(photography by Elaine Gordon)
by Elaine Gordon, Eating by Elaine, from e-Cookbook, “Rock Your Blender!”
vegan | gluten-free | grain-free | peanut-free | egg-free | dairy-free | refined sugar-free | soy-free
Did you know a Matcha Frappuccino at Starbucks is over 400 calories and 65 grams of sugar?! While matcha itself is super healthy, these blended sugary and high-calorie beverages are not so much. Here, I lightened it up and turned it into a nutritious, filling, vegan and refined sugar-free smoothie. It is creamy from the cauliflower, avocado and almonds (or cashews). It has a sweet vanilla flavor too. It subtly boosts my energy levels without the coffee or refined sugar jitters.
BOOST IT: with pinch of microgreens, 1 frozen wheatgrass pod or a handful of fresh baby spinach or kale.
PRO TIP: Choose the right avocado. It should feel squishy yet firm (like the palm of your hand) and be a nice dark green color on the outside. You don’t want it underripe. To speed up ripening you can store the avocado near abanana or in a brown paper bag. Also, you don’t want it overripe or it will be too mushy and not taste right. To slow down the ripening process you can store the avocado in the refrigerator.