Energizing Monkey

Here is ELBM's first guest post by a good friend of mine, Mari. She has been experimenting with different smoothies for her new Vitamix blender and this one was too good not to share! Thanks for letting me share with our blog friends. Hope you guys love it!

Energizing Monkey -- Ooh Ooh Ahh Chia!

It has only been about two weeks since my recent purchase and new kitchen addition…my VITAMIX!!! In this short amount of time I have become obsessed with making smoothies and other yummy creations. Today's concoction was inspired after viewing the "Hungry for Change" documentary with my family. So I decided that after school, my daughter and nephew would help me decide on a healthy smoothie to create. They chose what ingredients to use in addition to the *chia seeds I bought earlier from the Virginia Garden store at the local Farmer's Market. The kids named our concocted smoothie the Energizing Monkey…silly kids!

Energizing Monkey (2 Servings)

Time: 5 minutes 

 Ingredients:

- 1 c organic skim milk (or almond/coconut)

- 1 banana, frozen cut in half

- 2 tbsp organic chocolate hemp protein

- 1 tbsp heaping powdered peanut butter -PB2 (You can use regular PB)

- 1 tbsp organic chia seeds (or flax seeds)

- 1 packet Stevia (optional)

1. Add ingredients in order listed to the Vitamix or any blender.
2. Turn on to Variable 1 and increase to 10 quickly. Turn to high for 30 seconds until blended.
3. Pour in two glasses, serve and enjoy!

 You may recognize that beautiful head of hair from a previous post! Here's my sous chef enjoying an Energizing Monkey while doing her homework!

*Chia seeds are a superfood described as a complete protein source, containing essential fatty acids and are a soluble fiber. The soluble fiber in the chia seeds will create a gel like consistency therefore, if the smoothie is left for 30 minutes after being made it will become gooey…so drink up! The chia seeds and hemp protein powder can be found at a health food store or online for purchase. Chia seeds can be substituted by flax seeds, but chia seeds are easier to digest and do not need to be ground up.