After years of drooling from the sidelines, this marks my first year participating in Vegan Mofo which challenges participating bloggers to write about vegan food for the entire month. [For more details, see the Vegan Mofo website.] Colour me excited.
I considered all kinds of random themes for September, but in the end I decided on something I know I could put my heart and soul into. Even though my sweet tooth voted for “DESSERT MONTH!!”, my head decided otherwise. Vegan Glow will showcase wholesome, vegetable-heavy vegan recipes that will leave you feeling energized. The recipes will be similar to my own style of recipe creation, but they’ll be kicked up a few notches. Given that it’s back to school and work season, I’m aiming to share as many quick and easy recipes as I can.
In other news, I now have a “thing” for making rather pathetic “glowing” suns in Photoshop. Oh dear.
What can you expect to see on Oh She Glows this month? Well, I have several recipes lined up from raw recipes and juices/smoothies to healthy desserts and energizing fall-inspired soups. And who knows what else. I sure don’t.
I hope you are hungry because it’s going to be a great month!
Up first, I’m sharing this power smoothie that I’m obsessed with lately. Power smoothies are what I call the mega dose, nutrient-packed smoothies of the bunch. You know that’s how I roll. This one surely is up there on the list of health drinks. I’ve been drinking it for breakfast several mornings a week and it makes me feel incredible. Best of all, it makes just shy of 4 cups…aka one big ass smoothie. I like big smoothies and I do not lie. All you other bloggers can’t deny…
Seeing as we’re just coming off a holiday weekend, I figured this was a good “back on track” smoothie to kick off the new month. Let’s do it up.
Here are a few reasons to chug this down, from a nutritional standpoint. I’ll talk more about the flavour in the headnote below.
Beet – cleanses the liver, purifies the blood, anti-inflammatory, source of iron
Avocado – helps lower blood pressure, lubricates joints, anti-inflammatory, loads of healthy fats, high in fibre
Strawberries – high in antioxidants, rich source of vitamin C, benefits digestion
Celery – acts as mild diuretic, promotes feeling of fullness, rich in B vitamins and fibre
Lemon – antibacterial properties, aids digestion, high in Vitamin C, detoxifies and alkalizes, mild diuretic
Virgin Coconut oil – fights viruses, fungi, and bacteria, metabolism booster, healthy MCT fats, increases good HDL cholesterol
Apple (optional) – helps balance blood sugar levels, helps lower cholesterol, aids digestion
[Source: Healing Foods, DK Publishing 2013]
Convinced yet?
[Just an update – We’re still having issues with the new recipe uploader not displaying in Feedly. Hopefully we’ll have a fix for this soon! Thanks for your understanding.]
This recipe directly below is an updated version (April 23, 2016). The original recipe follows.
Featuring all new, protein-packed salads, hearty toppers, flavour boosters, and dressings you'll want to drink, my new cookbook will transform the way you think about salads. Oh, and be sure to flip to the back for a surprise dessert chapter!
Pink Power Detox Smoothie
Yield
3 1/2 cups (2 servings)
Prep time
Cook time
0 minutes
Total time
Beet, strawberries, avocado, and lemon unite to create one kick-butt, surprisingly delicious, bright pink smoothie! This smoothie is lightly sweet and creamy, while packing in the detoxifying power of beet and lemon. If you're not a beet fan you might be wondering if you can taste the beet. The answer is yes you can definitely taste the beet! However, I think the beet flavour is balanced quite nicely in this smoothie (keep in mind this is coming from a beet fan).
Ingredients
- 1 cup (250 mL) water*
- 1 cup (150 g) frozen strawberries
- 1/3 cup (45 g) chopped fresh beet**
- 1/4 cup (50 g) avocado
- 1 tablespoon (15 mL) fresh lemon juice
- 1 large sweet apple (200 grams), roughly chopped
- 5 to 6 large ice cubes
- Liquid sweetener, to taste (optional)
Directions
- Add all ingredients into a high-speed blender and blend on high until smooth. Taste and add liquid sweetener, if desired.
Tip:
- * For a sweeter smoothie, try using coconut water instead of water.
- ** You might want to steam the beet until tender before blending if you don't have a Vitamix or other capable blender. I just blend it raw because I know my Vitamix can handle it.
Nutrition Information
(click to expand)
Featuring all new, protein-packed salads, hearty toppers, flavour boosters, and dressings you'll want to drink, my new cookbook will transform the way you think about salads. Oh, and be sure to flip to the back for a surprise dessert chapter!
Pink Power Detox Smoothie
Yield
4 cups
Prep time
Cook time
0 minutes
Total time
Beet, strawberries, avocado, and lemon unite to create one kick-butt, surprisingly delicious, bright pink smoothie! This creamy & thick smoothie is not overly sweet - it's more on the tart side thanks to juice from a whole lemon. If you prefer sweeter smoothies, I suggest adding an apple to the mix or your preferred liquid sweetener. I also suggest using a small to medium sized beet, anything larger and the earthy beet might overpower the other flavours. Consider gently steaming the beet until tender before blending if you don't have a Vitamix or other capable blender. I just use the beet raw because I know my blender can handle it. Best to be safe than sorry if you are unsure!
Ingredients
- 1 cup water or coconut water
- 1/2 medium avocado, pitted
- 2 celery stalks, roughly chopped
- 1 cup strawberries (frozen preferred), hulled if necessary
- 1 small/medium beet, ends trimmed and roughly chopped*
- 1 lemon, juiced (about 3 tablespoons or so)
- 1 tablespoon coconut oil
- 4 large ice cubes
- 1 apple ( if sweeter smoothie is desired - optional), cored and roughly chopped
Directions
- Steam beet if necessary before starting. See my tips in the headnote.
- Add all ingredients into a high-speed blender and blend on high until smooth. Adjust sweetness if desired, adding an apple or liquid sweetener to taste if needed.
Tip:
1) If you are not a beet fan, try adding a handful of leafy greens instead of the beet and include the optional apple. 2) Smoothies shown in pictures does not include apple. Yield may be slightly higher with an apple added in.
How do i prepare the beet? Does the brown skin part need to be peeled some how? Streaming methods?
Thanks,
First time beet user. :)
Also, did you leave the avacado skin on?
Ps: I found my veggie steamer…so the beet is steamed!
Whahoo!
Sorry i didn’t put this all I’m one comment. .. I’m prepping the smoothie for tomorrow morning as i type these. :/ How do I know if it is not necessary to hull my strawberry, or were you referring to the fact that frozen packaged strawberries come hulled? Is there a significant difference between virgin coconut oil and organic refined coconut oil?
– first timer, period.
Hi Toni, I didn’t bother peeling my beet but you can if you want. No, I didn’t use the avocado skin – just the flesh :) Hulling strawberries simply means removing the green leafy stem off fresh strawberries (yes frozen ones come hulled, like you said). Hope this helps! Enjoy :)
Thanks Angela! Sorry for all the “dumb” questions. Lol. My mom suggested honey a sweetener and that really killed the celery flavor for me and it was delicious! . My one year old wouldn’t let anyone have any without sharing with him! He’s been pink most the day. Thanks for such an awesome recipe! My crazy picky 4 year old suck on it for a long while too. He was scared to try ir but when he did he got this big grin on his face!
Hi! Would you happen to have the nutritional information for this recipe?
Thanks,
Kristi
Angela, today I made your smoothie, and I absolutely LOVED it! I was determined to hate the beets, but they add a “kiss” to the rest of the ingredients. My 12-year-old, picky-eating mini-me loved it, too! I was kind of bummed when I went back to pour seconds from the Vitamix and realized the rest was gone! Her hot pick smoothie mustache gave her away!
haha so glad you both enjoyed it Valerie!
Came across your site from Glitter Guide. Love it!
Can you say, “Pink Awesomeness!!” I have had this for 3 days in a row! The tartness was a bit much for me, so this morning I added about a 1 tablespoon of maple syrup and OOOHH BOY! This is a winner. Just the right balance between sweet and sour (okay well a bit more sour, but delish none the less). What’s even better is it’s a winner for my green/protein smoothie loving husband.. and he’s a hard one when it comes to smoothies I tell ya -_- Kudos Angela!!!
Do u peel the beets before adding to the smoothie? Thanks Angela, love your blog!!
Absolutely love your website Angela!! I’m wondering is this recipe for one serving? Or should it make more then one?
Hi- I can’t wait to try this gorgeous smoothie- thanks for the recipe. Can you pls tell me which vitamin you have? Thanks!!
vitamix? Its the 5200 :)
haha yes – auto-correct!! thank you!
Is there a good substitution for avocado? I have a horrible allergy to them, I see them used a lot in recipes and I just don’t know what else to use in their place. Does it make a huge difference in this recipe to use them or not use them?
I would try subbing with 1/2 a banana. Hope this helps!
Just made this using canned beets (didn’t have any fresh ones) in a magic bullet. It’s fantastic and I can’t wait to make it again using fresh beets.
Hi Angela,
Any substitution for the coconut oil? I’m allergic to coconut!
Thanks!
Madelyn
This is so yummy! I was looking for something to perk up my usual smoothie routine – turns out beets are a wonderful addition! I did add an apple and a scoop of vanilla protein powder because I was afraid the beet flavor would be overpowering. It was perfect! Thank you so much for posting this.
Delicious recipe Angela! I substituted a ruby grapefruit for the lemon and I do think this may be my favourite smoothie to date. And it’s so beautiful. Thank you.
Note to self: get a bigger smoothie cup ;-)
Brilliant! I used the water and “meat” from a fresh young coconut, that was a good replacement for the avocado since the ones I bought were too ripe. My children LOVED this smoothie, especially my son who is the pickiest eater I know. I did add the Granny Smith apple to sweeten it, since I was hoping to get a few sips into my children. I am now tearful with joy watching him take big gulps of a beet smoothie! Thank you, Angela!
I am researching juicing and love your website! I want to get
a set of the glass lidded jars you used for this post. Where can I find
them? Are they the pint or quart size?
I have been wanting to try this for.months! I just got.my vitamin and all.of the.ingredients and it is delicious!!! This definitely moves to the top of.my smoothie list!!
I juiced everything but the strawberries (I used frozen) and avocados in my omega juicer first, then threw it in the magic bullet. Absolute perfection. I was surprised how great it was. Thanks so much.
Do you think this would be ok to freeze if I made a larger batch?