What a happy Sunday. I simply must share my profound astonishment at having accidentally created a freaking delicious new strawberry peanut butter smoothie recipe this morning.
My naturopath recently warned I needed to up my protein intake and suggested trying to incorporate more tofu into my diet. Ick. I’m not a huge tofu fan. So I’ve been trying to hide it in places where I won’t really notice it.
How much protein?
This smoothie not only contains tofu but also two other sources of rich protein: peanut butter and flaxseeds (also known as linseeds). Combined, you’ll be guzzling down about 16g of protein. Hello, energy!
You’ll also benefit from all the other nutritional goodies packed into flaxseeds, like omega-3 fatty acids, B-vitamins, antioxidants and a big dose of dietary fibre. They really are a little wonder seed, full of good stuff for healthy vegans.
This protein punch of a smoothie tastes creamy, nutty and sweetly fruity. I’m also pleased to report there’s absolutely zero hint of tofu. Perfect.
What goes in:
This makes enough for one person.
6 to 8 fresh strawberries
2 generous tablespoons of peanut butter
80g of silken tofu (firm also works surprisingly well)
1 tablespoon of soaked flaxseeds »» see soaking tips below
A good slosh of orange juice
How you do it:
Blend the tofu, juice and soaked flaxseeds together. Add the strawberries and peanut butter and give it all a second whizz. Add a little more orange juice if the smoothie’s too thick. Drink and power on!
Flaxseed soaking tips
Soaking nuts and seeds in water for a few hours before eating is something I’m just getting into. Apparently flaxseeds are best soaked to ensure your body can absorb all of their nutritional excellence rather than just, ah, passing them straight through. There’s more on the benefits of soaking seeds here.
The process is pretty easy. Just pop a tablespoon of flax in a small jar with about half a cup of water and leave overnight. They’ll keep like this in the fridge for about five days.
Flaxseeds absorb a lot of the water and become a little slimy. It looks slightly creepy but it’s normal and totally tasteless. Throw this gelatinous water into your smoothie, too.
I eat flaxseeds most days so I just make up a fresh batch each morning as I’m making breakfast so the next day’s is ready to go. But I don’t sweat it too much if I forget to soak the seeds. Near enough is good enough in my book.
I too am not the biggest tofu fan (when it’s cooked JUST right I like it, but that’s hard to do), so I love the idea of hiding it in a smoothie!
I’m exactly the same, Katie. Although I think I may be coming around to the idea of tofu marinated in a stir fry. Maybe. :)
Agreed, tofu’s not my fav, but everything else sounds yummy enough to disguise it!
It truly is, Lori. You won’t be disappointed!
you had me at ‘zero taste of tofu’. man, flax seeds are like little crunchy miracles, aren’t they?
Totally! They’re my new favourite thing and I’m putting them in/on absolutely everything. Yum!
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