Banana Carrot Smoothie

This energizing banana carrot smoothie recipe is perfect to start your day just right. Filled with fruits and vegetables, but also healthy hemp seeds and spices, it makes for a creamy and thick smoothie that's naturally super sweet and flavorful.

Smoothies are such a great way to get bonus nutrition into your diet. Not that veggies and fruits have to be hidden at all, but I think that smoothies can simply help you eat more of them in an easy and quick way, especially on busy days. I like to see smoothies as a great complement to a healthy and varied diet.

And this smoothie is a good example of a fun plant-based breakfast that I make for myself (or my kids) when I feel in a rush or whenever I'm not that hungry in the morning, but still have to get out of the house. Instead of leaving with a belly empty and be hit by an imminent drop in blood sugar, at least I started my day with a beta-Carotene boosted drink that's satisfying and super tasty.

But, why add carrots to your smoothie, you may wonder?

Well, not only do carrots add valuable nutrition, but they also increase the volume of your drink in a healthy way and makes it thicker. Plus, carrots are already so naturally sweet that you won't even need to add any sweetener. And let's just take a moment here to notice the bright orange color they provide to the drink, doesn't that look appetizing?

Omega-3 smoothies

Smoothies are a great vehicle to include more healthy omega-3 fats in your diet. It is pretty simple: just like in this galaxy blueberry smoothie, add a spoonful of soft hemp seeds to your blender and they will disappear into the drink very easily. 28 g. of hemps seeds (about 2 tablespoons) is equal to 6000 mg of ALA omega-3, which is way more than you need in a day!

You can also add flax seeds or chia seeds as plant-based source of omega-3, but I do love hemps seeds in smoothies as they also add creaminess to your drink.

Ingredients you'll need to make this recipe

Like most smoothies, this recipe is very easy to adjust to what you already have or your preference (more options below).

• Frozen bananas
• Carrots
• Hemp seeds
• Vegan milk
• Lemon juice (or lime)
• Cinnamon and nutmeg

How to freeze bananas

There is something magic about blending frozen bananas! It creates a very creamy texture that feels super rich, which is amazing when making smoothies.

So, try to get more bananas than you need when grocery shopping and let them ripe at room temperature. When they start to get black freckles all over, then peel and transfer them to a parchment paper covered baking sheet, then in the freezer. Transfer to an air-tight container or freezer bag once frozen, so they don't stick to each other and you can grab only a piece at the time when needed.

Add your frozen bananas to smoothies or use them to make healthy shakes, like this coconut milkshake. Or, blend/process them alone until creamy and it will make banana ice cream!

How to make a banana carrot smoothie

You will get better result if you make this smoothie using a high-speed blender, like Vitamix. The frozen bananas and raw carrots are hard and you might end up with some small pieces from the carrot if using a regular blender.

If you don't have a high-speed blender, then using boiled, blanched or shredded carrots would help to blend to a smoother texture, although would make this recipe not as quick and convenient as I am trying to make it.

So, if you have a high-speed blender, then add all the ingredients all at once and blend until extra smooth, maybe for about 1 minute. Taste and adjust the spice and sweetness. Enjoy right away.

Can I make it ahead?

You can definitively meal-prep it ahead, especially if you don't have much time in the morning. You could add most ingredients to your blender the night before, except for the frozen bananas and milk. Simply add them when ready to blend, which would only take you a minute or two.

This smoothie can also be made ahead and kept in the fridge for about 24 hours. I found that the color remained very stable and other then not being as cold, the flavors were the same too.

Watch how to make it

Adjust your banana carrot smoothie to your taste

There are so many ways to can customize this recipe! Use it as a base and play around with the ingredients to adjust the texture and flavor and maybe squeeze in a few extra fruits/veggies too. Here are a few examples:

Adjust the thickness: simply add more fruits for a thicker or more vegan milk for a thinner smoothie. Or, I like to add a handful of rolled oats to make it heartier and more filling, especially if I know that the next meal will be in a little while. Also, if you love smoothies that are extra cold, then adding a few ice cubes would help to cool it down on top of making it thicker.

Adjust the sweetness: this smoothie is already quite sweet with the combination of carrots and bananas, but if you want it even sweeter, then add 1-2 pitted medjool dates or a splash of maple syrup/agave nectar.

Adjust the creaminess: the bananas and hemp seeds are mostly responsible for making this smoothie super creamy. To make it creamier without adding more bananas/hemps, then try including avocado or frozen mangoes. You can also buy and keep frozen avocado in your freezer to add to your smoothie to boost with more healthy fats.

Spice it up: the cinnamon and nutmeg makes this smoothie very much carrot cake like, but feel free to use ginger (ground or fresh), cardamom, turmeric, vanilla extract or even pumpkin spice mix.

Pack with more goodness: kale, berries, baby spinach and raw shredded beets would all be very nutritious additions to this recipe, although would change the color.

Make your banana carrot smoothie more filling

Smoothies are often not that filling, even though I always try to pack mine with lots of food. Combine your smoothie with toasts or cereals to make sure you get enough food so you don't starve within an hour, but if a smoothie is all you have time to make for yourself, then here is what you could do:

• Add some vegan yogurt, the kind that's higher in protein like the Kite Hill Greek style yogurt.
• If you are into protein powder, then add a scoop!
• Include some rolled oats for their high content in fiber, they will help you feel full longer.
• Rich in healthy fats nuts, like cashews, almonds or walnuts can all be blended to smooth if you have a high-speed blender. Add only a few so you don't change the texture of the smoothie too much.

How to make a smoothie bowl using this recipe

Have you ever made a smoothie bowl for yourself? They are so fun!

As described in this peach oatmeal smoothie bowl recipe, spoon-able smoothie bowls are a little thicker than drink-able smoothies. They are also appealing for their ability to hold on to toppings, which is the whole point of pouring your smoothie into the bowl!

So, simply make sure your smoothie is nice and thick by either holding back some of the vegan milk and adding just enough to get the blades going, or add extra rolled oats, ice cubes or fruits to ensure the consistency will allow garnishes to sit on top of your smoothie. If you have a high-speed blender, then use your tamper or if not, then take a few breaks to scrape the walls and bring the thick smoothie mixture back down to the blades.

Then, pour or scoop the smoothie mixture into a bowl and top with more fruits, granola, cereals, shredded coconut, chocolate chips, nuts/seeds and dried fruits. This will definitively make for a more filling breakfast and fun way to enjoy it.

Other recipes including carrots you might like

• Wild rice soup
• One-pot curry ramen
• Tofu and veggie bolognese pasta sauce
• Vegan white chili
• Vegetable pasta sauce
• Spicy garlic ramen noodles
• Tofu-Carrot spread
• Beet and carrot creamy sandwiches
• Chickpea and vegetable curry

Looking for more banana smoothie and milkshake recipes?

• Chocolate banana milkshake
• Banana chai smoothie
• Zucchini and blackberry smoothie
• Oat milk mango smoothie
• Watermelon banana smoothie
• Blueberry and pineapple galaxy smoothie
• Coconut milkshake
• Strawberry, chocolate and banana smoothie

I hope you enjoy this banana carrot smoothie as much as we do! If you try it, please leave a comment below and rate the recipe to let me know how it was. Your feedback is so helpful!

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