally made with milk (vegan milks work fine) and some combination of black, oolong, or green tea, ginger, turmeric, cardamom, cinnamon, cloves, and/or fennel.  At the very least, chai is found to be a great drink for the digestion, and recently scientific research is suggesting that chai is high in antioxidants and as such, is offering yet another tasty, healthy preventative for cancer.*

If you are planning to try this smoothie in the morning, pop an ice cube tray of cooled chai tea into your freezer to freeze overnight.  You can also just opt to use individual herbs, such as fresh-grated ginger and a couple of cloves ground up in your coffee bean grinder.  You might even just try 1 - 3 drops of a therapeutic essential oil, such as cinnamon bark, clove or cardamom. (Caution: use only oils that are designated safe for human consumption, that have not been processed to include harmful solvents and other chemicals, and that do not contain the disclaimer that they are only for "external use".)

METHOD:

Put the following into the carafe of your blender:

• 1 Banana, chunked
• 1 C. Frozen Mango
• 1/2 C. Coconut Shreds (unsweetened)
• 1 tsp. Turmeric powder
• 3-4 Chai Tea Ice Cubes, or desired Chai herbs and spices as mentioned above
• 2 - 4 C. Coconut Dream or other vegan mylk
• 1 packet "Sweet Leaf" or other natural sweetener (optional)

Spin up and enjoy your healthy, sparky start to the day!