I’ve got some excellent links today AND the best use for those little bits of leftover pumpkin purée. I know that there’s a lot of pumpkin smoothies out there, and I’ve personally tried a bunch of versions myself, but I really think this one is the best.

It’s got some gentle spice (but not super heavy on cinnamon), a little sweetness, a kick from ginger, lemon for freshness, and that unmistakable, super creamy yogurt tang. This is my motivation for running these days. I’m opening cans of pumpkin purée just for this and then thinking about maybe making a pumpkin loaf later. Wild, right?

Funny enough, I’m doing a little smoothie demo (the hot pink beet one from my book) at the Hamilton Farmers Market today (at 2pm if you’re local!), and then keeping it low key the rest of the weekend. Maybe a hike, light gardening, and some laundry, which honestly sounds like heaven to me. All about that quiet life sometimes :) Anyway, to the links!

–Sometimes I think that I’m getting a few biters in the comments, but this is some advanced level recipe comment drama.

– TFW your dog actually loves and respects you, and maybe she isn’t just trying to get a bite of your food.

-“If a simple cleanup of my physical surroundings could feel this good, what could decluttering the rest of my life do?” SO MUCH YES. I’ve done this de-cluttering to the tune of 100 items before, and it really does shift your perspective with everything else in life. You have to really want to make space AND change.

–More notes on cleaning up: After watching A Plastic Ocean, I’ve cut down on my use significantly, but I still struggle with some things and just do my best to re-use them if I can (mostly 1-gallon zipper seal bags). There are so many great resources if you want to start eliminating it from your life. Start here and here

– UPS Dogs is the only page you need to be following on Facebook (other than the TFM one obviously). I would take on a UPS driver side hustle for the epic doggie interaction alone.

-The world of non-dairy milks grows ever larger. Have you tried pea-based milk? I’ve had the chocolate-flavoured Ripple and their version of half ‘n’ half (the vanilla flavour), and I gotta say: I truly loved both. The options and demand makes me hopeful about the plant-based way reaching the masses in a huge way.

–Thoughts on nutrition claims in the restaurant/hospitality realm. A personal anecdote: I was at a smoothie bar and they had jars of some of their ingredients lined up on a shelf that you could see while you were waiting in line. There were little nutrition factoid stickers on the jars facing out. A big jar of cacao powder read, among other tidbits, “MAY ASSIST WITH DIARRHEA.” I don’t know if that’s true, but more importantly: TMI! Just let me order my food without any health-related messaging of any kind please!

-Loved contributing to this one: What Exactly Is a Plant-Based Diet?

Vegan Pumpkin Smoothie with Ginger & Cardamom

The perfect balance of sweet, spicy, creamy, and tangy. This vegan pumpkin smoothie is the best way to use up any leftover pumpkin purée.

5 from 1 vote

Print Recipe

Prep Time: 5 minutes mins

Total Time: 5 minutes mins

Servings 1

Ingredients

• ⅓ cup pumpkin puree
• ⅓ cup plain coconut milk yogurt
• ⅔ cup unsweetened non-dairy milk
• 1 teaspoon lemon juice
• 1 ½ teaspoons maple syrup
• 1 ripe banana, preferably frozen
• ¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
• ¼ teaspoon ground cardamom
• ½ teaspoon minced fresh ginger
• ⅛ teaspoon vanilla extract
• pinch sea salt

Optional Add-Ins:

• ground flax seeds
• vanilla protein powder
• ground turmeric
• tiny pinch of cayenne pepper
• ice

Equipment

• Blender

Notes

• The quality of your yogurt will make a huge difference here. Out of all the retail non-dairy yogurts available, I like Anita’s the best. It’s only available in the US for now, but there are lots of great tutorials for making your own coconut yogurt online. I follow the technique in The Moon Juice Cookbook when I make the effort to culture my own. Of course, if you consume dairy-based yogurt, feel free to use that.
• I topped mine with the extra thick cream at the top of the yogurt container, a drizzle of almond butter, and a sprinkle of cinnamon.
• Use a soft Medjool date instead of the maple syrup to make this totally refined sugar-free.

Instructions

• In an upright blender, combine the pumpkin puree, yogurt, almond milk, lemon juice, maple syrup, banana, cinnamon, cardamom, ginger, vanilla, and sea salt. Blend on high until the pumpkin smoothie is completely smooth and creamy. Serve the vegan pumpkin smoothie with a sprinkle of cinnamon, almond butter drizzles, and extra coconut yogurt on top if you like.

Author: Laura Wright

Course: Beverage, Breakfast, Dessert, Drinks, Snack

Cuisine: Dairy-free, Gluten-Free, Grain-Free, Nut-Free, Oil-Free, Paleo, Plant-Based, Special Diets, Sugar-Free, Vegan

Diet: Gluten Free, Vegan, Vegetarian

Keyword: all seasons, banana, cardamom, cinnamon, coconut yogurt, fall, ginger, lemon, maple syrup, non dairy yogurt, pumpkin, pumpkin spice, smoothie, vanilla