Protein Caramel Apple Smoothie with Dates & Greek Yogurt

For breakfast we're making a caramel apple protein smoothie with green apple, greek yogurt, and dates blended in for that rich caramel flavor. It has a hidden frozen vegetable and a filling blend of 22 grams of protein, healthy fats, and fiber. Hello my name is Nicole Bonilla and if you love healthier recipes to our favorite foods then you are in the right place. Now you're welcome to jot down these ingredients as we go along or you can click on the link that's in the video description below and that will take you to the full recipe with all the details including nutrition facts, ingredients and substitutions, and frequently asked questions. Now to make the smoothie we're going to start with our milk and you could use any variety that you like. My favorite is using my almond milk that I make with my almond cow and literally all you do is add your water, your almonds, I put in a little vanilla, a little bit of salt, blend it together, and then you have the most natural and creamy almond milk and I've included a link in the description below if you'd like to check this out. So I'm going to start by adding half a cup of almond milk and I'm just using my blender cup that comes with my ninja but you could use any high speed blender that you have and then for our protein we're going to add a fourth a cup of plain greek yogurt and you could also use cottage cheese. Now it wouldn't be caramel apple without our apples and you can use any variety. I'm going to use some green apples and I'm using half of an apple that I've just sliced up and then to make it extra creamy and a little more naturally sweet we're going to add half a banana but I highly recommend cutting your banana and then freezing it and then using it in the smoothie because then it makes your smoothie extra thick without having to add more ice cubes. So I have two fourths of a banana which equals half of a banana. Now this is optional but I love to add some hidden vegetables whenever I can to get a little bit more fiber so I'm going to add about a fourth a cup which is one kind of big head of cauliflower and when it's frozen the flavor is much more subtle and I promise you won't even know it's in there but of course you could leave this out if you prefer. And then to bring in the caramel flavor without actually having to make a caramel sauce and to use a natural sweetener we're going to use some medjool dates. Now these dates are very high in carbs and natural sugar so I recommend starting with one date and then if it isn't quite sweet enough then you can add two. And again to enhance that natural caramel flavor we're going to add one tablespoon of some almond butter and this also adds in a healthy fat which makes you feel full longer. Now you can use any protein powder that you like. I love using this vanilla flavor because it's organic and naturally sweetened and it's a peanut protein base. So I'm going to add one scoop of protein powder and just to give it a little more of that caramel apple flavor I'm going to add a fourth a teaspoon of cinnamon but you could certainly omit this or add a little bit more if you really like cinnamon. Now we'll just screw on our lid snap it into the base and then blend this on high till it is smooth and creamy. After one minute we have this thick gorgeous smoothie. Oh that smells so good! Now all we have to do is pop in our straw and enjoy. That is delicious! That seriously tastes just like a caramel apple. The blend of the dates with the almond butter are so good and taste just like caramel. And then I get the natural sweetness from the banana and a little tangy crispness coming in from the apple and I love that it's made with clean natural ingredients and is high in protein. Now if you could use more healthy inspiration on a regular basis I invite you to join my email list. All you have to do is click on the link in the video description below and that is the best way for us to stay connected. Well thank you so much for hanging out with me today in my kitchen. I have included the link to the full recipe and it's in the video description below and that will take you to my website gentletummy.com and I also invite you to like and subscribe to my channel if you haven't already and I invite you to join me again in my kitchen.