A sweet complexity.

So this morning I was itching to measure out the ingredients for a smoothie I am calling the BLC Combo. Banana Lemon Coconut. sigh. Take a moment to imagine the possibilities.. Its the beginning of my Dreamy smoothies.  I call them Dreamy because they come from my daydreaming about possible flavor explosions. Dreamy smoothies are creamy, delightful, delicious, delectable, and desirable. (You can add in another D adjective after you try it out!)  These particular flavors I have been keeping in mind for a cupcake, but as I am not baking much at the moment.. I have left out the eggs, flour, baking soda and salt and tossed the rest in the blender! It's more of a dessert smoothie, as its takes time to distinguish all the flavors in one spoonful (I ate mine with a little spoon to savor it and make it last longer) ....or slurp! 

BLC Combo smoothie

1 large frozen banana 

handful of ice cubes

1/2 c lite coconut milk

1/4 cup soy yogurt

2 T cashew butter

1 t honeycomb

the juice of 1/2 a lemon

zest of 1/2 a lemon

1 t grated fresh ginger

1/2 t vanilla bean paste

1 t poppy seeds*

~unsweetened coconut flakes to garnish

TIPS: 

~When juicing citrus fruits you always want to "roll" them first. Apply firm pressure with one or two hands and roll several times (3-5 is good) across a hard, flat surface before slicing in half and juicing.

~If you are squeezing the juice of the lemon out by hand, do this into a separate dish and then pour into blender to keep out any pesky seeds.

~Buy a good grater/zester~! I have a Microplane Grater that will literally grate almost anything including your fingers! Here it is for less than $15 on amazon ...Microplane Grater

Combine all ingredients in blender. Blend until smooth (about 1 minute.) Pour into a tall glass and top with a pinch of the coconut flakes.  Enjoy! 

(*side note: If you are going to be taking a drug test within 48 hours do not consume more than 5 glasses of this poppy happy smoothie. ) ;-) Just joking.

Substitutions for:

coconut milk: unfortunately some of us are allergic to coconut so you could use evaporated milk or cream.

cashew butter: Not too common! I found this at the natural health food store and was pleasantly surprised at how much I have forgotten the scrumptious taste of cashews! It's a little on the drier side for a nut butter but light and delicious.  A suitable replacement would be almond butter.

lemon: Cut off guard and missing the lemons everyone else is getting in life?? Just grab an orange! You don't lose the citrus flavor and there is still harmony.

fresh ginger: So sometimes when we forget about that hunk of ginger we bought at the store.. it shrivels up and starts sprouting! The remedy? Crystallized ginger. Its shelf life is almost forever and its perfect for using in desserts and sweets. Just slice up thinly and toss it in!

honeycomb: regular honey silly! Or you could use agave nectar.

vanilla bean paste: I love this because it gives everything this "gourmet" look. But it tastes the same as pure vanilla extract so go ahead and use the later.

~I'll try to post up some picture to accompany the recipes within a week or so. ;-) Please let me know if do try out the recipes and what you think.