I LOVE SMOOTHIES!!

Since we turned vegan, Greg and I have fallen in love with smoothies! Ours are a bit different, however. They're protein smoothies!!

We use chocolate almond milk and Nutiva hemp powder for our smoothies. I've actually been known to make a hemp milkshake with the chocolate almond milk. It's makes an excellent snack, and since it's protein, it keeps hunger at bay for a couple of hours.

On occassion, when we're too lazy to use real fruit, we'll throw in one of Yoplait's smoothie mixes. I know, I know, not vegan, but it's a rare treat. And since we don't use real milk, the yogurt is the only dairy in the smoothie, so the lactose doesn't bother me.

Yesterday, we made one of the Yoplait smoothies. The chocolate and strawberry one is our favorite, and it's really chocolatey since the almond milk is chocolate too.

So here's how I make these tasty smoothies. I use a Cuisinart blender, and I put in 3 and 1/4 cups of almond milk in it:

Then I add about seven tablespoons of hemp powder. One serving is actually three tablespoons, but since I'm making two smoothies, I double it. And since I add a little extra milk, I add a little extra hemp powder (I don't use a full seventh tablespoon).

I mix the milk and hemp powder until it's smooth. Sometimes the powder gets stuck on the sides, so I have a spatula handy to scrape the sides, and then I mix the milk and powder again.

Then I add the Yoplait Smoothie Mix, or the fruit if I'm using fresh or frozen.

This is where our blender gets SUPER loud, but I blend the ingredients on high until smooth.

Then I serve the smoothies in 16 oz glasses. They are oh so yummy!

On occassion, when I'm really craving chocolate, I'll add one or two tablespoons of dark chocolate cocoa powder and a little extra milk. If you don't add the extra milk, the smoothies come out too powdery.

Enjoy!