Infrequent shopping has forced me to use up food long-forgotten in the back of my freezer. Recently, I found a bag of frozen cranberries I’d carefully saved for something. It’s not the right season for cranberry sauce, so I combined them with oranges and pecans into a pleasing smoothie with a hint of Christmas past.
I’ve been drinking a lot of smoothies during this pandemic. Smoothies are soothing and satisfying, a thick, sweet drink that disguises healthy ingredients, like fruit and nuts. I’d find it hard to down two oranges, a few cups of cranberries and a scoop of pecans all at once, but, combined into a smoothie, they’re a pleasure to devour.
I made the smoothie with coconut milk and added lime juice, which rounds the edges of the tart cranberries. The sweetness in this smoothie comes from the oranges plus stevia and erythritol. If you don’t like the taste of these zero-glycemic-index, non-nutritive sweeteners, sweeten it with maple syrup or coconut nectar, both of which have a lower glycemic index than regular sugar.
Should you be so lucky as to have frozen cranberries, this smoothie is a special treat. Tart cherries ought to work as a substitute, but I haven’t tried that combination yet. I also unearthed a bag of tart cherries in my freezer, so they’ll figure into my next frozen concoction.
Cranberry Orange Pecan Smoothie
A sweet-tart combination of cranberries and oranges, plus pecans, coconut milk and lime juice create a thick, sweet, satisfying smoothie.
Ingredients
- 2 cups frozen cranberries
- 2 oranges, peeled
- 1/2 cup pecans
- 1 1/2 cups coconut milk
- 1/2 cup fresh or frozen lime juice
- 2 tablespoons monkfruit/erythritol
- 1/2 teaspoon liquid stevia
Instructions
Place all ingredients into a blender, and blend until smooth.
Serve immediately.
Start with two cups of frozen cranberries…
…two whole oranges…
…and half a cup of pecans.
Put them into a blender…
—add lime juice and coconut milk, plus sweeteners.
Blend until smooth, and enjoy!
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