This vanilla chai latte smoothie tastes just like the spiced latte from the coffee store, but without all the dairy, caffeine or sugar! It is packed with wholesome ingredients yet tastes just like dessert. Enjoy as a filling breakfast, healthy snack, guilt-free sweet treat or anytime you need a tasty pick-me-up.
Living through a pandemic outbreak means being forced to reset our daily expectations, isn't it? Instead of social gatherings and fun exciting indoor outings, we are left with neighborhood walks and trail excursions. And more neighborhood walks.
Or the drive-thru Starbucks. There is the Starbucks still, guys.
Really, I will pack my kiddos and jump in the car just so I can get a chai latte. But, there are some days where chaos is taking over my life and leaving the house is just not going to happen. That's when I make this vanilla chai smoothie: I get my spice craving remedy and sweet treat fix, all this within 5 minutes.
I also love how this drink is caffein-free and super healthy, but tastes just like the creamy and rich chai latte drink I often treat myself to. Only in a cold whipped version. This means that I can also share it with my kids and keep my caffein intake lower.
What does chai mean
Chai is the Indian word for tea and specifically refers to a tea (usually black tea) that is steeped with a mix of spices. Typically, cardamom is the main spice used, but you will often also find cinnamon, star anise, ginger, peppercorn, cloves and many others. The combination of spices will vary widely depending on the geography and personal preference.
What brings the chai flavors in this vanilla chai latte smoothie
To get that delicious chai flavor in this smoothie, you will need a few basic spices. You can also prepare a homemade chai spices mixture instead and keep it in your pantry for all of your baking.
Ground spices you will need:
- Cinnamon
- Cardamom
- Ginger
- Nutmeg
- Cloves
Other ingredients in this smoothie:
- Bananas: they help get a super creamy smoothie and just like in these almond flour banana muffins, they help bring natural sweetness to the recipe.
- Raw oats: to get a thicker consistency and also makes it a more filling meal or snack, especially if enjoying for breakfast.
- Almond butter: naturally higher in healthy fats, it helps whip the drink and connect all the flavors together.
- Medjool dates: add a few of these to sweeten your frozen drink to your taste.
- Non dairy-milk: choose plain and unsweetened. Almond, hemp or soy would work well.
- Vanilla extract: although not essential, a few drops bring deeper flavors and help the spices to really shine.
Customize your vanilla chai latte smoothie
- Boost it with more protein: add hemps seeds, vanilla protein powder (then, skip the vanilla extract) or nuts.
- Use frozen bananas: it will make the smoothie thick and extra creamy, just like a milkshake!
- For a nut-free option: Swap the almond butter for sunflower seed butter and make sure to use a nut-free non dairy milk.
- Pack it with more goodness: add a handful of fresh spinach and you won't notice it!
- Make your smoothie extra cold: after blending for a while, the smoothie can get too warm. To cool it down, add a handful of ice cube after the smoothie ingredients were blended together and blend for a few seconds just until the ice is broken down.
- And of course, you can swap or omit some of spices as you wish!
Other spiced recipes you might like
- Pumpkin overnight oats
- Cinnamon oatmeal cookies
- Spiced coconut whipped cream
- Sweet potato granola
- Pear and cinnamon oat bars
I hope you will love this chai latte smoothie as much as we do! If you try it, please leave a comment below and rate the recipe to let us know how it was.
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Vanilla Chai Latte Smoothie
Ingredients
- 2 bananas
- ½ cup raw oats
- 2 tbsp almond butter
- 1 ½ cup non dairy milk - unflavored and unsweetened
- 2 medjool dates - or more
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- ¾ tsp ground cardamom
- ¼ tsp ground ginger
- ⅛ tsp ground nutmeg
- ⅛ tsp ground cloves
Instructions
- Combine all the ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth.
- Enjoy right away.
Notes
- If looking for a extra cold smoothie, then add a handful of ice cubes to the blender or use frozen bananas (in this case, you might have to add a little more non dairy milk to help blend the smoothie).
- My inspiration for this spiced smoothie came from reading this homemade chai spices recipe. You can also follow her recipe and keep a larger amount of chai spices in your pantry to use for baking. You can also use about 2 tsp of her mix instead of all the spices when making this smoothie.
- To make this smoothie nut-free: swap the almond butter for sunflower seeds butter and make sure to use nut-free non dairy milk.
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