Recipe: Pear, Almond + Kale Smoothie

Here I am, giving you a smoothie recipe when everyone else is welcoming fall with open arms and pumpkin-spice-everything. But fear not, this smoothie is decidedly fall-ish. Because pears, kale and nutty almond butter are rather cozy sounding, aren’t they? Also, I don’t make this with ice, so the consistency is much more creamy and thick than icy.

My lovely college roommate Vic first turned me onto this flavor combo when she recommended the Green Power smoothie at Terri. (Which also has gluten free cupcakes and sandwich/wrap options, though I haven’t tried them yet.) They typically make it with soy milk, but I’ve had some hellish allergic reactions to soy milk in the past. (Hoorah for new, freak allergies in your early 20s!) So I subbed almond milk.

Best. Decision. Ever. Now, I’m completely hooked on almond milk. Like, drink-it-out-of-the-container hooked. Sorry, cows. Don’t be sad though, I will continue to use your services/udders for cheese, butter, more cheese, etc.

So this smoothie. Make it! You will love it. And do pop over to Vic’s blog. She makes delicious things that I sometimes get to eat.

Recipe: Pear, Almond and Kale Smoothie

[Original recipe from Terri / A Tbsp of Therapy]

Note

-I’ve let the smoothie sit in the fridge for a few hours and it stays nice and thick. Not sure how it would fare overnight, but give it a try!

Ingredients

2/3 cup cold, vanilla almond milk (or plain almond milk + ¼ tsp vanilla extract)

1 tbsp almond butter

1 c packed kale, ribs removed

1 teaspoon ground flax seed (optional)

1 pear (i.e. Bartlett), peeled and roughly cubed

½ frozen banana

Instructions

Using a standing blender or immersion blender, puree almond milk, almond butter, kale and flax seed (if using) until smooth.

Add pear and banana. Blend once more until smooth. If smoothie is too thick, thin it out with water or additional almond milk. Alternatively, if it’s too thin you can add a few ice cubes. But mine’s usually just right.