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Happiness in a Tall Glass – How to make Vegan Smoothies

CatherineMezensky by CatherineMezensky

Mmmmmm...Vegan Smoothies!

Want to have a quick healthy breakfast or a tasty summer treat? Try replacing fatty milkshakes with vegan smoothies, which are a creamy blended drink made with fruits or vegetables. Vegans often have trouble buying smoothies at coffee shops or creameries because the drinks are often made with dairy products like milk, yogurt or even whipped cream. But, you can easily make vegan smoothies at home. They are a very easy way to enjoy five or more servings of fruits and veggies a day.

Making a vegan smoothie can be as simple as blending soy, almond, rice or coconut milk with the fresh or frozen fruit of your choice. Smoothies often hold up well if you blend them the night before and stick them in the refrigerator for a breakfast on the go. Some links to basic smoothie recipes are below, but if you are seeking more nutrition scroll down for tips on green smoothies and adding protein. Go down to the bottom of the lens to see blender selection tips. Don't forget to add your own ideas to the comment section!

Smoothie ingredient photo by Ctguitardude of Wikimedia Commons.

Table of Contents

  1. Smoothie Making Tips
  2. Smoothie Recipes
  3. Beyond Fruit and Veggies- Smoothie Add-ins
  4. More Vegan Smoothie Recipes
  5. The best fruits for smoothies
  6. Green Smoothies
  7. Green Smoothie Recipes
  8. The Protein Issue
  9. Vegan Protein Powder Reviews and Information
  10. Protein Smoothie Recipes
  11. Looking for Vegan Protein Powder?
  12. Smoothie Tips and Tricks
  13. Comparing Blenders
  14. Shop for a New Blender
  15. Other food lenses by this lensmaster
  16. Twitter Follow
  17. Baltimore Gardening Examiner

Smoothie Making Tips

strawberry mintAfter you've made a few basic smoothies you can become more adventurous. Here are some things you can do with vegan smoothies.

If you've been relying on vegan milks like soy or almond, try other liquids. Fruit juices like pineapple or apple, silken tofu, or vegan ice cream can refresh an often used vegan smoothie recipe.

If you don't want to use ice cut some fruit into pieces and freeze it and then add to smoothies. Frozen or canned fruit works good too!

Bananas are great for extra nutrition and to make the smoothie thicker.

Have leftover smoothie? Pour it into a popsicle mold and freeze to make tasty vegan frozen treats.

Photo by Andrzej Gdula of stock.xchng.

Smoothie Recipes

These links include many different kinds of vegan smoothie recipes.
VegWeb Shakes and Smoothies Recipes
Excellent archive of user generated recipes.
Planet Smoothie
This blog details one woman's adventures with her blender. Lots of smoothie recipes!
Busy-Vegan.com: Vegan Smoothies
Includes chocolate, vegan and green smoothies.
Smoothie Recipes: Vegan Smoothie Recipes
Tasty fruity recipes, with one mint chocolate smoothie recipe included.
Savvy Vegetarian: Yummy Fruit Smoothie
A simple, nutritious breakfast smoothie.

Beyond Fruit and Veggies- Smoothie Add-ins

honeyWant to add extra nutrition or improve the taste of a smoothie? Here are some things you may want to blend it.

Ground flax seed
Wheat germ
Chocolate or carob chips (OK, not so much for nutrition but for fun.)
Chia seeds
Agave nectar or honey
Dates
Herbs like mint, parsley or anything fresh and to your taste
Nuts (depending on how powerful your blender is)
Ice cubes (to add moisture)
Maple syrup
Whey protein powder
Hemp protein
Dried ground or fresh grated ginger

Honey photo by Zsuzsanna Kilian of stock.xchng.

More Vegan Smoothie Recipes

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The best fruits for smoothies

fruit smoothies

Smoothies seem to depend on fruits. Which ones are your favorite?

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Green Smoothies

spinachGreen Smoothies are a great way for vegans to get plenty of raw vegetables in their diets. This type of smoothie blends leafy greens like spinach, kale, cabbage, or even beet tops with fruits and other ingredients. Often the sweetness of the fruit will mask the taste of the greens, so if you don't like greens this is a good way to get them. Check out the links below for some excellent vegan green smoothie recipes.

Spinach photo by Gokhan Okur of stock.xchng.

Green Smoothie Recipes

Adding vegetables to your smoothies can easily give you more nutrition in your diet. Many of these drinks are very easy to make.
Vegan Smoothies Diet: Chocolate Strawberry Smoothie for Desert
Surprisingly, spinach is one of the main ingredients in this drink.
Green Smoothie Recipes
A blog with nutrition tips.
Raw Family Green Smoothie Recipes
A wide range of recipes, including for beginners, children, or more adventurous sippers. There are even a few raw soup recipes.
Green Diva Mom: 12 Great Tasting Green Smoothie Recipes
Simple, easy green smoothie concoctions.

The Protein Issue

peanut butterSmoothies can be a good way to get protein into the vegan diet. You can blend in nut butters such as peanut or almond. Silken tofu will add a creamy texture. Many vegans use protein powders like hemp, soy, rice, or any other prepared protein smoothie mix. Check your local natural food store or order it from an online retailer like Amazon. For reviews of some different protein powders, follow the links below.

Peanut butter photo by Nicolas Raymond of stock.xchng.

Vegan Protein Powder Reviews and Information

Confused about vegan protein powders? Some of these reviews may help select the best one for you.
Choosing Raw: The Low Down on Vegan Protein Powders
How to add more protein to your vegan smoothie.
Fooduciary: Searching for a Vegan Protein Powder
A review of Sun Warrior Protein Powder.
Vegan Bits: Vega Product Review
A review of several Whole Food protein powders.

Protein Smoothie Recipes

Now that you have some kind of vegan protein powder, what do you do with it? These recipes will tell you how to use it in a smoothie.
SparkPeople: Vegan Smoothie With Hemp Protein
A recipe featuring fruit, ginger, and tea ice cubes.
Lita's World: Vegan Protein Morning Smoothie
Friendly step by step instructions with photos.
Smoothie Recipes: Protein Smoothie Recipes
Simple recipes that include protein powder.
Kristen's Raw: Cinnamon Banana Protein Shake
Banana and cinnamon combined with chocolate protein powder make a tasty smoothie!

Looking for Vegan Protein Powder?

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Smoothie Tips and Tricks

What is your favorite way to make a vegan smoothie? Let us know your tasty tips.

  • vegival Mar 16, 2012 @ 5:34 pm | delete
    I enjoyed this article and have been trying to learn more about smoothies. Thanks!
  • cffutah Feb 6, 2012 @ 9:11 am | delete
    very fun article, enjoyed seeing this and doing your poll.
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Comparing Blenders

blenderThere is no getting around it-smoothies can be addictive and you'll need a blender that suits your needs. Consider the blender's size, ease of use and room for storage in your home.

Large traditional blenders can fit about 48oz of smoothie materials and are good if you are blending for more than one person. They have several settings and many can easily chop ice. But, large blenders take up a lot of counter space and can be annoying to clean.

Some manufacturers make small single serving blenders that fit about 14-16 ounces. These rinse out easily and are great for making smoothies for one or two people. They take up very little space. However, they don't handle hard foods like ice very well.

An immersion blender, perhaps the smallest of them all, is stick shaped with no container of its own. It does allow you to blend food in pots or bowls. While they may seem like a space saving solution they are often not powerful enough for regular smoothie making. If you have one already save it for smoothing out soups.

Blender photo by Mark Anderson of stock.xchng.

Shop for a New Blender

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Other food lenses by this lensmaster

I love to write about food and here are some of my other articles on Squidoo. I've tried to include vegetarian or vegan options in the tips and recipe links.
Cooking, eating and enjoying beans and rice
Find out how to choose from the many different types of beans and rice for a nutritious budget conscious meal. Also read cooking tips and learn how to reduce gas.
Cornbread! Where it came from and how to make it
History, recipes and all about Jiffy cornbread mix!
The Great American Pancake!
Learn to make great pancakes (even healthy ones) and read about pancake traditions and legends.
How to Grow, Carve and Cook Pumpkins
From spring to fall, this article gives you tips on both raising and using pumpkins.

Baltimore Gardening Examiner

My garden page on Examiner, in case you want to grow fresh fruits and vegetables for those smoothies.
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CatherineMezensky

My writing is all around the web, but I'm mostly known as the Baltimore Gardening Examiner at Examiner.com. I also write about history, culture, natur... more »

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