Chocolate-Covered Cherry Smoothie

I don’t mean to brag, but I think I may have just come up with one of my best smoothie recipes yet – a chocolate covered cherry smoothie!  

Think Ben & Jerry’s Cherry Garcia, minus the usual stomach bloat that comes from eating ice cream.  This smoothie is dairy-free, high in potassium and packed full of antioxidants and phytochemicals.  Other than the naturally occurring sugars in the fruit, the almond milk brings along 1 ½ teaspoons of sugar from organic cane syrup – and that’s it!  The “chocolate” comes from cacao powder – cocoa before it has been roasted.  This raw cacao contains protein, iron, phosphorus and lots of polyphenols.  I get my cacao from Whole Foods, though you can order it from Amazon.com if you do not have a healthy food store nearby.  Many grocery stores now carry frozen cherries.  If yours does not, substitute frozen raspberries instead.  Adding the banana is key in order for your smoothie to be smooth and creamy.  Give this a try!

Ingredients:

1 ripe banana, frozen

¾ cups frozen cherries

1 Tablespoon cacao powder

1 cup almond or hemp milk (avoid brands that contain the additive carrageenan)

Directions:

Place all ingredients into an immersion blender cup (or regular blender) and blend until smooth & creamy.  For extra fiber and some valuable Omega-3's, add a spoonful of flaxseed meal.  

Makes one large serving.  For an extra-special treat for the kiddies (or yourself!), try pouring the smoothie mixture into popsicle molds to make delish popsicles!
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