Ginger Berry Smoothie Bowl

In case you’re wondering why I’m talking about cold things, in January, let’s just say that after much dietary debauchery on Christmas eve (I attended a potluck and really went for it), I needed some balance.

I was craving something light, nutritious, and delicious on Christmas morning and my first thought was to make a ginger berry smoothie bowl. It’s too good not to share with you guys. So, consider this recipe a belated Christmas gift, from me to you. 

Whole Food Plant-Based

I am a Flexitarian and if you haven’t heard that term, before, it means “vegetarian with some flexibility”. I do eat a serving of meat or eggs, every day, but the rest is plants. My diet is about 95% whole food plant-based, so that’s what most of my recipes are based on and why you’ll hear me mentioning it.

One of the great things about smoothies is that you can hide all kinds of things in them, LOL. For example, if I served my ginger berry smoothie bowl to you, you’d probably never guess that there was a serving of both beans and greens in it, along with a bunch of other things.

Now, I did have to do a little balancing to get the flavor just right, but I used all good stuff. 

You can use this formula to make a variety of different smoothies, BTW. 

Here’s what goes into my ginger berry smoothie bowl:

I use a cup of unsweetened organic soy milk as the base for my smoothie. You can use other plant-based milks (or water), but keep in mind that soy milk is rich in protein. 

I don’t have a high-speed blender, so I end up having to put another 1/2 cup of liquid in, to keep my motor happy. That’s usually water, but if I have some elderberry tea in my refrigerator, I’ll use that, instead, for additional nutrition (and to help keep the winter bugs away). 

If you can get away without having to add extra liquid, I recommend that, because the result will be a thicker smoothie, with a more concentrated flavor.

If you’re thinking of using animal milk in your smoothie, keep in mind that the casein protein in dairy products is known to sort of smother the other nutrients and make them unavailable to you. That’s one of the many reasons why I use plant milks, instead. 

I have a hard time getting enough greens in my belly. But, I’m following “The Daily Dozen” and trying to heal my body, so I’m committed to finding ways. One of those ways is to dehydrate spinach in my oven and then turn it into powder, which I can put into my smoothies. Problem solved!

Yes, that is a process that takes time and careful tending (turning the greens every few hours, for example) and not everyone’s up for it. You can buy a greens powder, if you can afford it. Or, you can toss some fresh or frozen spinach into your smoothie, if you don’t mind a slightly chunkier texture (or if you have a high-speed blender that will take care of it). I’ve done both. 

A lot of people use protein powder in their smoothies. I mean, do what you need to do, but I’m not super keen on it because it’s expensive and it’s usually a highly processed product.

My trick is to use either a serving of beans (black or white both work well) or 1/4 block of tofu (plus the soy milk) as the main proteins. As long as they’re well-cooked, regular beans really enhance the texture of a smoothie. If you can handle the extra carbs, that’s the way to go, in my opinion. Otherwise, you might want use the tofu. 

BTW, there’s protein in greens, nut butters, and seeds, as well. Even fruit has a little bit. With everything combined, I usually get over 20 grams of plant-based protein in my smoothie bowls, which is pretty solid. 

You can toss supplements into smoothies, as long as they’re in powdered form and they have a relatively neutral flavor. For example, I take reishi mushroom extract powder, but it is extremely bitter and I would never want that in my smoothie. 

One supplement that I do use in my smoothies is slippery elm powder, which has a mild flavor, but it’s not something I would want to just chug down, necessarily.

For a while, I took a really harsh supplement that messed up my digestive tract (it seemed necessary, at the time). A nutrition coach recommended slippery elm to help soothe and restore my gut lining. It turns out that slippery elm can also help alleviate stress, which is a huge bonus.

It is a thickener, so if you don’t use it, you’ll need something else in its place. 

If you’re lucky enough to live near a Natural Grocers, I get my slippery elm from their bulk section. 

Herbs and spices are very nutritious, because they are loaded with antioxidants and other phytonutrients that can help reduce inflammation. They can also really enhance the flavor of a smoothie.

At the time that I was creating this recipe, I had some fresh ginger that needed to be used up, so I diced it and tossed it in, along with a little powdered cinnamon, turmeric, and black pepper. I also used a bit of sea salt. The resulting flavor was amazing!

I found that I was using a LOT of fresh ginger, though, and it was costing me a lot of money. So, I got a big bag of organic dried ginger and started using that, instead. I do like that the result is smoother and I don’t have to worry about ginger strands in my smoothie. It’s also much more economical. 

You can choose from a variety of healthy plant-based fats to use, in this recipe.

I used chia seeds, because I was trying to keep the calories down, while getting some omega-3’s in, and I wanted to thicken my smoothie.

Alternatives: (not-too-ripe) avocado, almond butter, coconut cream, hemp seeds, etc.

Because I have to keep my blood sugar under control, I try to make the bulk of my smoothie low-glycemic fruits, like berries. In this recipe, I use half a frozen banana for sweetness and the rest is blueberries.

Blackberries also work really well in this smoothie, as long as they have good flavor. If you’ve ever had ones that tasted like carboard, you know what I mean. So, I would taste test your blackberries, before tossing them into your smoothie. 

Beans, nuts, and avocados can dull the flavor of a smoothie, so you may find that you need to punch it up, again, with a bit of acid.

I always have apple cider vinegar in my refrigerator, so that’s an easy go-to for me. It’s very strong, so even just a teaspoon (or less, depending on your preferences) may get the job done.

When I have lemons, on-hand, I prefer to use those. It takes about half of a lemon to get the same kind of flavor punch, because it’s a little mellower. I usually squeeze the other half into a tiny container and freeze the juice, for a future smoothie.

If you taste your smoothie and it’s not quite sweet enough for you, you can either add more banana or toss a bit of sweetener in there. I usually add a packet of stevia or a half tablespoon of xylitol.

I know…neither of those are whole food plant-based, but again, I’m trying to keep the calories and sugar content down. More natural options are coconut sugar, maple syrup, agave syrup, or more banana (though, that can significantly change the flavor).

I usually eat my smoothie bowl plain, without any toppings. However, I did dress it up a little bit, because it was Christmas morning.

I think this smoothie bowl is plenty flavorful on its own (because I made sure of it!). But, if you wish, you can top it with granola, shredded coconut, berries, sliced banana, nuts, seeds, spices…whatever you’re feeling.

Don’t just gulp it down, though, unless you’re in a hurry. My understanding is that using a spoon and eating your smoothie bowl slowly can help to prolong your digestion and stave off hunger for longer.

Ingredients

1 cup unsweetened soy milk

1/4 block firm tofu

1T spinach powder

1/2 cup water

1 1/2 cup frozen blueberries

1/2 frozen banana

1 T chia seeds

1 t apple cider vinegar

1 t slippery elm powder (optional)

1 t powdered ginger

1/2 t cinnamon

1/4 t turmeric

2 dashes black pepper

2 dashes sea salt

1 pack stevia

Instructions

1. Add the soy milk, tofu, and spinach powder to a large blender.

2. Blend until smooth.

3. Add the rest of the ingredients.

4. Blend on high until smooth.

5. Using a silicone spatula, transfer the mix to a bowl.

6. Add toppings, if desired.

Notes

• You can use a cup of frozen spinach, if you don’t have spinach powder. Make sure to blend it really well, before adding the rest of the ingredients.
• If you’re not using slippery elm powder, you might want to sub with another thickener, like an extra teaspoon of chia seeds or psyllium husks.
• If you don’t have any apple cider vinegar on-hand (or you just don’t love it, for whatever reason), you can use the juice of half a lemon, instead.
• If you’re not into stevia, you can use another sweetener of your choice or more banana.

Enjoy!