I have been drinking so many green smoothies. I do have some travel coming up and with busy (typically indulgent) holiday times on the horizon, I’m taking a “fuel” approach to my meals these days. The simplification has been surprisingly relaxing, not gonna lie, but variety is a challenge. I keep leaning on the typical vegan smoothies, but also the same roasted veg/salad/whole grain bowl combos day after day.
So in the interest of sharing more of my real life food, I’ve got a recipe for a smoothie I made up when I was getting a little tired of the old peanut butter and banana combo. The base here is ripe pear and hemp hearts, with lots of warm spice and a fresh burst of lemon.
I picked up an excellent smoothie tip from my bud Lily a while ago: instead of using non-dairy milk as your liquid, you can just scoop in some hemp hearts and add water to the blend. You’re basically making fresh hemp milk AND your smoothie at the same time. No soaking necessary. So smart! You can also just make hemp milk ahead of time in a big batch with my Maple Cinnamon Hemp Milk recipe.
Hemp hearts are one of my favourite everyday superfoods. Compared to some of the other weird and wonderful fruits/powders/herbs/seeds, hemp is quite affordable and (where I live) totally accessible. I added hemp to pretty much everything when I first went 100% plant-based because I didn’t have a great handle on cooking yet and was looking for a mega nutrient boost. I still add hemp to everything though haha.
The flavor is nutty and slightly sweet-grassy, which makes hemp quite diverse. In addition to smoothies, I love using hemp hearts in place of pine nuts for pesto. Lately I’ve been making a kale and oregano pesto with a hemp base for drizzling on bowls and tossing with zucchini noodles. I just use this recipe, replacing the almonds with hemp and adding a couple sprigs of fresh oregano.
And another one: I always have some sort of nut-based vegan “parmesan” on hand for sprinkling, and hemp works perfectly for it. In my little electric coffee grinder, I combine ¼ cup hemp hearts, 1-2 tablespoons of nutritional yeast, and a good pinch of salt. I pulse the mixture a couple times and it’s done. Delicious and super easy (looove my spice grinder).
I hope that you’ll try this super fresh green smoothie combo!
Winter Glow Green Smoothie with Hemp & Ginger
Ingredients
- 1 cup chopped greens (I like a 50/50 mix of baby spinach and kale)
- small handful fresh mint leaves
- 2 tablespoons hemp hearts
- 1 inch piece of fresh ginger, peeled and chopped
- ¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- pinch of sea salt
- ½ teaspoon MCT oil
- 1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
- 1 ripe pear, cored and chopped
- 1 cup water
Equipment
Notes
- I think a pinch of ground cardamom would be so delicious in this smoothie.
- I peeled my pear to get that ultra green shade (always doing it for the photo haha), but normally I’d leave it.
- I like using a mix of mild and strong greens for a green smoothie like this one. If your taste buds are hardy enough for all kale though, definitely go for it ;)
- The pear should be quite ripe for the right level of sweetness.
- This smoothie ends up being room temperature, which I like in this colder climate.
Instructions
- In an upright blender, combine the greens, mint, hemp hearts, ginger, cinnamon, salt, MCT oil, lemon juice, pear, and water. Blend the mixture on high until completely smooth. Enjoy the winter glow green smoothie immediately, with an extra sprinkle of hemp hearts on top if you like.
*This post was created in partnership with Manitoba Harvest. All opinions/endorsements are my own. Thanks for supporting!
There are some great ideas here! I’ve just sprinkled them on my hot cereal or salad, but will branch out and use them more frequently.
looks delicious!
love using hemp hearts on my salads and my avocado toast!
I LOVE Manitoba Hemp Hearts!! Smoothies, salads, granola are my favorites :)
my favorite way to use hemp seeds is to grind up a few tbsps and add it to muffin batter for a little protein boost!
I always add some hemp seeds to energy snack balls
I love adding a scoop to smoothies!
I recently became a vegan, and I’ve been finding so many recipes calling for hemp seeds (dressings, smoothies…). I haven’t tried any yet. Eager to do so now that the energy-zapping winter drabness is upon us. Energy bites with dates (no honey!), mentioned by Ariel, sounds yummy!
Your green smoothie sounds really good! I am looking forward to trying it out. My favorite way to use hemp seeds is to roll raw date energy balls in them. I also like to add them on top of oatmeal.
I love adding them to my morning oatmeal. I can’t wait to try the new hemp heart toppers.
Thanks for this article. I just bought hemp hearts a few weeks ago and have been struggling with and how to eat them.
Happy Holidays and thanks again.
I really like to make a crumble out of it using almond flour and a couple other ingredients and put it on sweet or savoury dishes. It adds an extra nutty flavour to it, as well as a nutritional kick :)
i’ve actually never used them :O but i’d love to win! i’ve had them sprinkled on top of avo toast before though :)
I just added them to a Winter Waldorf salad for lunch today! Delicious!
I add hemp hearts when I make bread each week. I love the texture they add!
I’ve actually never had hemp seeds! I’ll have to try them, they sound super yummy…
My favorite way to use hemp hearts is as a component in a topping for just about anything. I mix in a bowl hemp, chia, various nuts and seeds and some powdered mushroom. I put it in a really pretty bowl on the table with a cute little spoon and then put in on anything and everything. It’s neutral so it can go with sweet or savory. A great way to amp up nutrition!
I put hemp on pretty much everything too! Yum :) in the morning when I want to have almond butter & toast but don’t feel like putting something sweet like jam on top, i sprinkle a couple of tablespoons of hemp on the almond butter. So good thank you for all of your amazing recipes, love them all and I use your cookbook almost every day. I will have to try this smoothie out!
Magic sprinkels with pollen on morning smoothie bowls and porridge. Also hemp milk or part of nut milks. But soon, I’m looking forward to add some in pesto!
I like them best in smoothies for breakfast, it is such a good way to add just a little more to your meal! And by the way, I have your cookbook and I wanted to thank you for making it so beautiful!! I just love flipping through the pages, not to mention cooking your delicious recipes!
I use hemp hearts in my morning smoothie (they really help keep me full until lunch!) and sprinkled on oatmeal for a pick me up snack. Delicious!!
This smoothie looks delish and packed full of nutrients! I love hemp seeds to make home made “milk” or vegan mac n cheese.
I love making vegan ranch with hemp seeds.
I use hemp hearts in my smoothies.
I use them in my homemade granola. Also I like them on linguine w/cashew cream sauce and top w/toasted hemp seeds and parm! SO good
I love to sprinkle hemp seeds on top of salads, or use them to make dressing. Love me some phytonutrients
I’m a fan of any smoothie recipe that doesn’t have a banana in it (ick!). I’m definitely whipping this up for myself this afternoon – room temperature as you suggested.
Thanks!
This looks amazing, I cant wait to try it! I usually have two different smoothies on rotation, and am also in search of a new one!
I love adding hemp seeds to pesto, specifically kale pesto!
Hemp milk! And hemp-crusted anything.
Just poppin’ in. My 2 favorite ways to use hemp hearts is in smoothies and over a warm bowl of oatmeal!
I put Manitoba Harvest hemp hearts on everything! I love them! I use a spoonful in my daily smoothie and sprinkle them on salads and granola.
Hemp hearts are a great addition to homemade granola!
I love putting them in granola bars, but your pesto sounds fab!
I make a sprinkle like parm cheese from Manitoba Hemp.
Hemp Hearts, Garlic powder, Nutritional Yeast, Pepper, Salt. Grind until powdery and sprinkle on everything!
I always add them into my overnight oats :)
I like to use hemp seeds in place of pine nuts in pesto.
I add hemp hearts to my morning granola! Love the extra crunch & flavour!
I love to use hemp hearts when I make apple cinnamon oatmeal, I just sprinkle some on top to add the nutty flavour!
Favorite way is a green hempy dressing!! WIth basil, hemp seeds, water, and dijon. So yum
I love adding hemp hearts to all things breakfast since they help keep me full – porridge, pancakes, overnight oats, hemp milk lattes, smoothies, even to (very rare) breakfast salads. They are so easy to sprinkle into anything!
I like to lightly toast them and add them to Mole as a substitute for peanuts. so YUMMM.
My favorite way to use hemp seeds is to sprinkle them on almost anything! As a topping for oatmeal, toast, salads, smoothies, and popcorn they are an easy nutritious and delicious boost!
I love adding hemp to my breakfast, be it a dash on avocado or pb&j toast, a generous shake over oatmeal or homemade granola, or a big big scoop into my morning smoothie. It really does help keep me full until lunch!
I love putting hemp hearts on top of my oatmeal or smoothie bowls! I also have been putting them on top of mashed avo on toast :)
I’ve just learned to make hemp milk in the last month–it’s so game-changing without the soaking required!
The reliability of hemp seeds is my favorite when there’s no other milk in the house for morning coffee or tea. I love being able to instantly blend water and hemp seeds and have a perfectly nutritious solution in 30 seconds.
Not sure how to choose just one favorite way! But if I had to narrow it down I’d say on top of big salads. Love the nutty creamy flavor hemp seeds give them!
I always sprinkle hemp hearts on my veggie and grain bowls.
I have never tried hemp hearts, but you have convinced me to try them.Thanks for the recipes. This is my first visit to your website. : )
I love hemp hearts sprinkled on avocado toast with nutritional yeast and fresh ground pepper!