Greens-Loaded Chocolate Blueberry Smoothie {Recipe} #Choctoberfest

Greens-Loaded Chocolate Blueberry Smoothie {Cooks&Books&Recipes}

I’m a late-comer to the green smoothie craze. Fruit smoothies? I’ve been enjoying those for years. But putting greens in with fruit or anything sweet and blending it? Yuck. Greens are for salads and Southern suppers.

Nevertheless, about a year or so ago I caved in and bought a Ninja blender and a big bag of greens. I tried a smoothie with fruit, greens, and yogurt. Nope. Tried again. Nope. Finally, my health-obsessed sister gave me a hint: don’t forget the peanut butter. What?? With greens?? But I tried it again. Bingo!! I’ve been making green smoothies ever since, enjoying both the taste and the healthy benefits.

So I was excited but also curious when Barlean’s recently sent me a gift of their Chocolate Silk Greens: “Our powdered greens are full of vital antioxidants from fruits and veggies. The delicious chocolate flavor comes from Fair-Trade, antioxidant-rich cocoa. It’s delicious hot or cold with no added sugars. You’ve got to try it to believe it.” You can hear the skeptic in me, right? I still hadn’t incorporated chocolate into my smoothies. And powdered greens? Hmmm. But I tried the powder, in the recipe below (which includes peanut butter, of course). I believe it!

My omission of the fresh greens from this prep photo was not intentional (honest).

My green smoothies now have a boatload of greens without my having to add a pound or two of kale. Plus they have a subtle-sweet chocolate taste.

There really are blueberries in here — they’re just buried under the greens.

Note: For serving, I suggest topping the smoothie with some of the fresh blueberries. That was my intent. But I was in such a hurry to take a photo and see how this tasted that I completely forgot. Clearly I’m not a professional food stylist/photographer or full-time food blogger!

And … something else you should know: the Chocolate Silk Greens is just one of the nutrient-packed products from Barlean’s, established in 1989. I also taste-tested the Essential Women Omega-Swirl Chocolate Mint: “Do you take your Omega-3s? They are essential fatty acids needed by everyone, every day, for the rest of our lives. Most people get their Omega-3s from fish capsules or flax oil, but we’ve come up with a tastier option. We emulsified the flax oil to give it a smoothie-like texture and used all-natural ingredients to give it a chocolate mint flavor. You can use it in smoothies, in yogurt or oatmeal, or even on top of ice cream. It’s up to you.” This was a no-brainer: on top of ice cream. Yep, I found my healthy excuse for eating ice cream (frozen yogurt?) every night.

You can follow Barlean’s on Facebook, Pinterest, Instagram, and Twitter.

Disclosure: I have received products from event sponsors to create this post. However, all opinions and this recipe are my own. Thanks also to Imperial Sugar, the #Choctoberfest Gold Sponsor.

Greens-Loaded Chocolate Blueberry Smoothie

This smoothie is loaded with the goodness and nutrients of greens, without using a ton of greens.

Yield: 1 smoothie

Total Time: 10 minutes

Ingredients:

1/2 cup 2% Greek yogurt

1/4 cup fresh blueberries

2/3 cup orange juice

1 cup greens (I used kale, spinach, and arugula)

2 tablespoons natural peanut butter

ice

{If I'd had a banana on the kitchen counter, I probably would have thrown in one-half here as well, for extra smoothness.}

Directions:

Combine all the ingredients and blend.

Print Recipe

Still looking for more? See below for today’s recipes for #Choctoberfest, organized by The PinterTest Kitchen, and see our earlier post (tip: don’t miss the $450 prize pack giveaway there!).

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