Jedi Fuel Pumpkin Smoothies

http://www.deviantart.com/artisan/culinary/pumpkin/?view_mode=2&order=15&q=game+of+thrones

Winter is coming, and 'tis the season of all things Pumpkin Spice. Sadly, almost everything that calls my name is terrible for me. If I'm choosing to spend so much time building themed teams in Pokemon X, then I can't be simultaneously stuffing my face with everything that suits my fancy.

Geek Nation

I'm convinced that there are Sith Lords out there with knowledge of all of my worst seasonal weaknesses. Between Pumpkin Spice Lattes at Starbucks, Pumpkin Smash smoothies at Jamba Juice, and an array of pumpkin flavored pastries at Dunkin' Donuts it's temptation city.  So I put out the call on twitter and facebook for Paleo Pumpkin recipes. Boy did I get a ton of great stuff back! My friend Michelle linked me a recipe for Raw Pumpkin Balls, which I haven't gotten a chance to try yet but I can only believe it's like Halloween exploding in your mouth based on the ingredient list. However it was my "Jedi Sister" Emily who blew it out of the park with a Paleo replacement for that Pumpkin Smash smoothie I've been  hankering for. 

Emily and I spent our youths looking at the sky and imagining our adventures among the stars as Jedi Knights. When we met at soccer practice and admitted our love of Han Solo, it was BFF central. We even saved all our money so we could go to Space Camp and buried a Jedi time capsule in my back yard with all of our childhood secrets. 

Emily is a powerful role model. Not only is she a thoughtful, empathetic, intelligent person, but she is determined to meet every challenge she faces head on. I remember when she got into the Naval Academy, she started doing athletic training at home in Chicago so that she would be ready. No one else I knew at that age was attempting something like that. Add to her list of accomplishments living abroad in Japan to serve in the navy, starting grad school, and spending her free time training for half marathons. Seriously, is there anything she can't do? Apparently not because I tried this recipe and its amazing. I made a few tiny adjustments, but we wouldn't be Jedi Sisters if we didn't collaborate on our missions! Try it out and let me know what you think!

Jedi Fuel Pumpkin Smoothie

• Ingredients
• 2/3 cup of almond milk
• 1/3 cup of organic pure pumpkin (canned is fine, but read the label to make sure no sugar or chemicals are added)
• 1 cup frozen organic pure pumpkin (same as above)
• 1 tbs extra virgin olive oil
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1 tsp nutmeg

1. The day before you intend to make your smoothie, put one cup of canned pumpkin in the freezer. Make sure it's chopped up a bit so that you can use it in place of ice. Make sure you put it in a freezer safe plastic bag.
2. Add all the ingredients to your blender. Make sure your "ice chip" pumpkin pieces are broken up. 
3. Blend till smooth. 
4. Drink in your Jedi Fuel, confident in your delicious yet healthy Light Side diet choice. 

If you have other pumpkin recipes you'd like to share, please feel free to add them in the comments! On a slightly separate note, while I was at New York Comic Con, I chatted with some industry folks about what it would take to self publish a Project Reroll Paleo cookbook. Would that be something you Slayers would be interested in? 

The Vanellope Von Schweetz Smoothie!

Sometimes, you just need something sweet, but if you're a stickler for health, then indulging yourself with ice cream or froyo everytime isn't really the best option. Well folks, I'm here to tell you that not only can you satisfy your sweet tooth, but you can get another serving of veggies at the same time so you can be both sweet and tough like Vanellope from Wreck it Ralph!

It took me a while to realize that fresh fruit smoothies are the bomb. They can serve as a great breakfast on the go or a small one can make a good snack later in the day, plus I sneak in some spinach (don't worry you can't taste it) so I can get another serving of vegetables without having to force them down via salad or sneak them into my omelette. I don't make mine with dairy, so they do satisfy the Paleo requirements. I shouldn't have to say this, but in order to make this recipe, you will need a blender. 

Ingredients

• 1 cup Almond Milk (You can buy it at the store, although there are usually some preservatives in it, or you can make it yourself).
• 1 cup Frozen Peaches (You can make or buy these ready frozen)
• 1 cup Frozen Mangoes (Same as above!)
• Banana
• 1 Cup of Spinach
• Optional: Add any other fruit you like!

1. Add both frozen fruits to the blender.
2. Break your banana in half and add both halves to the blender (if you're not a huge banana fanatic, only add one half or it will be SUPER banana flavored, which I happen to like). 
3. Add in a handful of spinach (that's generally about 1 cup). 
4. Then pour in your cup of Almond Milk.
5. Remember to cover the blender with the lid. Plug it in and then blend until everything is completely smooth. You want to make sure it's as smooth as possible so that you don't have tiny spinach leave particles floating around in there. The smoother it is, the less noticeable it will be. It will probably add a very "fresh" taste to the smoothie, but it's really not noticeable when you use a strong fruit like mangoes to cut it. 
6. Pour and enjoy! This generally makes 1.5-2 servings depending on how much smoothie you want to drink. I like to keep the half in the fridge for later or share it with someone.