GLUTEN FREE · dairy free · VEGAN option · PALEO

You know those days when you want a smoothie, but you also still want your coffee? Now there’s nothing wrong with making both and drinking both, but sometimes it can just end up being a little too much liquid sloshing around your stomach! And if you’re on the go, then you really don’t want to be lugging around two separate travel cups. Enter the Rise & Shine Coffee Smoothie: the solution to your morning woes!

After years of only just tolerating caffeine, I am now one of those people that goes to bed at night, looking forward to that first sip of coffee in the morning! I still can’t go crazy with too much caffeine intake, but that just means I really savour the 1-2 coffees per day that I am fine with. This smoothie was essentially born out of a need for an all-in-one solution for rushed mornings. No time for a sit-down breakfast so you just down your coffee and start your day? Or maybe you’ve opted for a healthy smoothie brekkie, but now have to either knock back your coffee in two seconds flat (without enjoying it), or decant it into a different travel cup to also carry, or skip it altogether (the horror)! With this coffee smoothie, you simply don’t have to choose.

A great combination of fibre, good fats, and with optional protein and adaptogen add-ins (and coffee, did I mention heavenly coffee?!), this really is a great way to start the day. It takes just six ingredients and a couple of minutes to throw together, and is so delicious you will secretly be hoping to be in a rush every morning, so that you can just make it on repeat!

INGREDIENTS

Gluten-free (porridge/rolled/quick) oats

While oats are gluten-free by nature, there can often be cross-contamination with wheat, as they are often grown in the same fields or handled in the same factories. For this reason, it’s important that you ensure your oats have a ‘gluten-free’ certification.

Oats are a great source of fibre, particularly beta-glucan, a type of soluble fibre that dissolves in water and becomes thick and gel-like in the gut, which is great for feeding the good bacteria in the gut and protecting the gut tissue, but also helps to get things moving along easily.

They are also very filling, which is great addition to any breakfast smoothie, such as this, to help sustain you as you go about your morning.

You don’t have to go for porridge/rolled/quick oats, however, in addition to their smoother and finer texture (which I personally prefer), they are also easier to digest because they have undergone more processing whereby they have been steamed, rolled and flattened. Regular raw oats are much tougher on the digestive system and can bulk up in your gut as they absorb water and swell. Of course, as everything is getting blended in this recipe, it’s less of an issue than if the oats were going to be eaten whole.

Non-dairy milk

Choose your favourite plant-based milk. Just keep in mind that more strong-tasting milk options may ‘compete’ with the coffee flavour somewhat.

Paleo milk options: almond, cashew, coconut, hazelnut, hemp.

AIP milk options: coconut, tigernut (chufa).

Other: oat, rice, soy.

Espresso shot (or 2)

You can make this smoothie stronger or weaker, depending on whether you add in one shot of espresso or two! I personally tend to opt for two, simply because, on days that I need this smoothie as my grab-and-go breakfast, that’s usually the time I need some extra caffeine fuel! Also, I like that it makes the coffee flavour more intense - this is a coffee smoothie, after all. But the choice is entirely yours, and will also depend on how well you tolerate caffeine - no need to ruin the smoothie experience by giving yourself the jitters with a double espresso if you’re caffeine-sensitive!

Almond Butter

Almond butter is a delicious addition to this smoothie. It has an impressive nutrient profile (rich in protein, fibre, vitamin E and good fats) and is far better tolerated than the ubiquitous peanut butter.

You can of course, use a different nut or seed butter, if you prefer.

Frozen banana

Bananas provide you with energy and are an excellent source of potassium. According to the principles of Ayurveda, bananas also support digestion and are good for the stomach.

Freezing the banana gives it a nice creaminess when blended, and no ‘slimy’ texture as can happen if you use a fresh banana.

Dates (ideally Medjool)

Dates are a great natural sweetener, and they really complement this coffee smoothie. You can use other dates if you can’t find Medjools, but they really are the best if you can get your hands on them, as they are larger and ‘juicier’.

Dates provide the sweetness you want, but with lots of healthy fibre, vitamins and minerals.

Maca powder (optional)

Maca - also sometimes known as Peruvian ginseng - is a cruciferous vegetable (like broccoli and cauliflower), the root of which has been used medicinally and in food for hundreds of years in its native Peru. It’s an acquired taste, with its earthy, nutty, almost caramel-like flavour, but boasts an impressive nutrient profile, has adaptogenic properties, and can help boost energy and mood - a great little something extra to have in a morning smoothie!

Maca is also often marketed as being effective for balancing hormones, increasing libido, improving fertility, and helping to relieve symptoms of menopause. While it is becoming better known, and more widely used, those with thyroid problems may want to tread carefully when it comes to maca. This is because (as with other cruciferous vegetables), it contains goitrogens, which are substances that could interfere with the normal function of the thyroid gland (especially if consumed in large doses).

I opt to use gelatinised maca powder, as this means it has gone through a cooking process (gelatinisation), which not only makes it easier to digest, but actually also enhances the nutrient content, and gives it a smoother and sweeter taste with noticeably less bitterness that the raw powder.

Collagen peptides (optional)

Collagen is a type of structural protein in the body, and as the tissue of the digestive tract is made up of the amino acids in collagen, it can be deduced that collagen is helpful when it comes to supporting the gut. Indeed, collagen has been found to help heal the lining of an inflamed gut, thus improving intestinal permeability (leaky gut), which in turn helps reduce autoimmune reactions.

On a non-gut-related note, collagen is also good for skin, hair, nails, bones and joints!

Collagen Peptides (also called hydrolyzed collagen) are easier for your body to absorb as the amino acids in collagen have been broken down into smaller molecules (meaning it also dissolves easily in hot or cold liquids) . This also means it is less likely to cause any undesirable side effects. For instance, collagen (in its whole form) or gelatin (the cooked form of collagen) can sometimes cause some digestive discomfort, such as bloating, but collagen peptides are generally much better tolerated.

If you are unsure, or have never tried collagen peptides before, start off with a smaller dose to ensure you tolerate it, and gradually build up to the recommended dose.

Adding collagen peptides will mean the smoothie is no longer vegan (but is still dairy free).

Ice cubes (optional)

CHANGES & SUBSTITUTIONS

Other flavouring options?

You can tweak the subtle flavours of this smoothie to your own tastes. For example, you could add in a little vanilla extract, or even some cinnamon. Just keep in mind that the more extra flavours you add in, the more they will compete with the coffee flavour, so it’s really up to you how much of a star flavour you want the coffee to be.

Other sweetener options?

Instead of, or in addition to, the dates, you could also add in a little honey or maple syrup if you want some extra sweetness. Again though, as with adding in extra flavours, keep in mind that adding in sweeteners will weaken the coffee flavour somewhat.

No caffeine?

You can absolutely use a decaf espresso option if you prefer. Also, while I have not tried it and so cannot guarantee the result, you could theoretically also replace the espresso shot with a coffee substitute if you’re avoiding coffee altogether. Just make a single or double espresso-shot-dose of your chosen substitute (eg chicory coffee, Dandy blend etc) and use it in place of the espresso.

TIPS

Temperature control

The fact that you are adding a shot of hot espresso to this smoothie will obviously affect the resulting temperature of the drink. You can opt to add the espresso immediately to the other ingredients and then just add in ice cubes at the end to cool it down, or, if you have the time, you can let your espresso cool down after brewing before adding it to the mix. A third option, if you have a powerful blender that can easily crush ice, is to add some ice cubes to the smoothie ingredients and blend it all together.