CREAMY STRAWBERRY NECTARINE YOGURT SMOOTHIE

AND HOW TO MAKE A BALANCED PLANT-BASED BREAKFAST

I usually add vegetables to smoothies, but not this time. This creamy strawberry nectarine yogurt smoothie is pure fruity delight with some additional healthy ingredients such as hemp seeds. The creaminess comes from coconut yogurt, which I love in smoothies as it’s so thick and creamy. This smoothie is one of the best summer smoothies ♥

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This creamy strawberry nectarine yogurt smoothie reminds me of a dairy fruit yogurt I used to eat when I was little. I think it was peach and raspberry flavored, but I’m 100% sure this tastes better 🙂 This is also a way more balanced breakfast.

If you’ve ever wondered why your breakfast doesn’t keep you satisfied and full until lunch, it might be due to its low protein and healthy fat content.

To some this might be basic information, but for me, even though I’ve studied nutrition, I’m a health coach and I read about health and wellness a lot, I managed to make breakfasts which were not the best for me (high carb – bad for my blood sugar). We have this saying in Finland:

The Shoemaker’s children go barefoot.

And that’s clearly what has happened in my case lol, not proud of it really. But now I’m not only soaking in all the tips and tricks my lovely naturopath and nutritionist Julia Michelle teaches me I’m also applying them to my daily routines.

How to make your smoothies more nutritious?

Top 3 seeds

I always add seeds because It’s a great way to make smoothies more nutritious. Hemp seeds, flax seeds and chia seeds are my top three seeds and I use them about 1 tbsp each day. All these seeds contain healthy fats, which we all need, whether eating plant-based or not. These seeds also have quite a high protein content.

Nut butters or nuts

I’ve mentioned nut butters many times, and I’m doing it again. They are the BEST! Similarly to seeds, they don’t actually give a lot of flavor to smoothies, just a little nutty creaminess. I love almond butter and cashew butter most, but any nut butter or nut would work in this smoothie and in any smoothie. Why nuts? To upgrade the healthy fat & protein content of the smoothie, and of course nuts contain vitamins & minerals, which are good for us too.

There’s just one thing to remember: if you’re using nuts in your smoothie, remember to soak them overnight to remove phytic acid and anti-nutrients. Soaking makes nuts healthier for you! And although it may seem like a big task, it takes just mere minutes of active time.

Fruit-vegetable ratio in smoothies

I usually add vegetables to my smoothies, and next time when I make this, I’m going to add a cup of frozen zucchini or frozen cauliflower to make this smoothie even more balanced.

Usually I keep my fruit – vegetable ratio 50/50, although I know it would be better to have more veggies. In green smoothies and blueberry smoothies I can keep the ratio of veggies higher, but in delicious creamy smoothies like this one, I think it’s important to let the fruity flavors shine.

I’ve written a more extensive post about smoothies on how to balance flavors by using salt, fat, acid, sweet.

Keeping these tips in mind you can prepare any balanced breakfast:

If you want to make overnight oats, you can add hemp seeds, chia seeds and flax seeds to your oats to make them more nutritious and some crunchy nuts on top. Here’s one of my most popular overnight oats recipes with berries and cream, which could be made more nourishing by adding the above mentioned ingredients 🙂

When making raw buckwheat porridge you can blend soaked buckwheat groats with soaked nuts and seeds.

If you’re craving something savory like tofu scramble, have a colorful veggie platter with seed bread on the side and sprinkle hemp seeds on top.

Crepes is also a great idea, such as these gluten-free vegan savory crepes with chanterelles.

I have followed these tips for about 4 weeks now and I feel so good in the morning! I hope this post inspires you to make a balanced breakfast tomorrow morning 🙂

Love,

Tiina