Raspberry Coconut Bar Protein Smoothie Recipe
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My very favorite smoothies all have something in common. They remind me of favorite desserts or treats from special times in my life. There’s the Oatmeal Raisin Cookie smoothie that reminds me of warm cookies from my childhood. Chocolate Mint makes me think of our favorite Girl Scout Cookies; I don’t know a single person who doesn’t love those. The Pina Colada smoothie I shared just last week brings me back to our one year anniversary trip to Costa Rica, where I had the best drinks of my life as well as an amazing time. (I would move there any day, for the record! Who is with me?) As I continue on this February smoothie a day challenge and try to create some new recipes for myself, it dawned on me that what I needed to do was summon some of those favorite desserts and happy moments in my life as inspiration. With that in mind, I thought for a moment, and immediately my mom’s Christmas cookie tray came to mind. Each year, my mom bakes something like 20 varieties of cookie, and the one that Chris and I both love the most is her raspberry coconut bar, and he doesn’t even like coconut- that’s how good it is! I created a smoothie recipe based on my mom’s raspberry coconut bars and while I admit that it is not actually like eating a buttery bar, it’s pretty darn good for a healthy smoothie!
Just a couple weeks ago, my mom was here visiting when I was just getting started on this smoothie challenge. I was trying to come up with something new for my morning recipe, and took an assessment of all the ingredients I had on hand. I checked my pantry and my refrigerator, and of course, I am sure that my mom’s presence factored into this idea! I saw that I had one of my favorite frozen fruits, raspberries, as well as unsweetened coconut beverage. A lightbulb went off and I realized that I could attempt to recreate my mom’s raspberry coconut bar in smoothie form. From trying and repeating several of the recipes in Kelly’s book, I’ve learned how to give smoothies a little texture and flavor like a baked good. Raw fiber, flax seed, and nut butters all help create a warm flavor and texture. I took the flavors I knew and loved, some of Kelly’s ideas, and added some extras for health benefits, and this recipe was born. 
When I make smoothies, I like to start by adding my frozen elements, then liquids, and last powders and nut butter. It helps prevent powders and thicker ingredients from getting stuck to the sides or bottom. I’ve made the mistake of putting powder or nut butter in first, and it just gets stuck to the sides or bottom and then doesn’t get blended in. You lose some of your ingredients that way, and you lose some of the flavor!
For this particular smoothie, I added the ice cubes, frozen berries, and frozen spinach (I typically keep frozen spinach on hand because it won’t go bad) followed my my unsweetened coconut beverage. I really like the Trader Joe’s brand. After that, I added my vanilla protein powder and raw fiber, followed by the nut butter. Almond is a great complement to both raspberries and coconut, so it made sense to use almond butter for this recipe. Once everything is added, it’s ready to be blended.
I created a little video of the process so you could see it in action. I did trim down some of the blending part because you didn’t need to watch it blend for a full minute. Although, that might be a really soothing video, come to think of it.
As you can see, I used my trusty Ninja which makes the perfect single sized smoothies.
After I made this smoothie the first time, I offered my mom a sip to see how it measured up to her bars. She really liked it and next thing you know, I was mixing her a smoothie of her own! That’s proof that it truly passed the test.
Of course, to take photos, I did attempt to make it look a little prettier. Typically I drink my smoothie with a stainless steel straw right out of the Ninja cup- one less dish to wash that way! I love usiung stainless steel straws because they are reusable and environmentally friendly. As you can see, mine are rather plain, but I would love to get my hands on these rainbow ones. No matter what, they are always extremely affordable and I highly recommend replacing plastic straws with these. For the smoothie’s beauty shots I added a little shredded coconut to the top, and speared a couple of fresh raspberries through the straw. These touches are not necessary at all!
I would love to hear your feedback if you make this one. It’s delicious and nutritious, and I don’t say that lightly. To be honest, for the longest time, I was very anti-smoothie and preferred “a real breakfast” of foods I could chew and eat with a fork. However, now that I have switched one meal a day out for a smoothie, life has gotten so much easier. It’s truly a no-brainer, to get up and start my day with something that will keep me satiated, tastes great, and is filled with vitamins, nutrients, and protein. What do you do to start your day off on a great note?
Raspberry Coconut Bar Smoothie
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cup unsweetened coconut beverage
- 1/2 cup frozen raspberries
- 1 scoop plant based vanilla protein powder
- 1.5 tbsp raw fiber
- 1-2 tbsp almond butter
- 1 handful spinach
- 2 ice cubes
Instructions
- Place frozen fruit in blender.
- Place liquids in the blender.
- Add all other ingredients.
- Blend to desired consistency.
