Healthy Chocolate Smoothie Recipe (Vegan)

I have been making this smoothie almost every single morning for the last 3 years. I never tire of it!
It tastes JUST like a chocolate shake, but it's made with all healthy thangs.

Let's get our chocolate on.

Ingredients:

1 cup unsweetened almond milk (or other non-dairy milk)

1 banana

1-2 Tbsp. unsweetened cocoa powder

1-2 Tbsp. ground flaxseed (optional)

1-2 handfuls of baby spinach

1 cup frozen blueberries


Directions:

I find that if you put the ingredients in the blender in the exact order as above, it comes out better.
Note: Also, make sure you are using bananas that have at least some brown spots on it.  It is both better for digestion and makes the smoothie sweeter.

Then, just blendy-blend-blend until smooth!
I have a high-speed blender, but I think you can do this with a regular blender, too.

It should come out as a dark purple color and taste just like chocolate.
Now you can tell everyone you had chocolate for breakfast and not feel guilty about it.
In this case, I even encourage bragging.

Happy breakfasting! 

DIY Vegan Holiday Gift Basket: Trader Joe's Edition

Can you tell I like Trader Joe's?

Every year, TJ's comes out with a bunch of mouth-watering holiday-themed treats.
However, many of those things are not vegan, which is both sad and rude.
But fear not!  There are still some delicious items in which we can partake.

If you wanna make a cute little vegan holiday gift basket, I have taken the guess-work out of what's vegan and what's not.

Ingredients:

 Oh, Candy Cane tea!  You make the holidays so much more enjoyable!

This stuff is great.  It's very minty with a delicious hint of vanilla, without the sweetness of course.

 

If you want a little caffeine, this tea is also yummy.

I actually drink this all year round.  I STOCK UP.

It's vegan, yo!  You can make hot chocolate or a thick chocolate beverage to sip on out of this, hence the name "sipping chocolate."

The cashier also told me he makes bomb milkshakes out of this, too.

Just add TJ's soy vanilla ice cream!

 

This is one big candy bar.

I haven't actually tried this, but another cashier told me it was really good.

Plus, the wrapper is pretty.

This special holiday-edition candy has dark chocolate, almonds, cranberries, and ginger.

 These are too addicting.  

If you like oreos, candy canes, or the mint/chocolate combo, don't even hesitate.

Just buy them already.

 

Ok, so when I first heard of  cookie butter, I was like OH MAN I NEED SOME OF THAT.

So, I went to 4 different TJ's trying to find it, like a mad woman.

But low and behold, it was sold out EVERYWHERE.

One employee told me that they only got 12 in a day and that there was a 2 jar limit per person.

This only fed my desire to get my hands on this stuff.

A couple months later, it appeared out of nowhere like magic!

I finally got it home and tried it...but I was not that impressed.

It was more gingery than I expected.

BUT this stuff, swirled with some cocoa is addicting!

It's better than Nutella!  I tried this on some pretzel thins and I couldn't stop stuffing my face with it.

So, proceed with caution.

If the person you're giving this gift to likes them some figs, you should get this.

It's very...figgy.  Which means it's delicious!

You can put it on toast or celery or basically anything you want to add a fig taste to...obviously.

And of course, to top it all off, you gotta add some Charles Shaw red.

They have a few options like Merlot and Carbanet Sauvignon, as well as others.

And you can't beat the price at $2.49 a pop! (ha ha, "pop!" get it?)

Just throw all these babies in a basket, slap on a bow, and BAM! 

You got yourself a super sexy, super easy, and pretty cheap vegan gift!

Happy holiday eating!