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This Peanut Butter Hemp Green Smoothie is jam-packed with protein and your daily dose of greens. It’s a nutritious and filling breakfast recipe to start your day.
We all love being able to fit people into a category (myself included);Â That choosing to eat mostly plant-based foods makes you vegan and testing Whole 30 makes you paleo.
When I tell people I write a health-focused blog, I often get asked the question “what kind of healthy?”. Are you gluten-free, or paleo or whatever the latest diet du jour is? It used to give me a lot of anxiety that I could never fully answer their question.
“Ummmmm I don’t know? The organic kind?” I used to wish I could answer the question more simply, but over the years have come to terms with the fact that my diet has no label and it’s totally cool to be inconsistent.
When I decided to reduce my meat and animal product consumption last year, people automatically jumped to the conclusion that I’d become vegan. I certainly have had and continue to have days that would by definition be considered vegan, but if a filet mignon was calling my name (unlikely but not out of the realm of possibility) I certainly wouldn’t deny myself the choice.
I also love a good chicken nugget.
But even though I am not vegan or 100% plant-based, experimenting with other diets can certainly open you up to foods you otherwise wouldn’t have considered.
When I first transitioned to a more plant-focused diet (i.e. stopped eating as many animal products), I was concerned I wouldn’t be able to get in enough protein. I grew up eating meat and sort of had the notion that we need animal protein to function.
With some education from friends (Alexis you are a saint!), I opened up to the idea of plant-based protein sources and have found that my energy, satiety and overall happiness with my meals has not at all been affected by decreasing my meat consumption.
Far too often we forget that plants have protein too. There’s protein in pulses, soy and yes, even our leafy greens. All the more reason to eat your kale and spinach!
Hemp Hearts alone contain 10 grams of protein per 30 gram serving. Now combine that with 5 grams of protein in natural peanut butter, and suddenly animal protein is a thing of the past.
This peanut butter hemp green smoothie alone contains over 17 grams of protein without any protein powder added!
The point is, don’t stress about the labels, but be open-minded to trying out all kinds of diets. You never know what you may discover!
PrintPeanut Butter Hemp Green Smoothie
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Total Time: 5 minutes
- Yield: 1 smoothie 1x
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup unsweetened non-dairy milk (I like almond milk)
- 1 large ripe banana, fresh or frozen
- 2 tbsp natural peanut butter
- 2 tbsp Manitoba Harvest Hemp Hearts
- 2 cups greens (I use spinach but kale, romaine, arugula all work)
- 1 cup ice
Instructions
- Add ingredients to a blender in the order listed.
- Blend until smooth.
Disclaimer: This post is sponsored by Manitoba Harvest. I was compensated for my time, however all opinions are my own. Thanks for supporting the brands that help make THM possible and bring more delicious recipes your way!
I totally agree with you about the labels…who needs them?! I mean, I often get asked if I’m vegan or vegetarian and I always answer the same: “I just try to eat as healthy as I can.”
This smoothie looks so creamy and delicious! I love putting PB in my smoothies and this one is such a nutritional powerhouse. 🙂
xo
Now this is my kind of green smoothie! Yum! So making this for breakfast after my workout tomorrow morning! Also, I MUST KNOW — where is this food board from?! It’s my fav color and I’m in love!!!
Aw thanks babes! Curt actually made it for me!! Wish I could loan it to you!!
I love hemp seeds! Great way to give oatmeal a protein boost, and I also sprinkle on salads. And the single serve packets are awesome for traveling! I like to have lean meats and eggs as the source for most of my protein, but it helps the grocery budget to throw in some plant based options. I’ve never thought of adding hemp seeds to a smoothie though, great idea! Do they get ground up and add thickness to the smoothie or keep their texture? I’d probably leave out the peanut butter or cut it back, though, since hemp seeds are also high in (good) fats. This smoothie probably has 25g+ of fat with a full 2T of each?
Yes it’s certainly high in fat but I find if I start my day with fat I am much more satiated and don’t find myself snacking so much the rest of the day. The hemp hearts get ground up so they don’t maintain their texture but blend right in!
yum, I bet this would be SO good:)
Love how these photos scream summer 😀
I totally get you about my dietary taste not being labelled. Since Christmas I haven’t eaten meat or dairy products, but I eat eggs, fish and seafood. When I eat out it’s always kind of complicated asking the waiter what is a vegetarian option, but fish and eggs are ok for me.
I love to eat lots of nuts and pulses and thanks to your posts I also started using protein powder.
So wonderful Stella! I know what you mean. Sometimes it would just be easier to have a label when explaining to others, but I just couldn’t live that way. Thankfully lots more veggie options coming 🙂
I know, people tend to be so strict about labels…
Great, looking forward to them! 🙂
We have very similar philosophies on reducing meat consumption! My goal is to become pescetarian and then gradually reduce all animal products/byproducts out of my diet in maybe one or even two years! I find that my favorite sources of plant proteins come from edamames, tofu, tempeh, beans, nuts and vegan protein powders! Anyways, I love sprinkling hemp seeds on top of my breakfasts: smoothies, oatmeal and sweet potato puddings! I
This totally resonated with me. My entire life I felt like a meal wasn’t complete without a source of animal protein, like something was missing if it wasn’t there. Recently I realized how much better my digestion is when I eat more plant-based foods and less animal protein, so I’ve just recently been experimenting more with having meatless meals every so often, and it’s so liberating to feel not tied down into a certain formula for a meal. You’re SO right. The way we eat doesn’t need a label. We just need to eat what makes our bodies happy, whatever that might be at the time! 🙂
Same here! I grew up with the notion that my chicken fingers had to be eaten before everything else on the plate! Now I’m very much veggie focused and the animal products are not the priority. It feels incredibly liberating as well and I’ve discovered so many new foods that are surprisingly high in protein!
I love everything about this smoothie!
Thanks Macy!!
It took me so long to come to terms with being able to get protein without animal products but I feel like I’m finally starting to get the hang of it. And I’m really enjoying experimenting with meatless eating because I’m discovering so many new foods that I never would have thought to try if I was still eating meat.
EXACTLY!!! I felt like it was ingrained in me that I had to have animal protein with every single meal. The number of foods I’ve discovered since breaking free of this concept has been incredible.
I ran out if hemp seeds awhile ago and this reminds me I need to get some. I am in the same boat as you, eating mostly plants but if some delicious meat comes my way and I want it, I’ll have it. I say screw the labels haha!!
Amen sista! Now go pick up some hemp seeds 😉