Favorite, Healthy Chocolate Mint Smoothie

Breakfast is just not my thing. However, I know I’m far from being alone in this. Many people just don’t feel like eating early in the day, especially before coffee. Breakfast just sounds, well, gross. Then there’s the fact that breakfast calories aren’t always the best kind. And let’s face it, the older you get the harder it is to keep weight off. Most days I have smoothies as a meal replacement for breakfast/lunch because it’s simple. Usually, I use a mix, but I’ve been branching out in smoothies to get some variety. However, lately, I have a new favorite, healthy chocolate mint smoothie that is delicious and has no bad stuff that I actually want to drink it!

The best thing about this smoothie other than it’s delicious is that you can’t taste the nutrient-loaded green powder. In case you didn’t know, green powder does not taste yummy. It tastes like grass. Probably because there’s wheat grass in it along with a whole lot of other super green things. And wheat grass in not too tasty. The problem is that the green powder with it nutrient-loaded mix is kind of the point of the drink. The smoothie mix I was using had stevia and vanilla to help that along which made it taste like vanilla-flavored, cold split pea soup and looked like it as well. However, my new smoothie is a huge improvement on taste- huge. Additionally, it looks like a chocolate milkshake not muddy split pea soup. Now, I look forward to having my super nutritious, green powder smoothie.

Almond milk, banana, green powder, cacao powder, cacao nibs, peppermint extract, and stevia are the ingredients in this chocolate mint smoothie. I know. just looking at the list doesn’t inspire you especially since cacao powder on its own with wheat grass does not sound so good. However, when the banana is added the magic begins to happen. Bananas are nutritious and have a natural sweetness to them which makes the cacao powder turn into a nice chocolatey drink that tastes nothing like grass. There is some stevia in here as well to sweeten it up a bit more and really enhance the cacao. And the mint just makes it refreshing!

If you didn’t know raw cacao powder is a great source of fiber, magnesium, iron, has loads of antioxidants, and is also a natural mood enhancer- sign me up! These are just a few of the amazing benefits of cacao powder that make it worth adding to your diet but having it in chocolate cake defeats the purpose. And having it on its own just tastes terrible. But, when you mix into something sweet like this smoothie then your taste buds will be happy, and the cacao will taste a whole lot better. As far as the cacao nibs go, I like them in this drink. Again, on their own, not so good. However, added to this drink they taste much better and feels a bit like having bittersweet chocolate chips in your smoothie. The choice is yours- use them or not.

Now for the smoothie recipe!

Favorite, healthy Chocolate Mint Smoothie that is Yummy!

1 cup unsweetened almond milk

1 banana (freeze if desired)

2 tsps. of cacao nibs (optional)

1 scoop of green powder ( I used Amazing Grass Detox blend)

1 tbsp. cacao powder

A few drops of stevia extract

A few drops of peppermint extract (or a drop of food grade peppermint essential oil)

Combine all ingredients in blender and blend until smooth.