Smoothies are a staple food for me. They have been ever since my student days. They make for an easy snack or meal and when prepared right they are healthy and very very colorful. Where I used to prefer smoothies for summer time, I have come to have them year round and almost once a week. More than 3 years ago, I wrote an article on here, where I shared my basic smoothie recipe. Please feel free to read it here. The main change between now and then? I no longer use dairy to make my smoothies, but stick to plant based milks. Today I will be sharing with you my current preferred recipes. These are my 4 favorite smoothies.

1.) The Fruity smoothie

The most standard way of making a smoothie is by making sure it’s filled to the brim with fruit. Where before I used yoghurt to make my smoothies, I’ve switched to coconut milk by now. One can of coconut milk seems to be the perfect measurement for most smoothies so I love how I can just open up one can and be done. No measuring needed!

My fruit smoothies always contain the following:

• 1 can of coconut milk
• 1 banana (option: frozen)
• assorted fruits, favorites: peaches, berries (blueberries, raspberries, strawberries, in season or frozen), pineapple, kiwi fruit, papaya, mango, apricots, etc.

You can always add in seeds, nuts, coconut shavings or any additives of your choice. I no longer use any additional sweeteners in my fruit smoothies. So no honey, no sugar and no agave or maple syrup. If your smoothie is all fruit it will be sweet enough of its own accord.

2.) The Green smoothie

Green smoothie making is something new in my arsenal. And just like with making fruit smoothies, I just faff about: I chuck the ingredients in a blender and see what happens. Sometimes I get the best and vibrant green smoothies. And sometimes they’re a yucky brown color. Some taste great, but look awful, while some look great but taste awful. It’s still a bit hit or miss but here’s one combination that always works:

• 1 can of coconut milk, an equal amount of almond milk (unsweetened), or water
• 2 large handfuls of fresh spinach (= 4 – 5 lumps of frozen spinach) or kale
• 250 grams of fresh pineapple

I love pineapple in combination with spinach or kale. The flavors match very well and this combination has never not been tasty. If you don’t like pineapples, I find that mango works really well too, but gives a more gel like texture to your smoothie. Other vegetables I’ve used are courgette/ zucchini, broccoli, cucumber, avocado, carrots and beets. The most successful for me were courgette, carrots and avocado. Avocado makes the smoothie very thick, rich and filling. I use courgette to substitute bananas in my fruit smoothies and sneak in some extra veggies. Lastly, carrots + oranges are a very good and easy combination to make as well.

Add ins for my green smoothies are seeds and nuts as above, but in the case of green smoothies I also like to add in some spirulina and chia seeds on top. For these smoothies I sometimes choose to add some sweetener to help the taste.

3.) The Meal time smoothie

Yes, a smoothie can be a meal in itself. If you make sure you combine plenty of fruits and veggies into your smoothie, and add a bit of protein you will have a quick and easy meal that will leave you full for hours. This smoothie also needs some seeds to provide some fiber which is essential to make it a well rounded meal. I especially like these type of smoothies after a work out. I don’t have a standard recipe, but this is pretty much fool proof:

• 1 scoop of protein powder (whey, soy, hemp, etc.)
• 1 can of coconut milk
• 1 cup of (frozen) blueberries
• 1 (frozen) banana
• 1/2 courgette
• 2 cubes of frozen spinach
• 2 table spoons of flax seeds
• 1 table spoon of hemp seeds
• 1 tea spoon of chia seeds (to go on top)
• some ice cubes if you don’t use frozen fruits

Of course you can always use a scoop of protein powder in your fruit or green smoothies. It will make for a great post-work out snack.

4.) The Treat time smoothie

Finally you can always have a smoothie that is not too healthy. Because we all have to satisfy that sweet tooth from time to time. There are two main ingredients that always work to turn any smoothie into a treat: chocolate and peanut butter. You can add chocolate (in the form of cocoa powder) to any berry or cherry flavored smoothie. And banana and peanut butter is a classic combination. The ultimate treat smoothie? Combining the chocolate and peanut butter into one. This is not my recipe, but I’ve tried it and it is incredible.

• 2 frozen bananas
• ¾ cup almond milk (homemade or store-bought)
• 1 Tablespoon pure maple syrup (optional)
• 2 Tablespoons cocoa powder
• ¼ cup natural peanut butter
• pinch of sea salt
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 7 ice cubes (about 2 handfuls)

What is your favorite smoothie?