Last weekend little man and I went blueberry picking.  Even though he is too young to completely understand yet, I like the idea of showing him where real food comes from.  Plus we eat a ton of blueberries – s0 it only makes good economic sense to supplement our blueberry addiction with some cheaper berries that we pick ourselves. (You can definitely expect some yummy blueberry recipes from me in the near future!)

Let me tell you blueberry picking in southern Georgia in July is HOT work!  By the time we got home we were  sizzling hot, tired and in need of some serious refreshment.  What a perfect time to breakout the blender and whip up some smoothies!

Since we had pretty much eaten our weight in blueberries while in the blueberry field, I decided to go in a different direction for these smoothies and blended up a batch of my Nutty Banana Smoothies.

I like to start with frozen fruit when I make smoothies.  Just peel 2 bananas, set the naked bananas on a piece of tin foil and stick them in the freezer for a couple of hours. (Hint: bananas are really hard to peel if you freeze first, then peel.)  You could always skip the freezing step, but then you are going to need more ice to get to a good frozen smoothie consistency which will dilute the flavor a little bit.

For the nutty part of the smoothie I used vanilla almond milk and a dollop of almond butter.  I happen to love these ingredients so I have them in my refrigerator most of the time.  If you have never tried almond butter, I highly recommend it as an alternative to traditional peanut butter.  Look for the kind made from almonds  and nothing else (no added salt, oil or sugar).  Now if you don’t want to break out and try almond milk and almond butter you could sub in regular milk and peanut butter for a similar smoothie effect.

My final “secret” ingredient that really makes this smoothie special is a dash of nutmeg.  It adds an extra bit of richness.

So if you are in the mood for something decedent and refreshing at the same time, pull out your blender and whip up a batch for yourself.  Sip, savor and enjoy!

 The Nutty Banana Smoothie

Prep time: 5 minutes (plus time to freeze the bananas) – Makes: about 4 cups

• 2 frozen banana
• 1/2 cup vanilla almond milk (use a little more or a little less to get to desired consistency)
• 1 cup vanilla yogurt (organic preferred)
• 2 tablespoon almond butter
• dash of nutmeg
• 2 cups crushed ice

Rough cut each frozen banana into 6 piece and place in a blender.  Add almond milk, yogurt, almond butter and a dash of nutmeg.  Blend until smooth.

Add ice to the blender.  Blend until smooth.  Pour into 2 glasses and serve immediately.

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