Start your morning off right with this vegan and dairy free cherry avocado smoothie! It’s a healthy, filling breakfast perfect for busy mornings.
The buzz of the blender can always be heard from 3 rooms away. It’s one of those coarse sounds that shakes the whole house. Whenever I’m blending things, I always picture that mom in the free credit score commercial who shouts out to her grown daughter, “I’m making smoothies!”.
Every time I see that commercial I also think about how I’ve always wanted to like smoothies but NEVER, EVER have. A healthy, nutritious breakfast packed with fruits and veggies that gear you up for the whole day? Sounds like a real win but there’s one annoying culprit always hiding in smoothies that has kept me away from them: BANANAS…
I’ve always found the raw banana flavor to be extremely over powering. Plus that faint slimy texture is off-putting. I know I should eat them for the health benefits but I just can’t get behind raw bananas #sorrynotsorry. I know I’m not alone in my raw banana dislike though; just google “smoothies without bananas” and you’ll see that millions of people feel the same way!
How to make a thick, creamy smoothie without bananas?
With my raw banana loathing, I’ve never been able to actually enjoy smoothies. It’ seems like there’s always a new smoothie trend to try too like smoothie bowls, kale smoothies and protein smoothies. But 9 times out of 10 those smoothie recipes have bananas in them.
So if you don’t want the flavor of your cherry avocado smoothie overpowered by bananas, what do you do?
- Swap the bananas for avocados!
Avocados provide thickness and the perfectly creamy texture that banana usually adds. P.S. if you’ve only used avocado in savory dishes, don’t worry; it’s more for creaminess in this cherry avocado smoothie recipe rather than flavor. Cherry and coconut are more prominent than the avocado here.
Make ahead tips for smoothies
You can whip up these healthy cherry avocado smoothies really quickly but if you don’t want the shaking thunder of your blender early in the morning, you have a few options:
- Make the smoothie the night before and refrigerate it
- I wouldn’t recommend making this fruit smoothie any further in advance because the avocado will change color and your smoothie will be brown
- Use a popsicle mold or ice cube trays to freeze the smoothie mixture
- Put the frozen smoothie cubes into a mason jar in the morning and by the time you get to work, it should have defrosted enough for you to shake it up and enjoy
What type of milk should you use?
Nobody wants a thin, runny smoothie. To ensure that this berry smoothie is nice and thick, you need to use the right milk!
For these cherry avocado smoothies you’ll want to:
- Use a thick milk like full fat coconut milk or whole milk
- Avoid thin plant based milks like almond milk or rice milk
- Almond milk is great in general and in smoothies, but if you want to keep this nice and thick almond milk just won’t do
- Try a naturally thick plant based milk like creamy oat milk or cashew milk
Other fruits and vegetables you can add to this healthy smoothie recipe
While cherries are the star in this vegan smoothie, you can definitely swap out some fruits or add in some flavor boosters.
Try adding in:
- CHOCOLATE!
- You can go with 1 tsp of cocoa powder (for smoothness) or add in some dark chocolate chips before blending for chocolate flavor with some crunch
- Spinach or kale
- Smoothies are a great way to trick yourself or picky family members into having more dark leafy greens without any protesting
- Strawberries, blueberries or blackberries
- You can swap the cherries for other berries or do a medley of mixed berries in this smoothie
Cherry Avocado Smoothie
Rate this Recipe:Ingredients
- 1 hass avocado, peeled and seed removed
- 2 cups frozen dark sweet cherries
- 1 cup full fat coconut milk (liquid only, not the cream)
- 2 1/2 tbs maple syrup
- pinch of salt
Instructions
- Add all of the ingredients to a blender. Puree 1-2 minutes until smooth (the time will depend on the strength of your blender). Pour into a glass and enjoy!
Notes
- It helps to put the can of coconut milk in the fridge for an hour before using it. Then you can easily scoop the thick white coconut cream off the top and reserve it for something else. Use the clear colored milk in the can for the smoothie. You don't need the cream in this smoothie since the avocado adds enough richness.
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