Pear-Almond Power Smoothie
I’m attempting to pack right now for a trip with some wonderful friends. Do you ever look at your closet and absolutely hate everything you own? I realize it will be a casual trip, one without expectations, without judgement, and certainly without having to look trendy. It’s already been clearly stated that hoodies are welcome (Amen!). Still, nothing looks comfortable, nothing matches, and the last thing I want to have to pack for a three-day trip is five pairs of shoes.
So I’m procrastinating.
Of course, when I’m avoiding something I become hungry. Famished even. Time to head to the kitchen and fuel up.
Fortunately, we stocked up on organic pears this week (89 cents a pound for the organic ones people – recession / depression take that!), because my latest obsession is ripe pear and bananas in smoothies. Have you tried it? Seriously amazing. I got the idea from the new Thrive Foods book/cookbook by Brendan Brazier. Though some of his recipes are a little extreme in the expensive superfood arena for me, he escalated himself to master chef, in my opinion, when he paired flavors like these two fruits.
Naturally, since we are smack dab in the middle of fall, I had to add some more earthy flavors to the mix. I’ve got a big carton of Almond Fresh almond milk in the review works (to note: love it, it has a very pure almond taste), so I chose almond and “spice” (yeah, that means lots of cinnamon!) for my flavors of the day. It turned out so, so good. The only downfall was that my pear was just barely ripe, not quite soft and a little under-sweet, so I used stevia to sweeten. Should you find yourself in this predicament, stevia works great, but I think a little maple syrup would also go beautifully in this smoothie.
I hope you enjoy this nutritious smoothie as much as I do! Time for me to take a computer bread and stare at my dreadful clothes pack.
Recipe: Pear-Almond Power Smoothie
Summary: I call this type of smoothie a power smoothie, as it energizes me with natural sugars and fiber, but offers just enough balance in fats and protein to keep me from crashing. If you want even more fuel, feel free to add 1 to 2 tablespoons of your favorite plain or vanilla protein powder (egg or brown rice protein would be a great match). This recipe was inspired by Thrive Foods by Brendan Brazier.
Ingredients
- 1 Very Ripe Frozen Banana (medium to large in size), broken into chunks
- 1/2 Ripe Pear
- 1/2 Cup Unsweetened Almond Milk
- 1 Tablespoon Unsalted Almond Butter
- 1/4 Teaspoon Ground Cinnamon
- Pinch Salt (omit if using salted almond butter)
- Pure Stevia Extract or Maple Syrup, to taste
Instructions
- Combine the banana, pear, almond milk, almond butter, cinnamon, and salt in your blender and puree until smooth.
- Taste test, and blend in sweetener to taste, if desired.
- Pour in a glass and sprinkle with additional cinnamon if you want it to be pretty.
Quick notes
If your blender is wimpy like mine, make sure the fresh fruit (pears in this case) is closest to the blades, with the frozen fruit on top. This allows those blades to get moving before they hit the tough stuff.
Preparation time: 5 minute(s)
Diet type: Vegan, Dairy-Free, Egg-Free, Gluten-Free, Peanut-Free, Soy-Free, Wheat-Free, Sugar-Free
Number of servings (yield): 1
Copyright © Alisa Fleming.
30 thoughts on “Pear-Almond Power Smoothie”
Now THAT’S my kind of smoothie! I’ve never heard of Almond Fresh and look forward to hearing more! Have a wonderful trip, and pack workout pants, long tanktops, and hoodies…that’s my default. 😉
Yep, the yoga pants and hoodies are definitely going in. I think I’ve got four hoodies 🙂
Okay, you’ve convinced me! I tried pear in a smoothie once and it had an unpleasant grainy texture, but perhaps there was another factor involved and I was erroneously blaming the pear 😛 This looks lovely!
I’ve found that the riper the pear, the softer and less grainy it is. Also, the texture of frozen banana really helps to smooth things out a ton.
It’s getting so close to a time when I can afford bananas again. They’ve just dropped from $14 a kilo to $10 a kilo, which is still too much for me, but soon. Soon, smoothies and I will be reacquainted…
Wow! I had no idea bananas were so pricey in Australia. The things we take for granted. I’m going to appreciate my daily banana even more now!
Yep, they’ve been $3.50 each for almost a year now, which is why I can’t even remember what they taste like and my Vitamix has been sadly languishing…
Sounds so light and refreshing! Nice one Alisa and Brendan 🙂 I hope you have a fantastic trip with your girls! xo
Sounds delish! I still can’t have banana, sadly, but I bet I could just up the pear quotient. 😉 And I feel that way about my closet every day!
Alisa, this looks so refreshing. It’s an interesting flavor combo–can’t wait to try it.
“Do you ever look at your closet and absolutely hate everything you own?”
YES!!!! I am the worst shopper too. I would rather buy food hahaa. So I end up hating everything I own because I have NO clothes!!!
I LOVE this recipe! I just posted one with frozen bananas and pears for soft serve…so so so yummy! I am loving frozen pears lately! And almond butter in my smoothies!! Tasty job as always, Alisa!!
Go pack!!! And have a great time 🙂
You always look so adorable and right in trend in all of your pictures that I can’t imagine you without an awesome wardrobe Laury!
Mmm, pear soft serve. Making that next 🙂
UGH, I have done that so many times lately! I need some clothes for work too and I haven’t bit the bullet yet and just bought more. Good luck with the packing and have fun on the trip!
Oh and the smoothie sounds amazing!
Wasn’t sure about this smoothie, blending a pear with almond milk, so I decided to try it, it is delicious, I loved it! Thanks for sharing. Have fun on your trip!
Thanks Melissa, and glad you enjoyed!
I hope you’re going somewhere fun! This smoothie sounds wonderful – I’m on a pear kick myself lately!
I haven’t gone shopping in ages, even though I hate my entire closet. And I have such stylish students, but I look like a grandma next to them. Which is probably how they see me anyway, so I guess….it is what it is.
Mmm sounds awesome
This sounds SO good!! Have fun! 🙂
I love pears and bananas in my smoothies, too. I quarter and freeze the pears when I get them at a great price so I can use them in my smoothies all winter long.
Have a great trip!
This smoothie looks and sounds great to me, Alisa. Super ripe pears are definitely the answer to good and sweet enough smoothies. 🙂
Shirley
I love pears, and I haven’t had enough of them this season yet. This sounds tasty. I too have this “all my clothes suck” dilemma often. I’m actually at a point where I’ve lost some weight, which is great, only half of my stuff looks baggy and stupid on me right now. But I won’t go shopping! 🙂
Ooh, congrats Alta! Very exciting! You need to reward yourself with an aweome outfit 🙂
Can you please make me this TODAY?? What a fun fall smoothie combination! I love this idea!
And no need for 5 pairs of shoes OR for matching clothes! 😉 You are perfect and beautiful no matter what is on your feet!!
xoxox
k
You are too sweet! That’s good, because I didn’t match at all! Darn, I wish I’d known you would have liked that smoothie two days ago 🙂
love Thrive! smoothie sounds wonderful, I have not had a pear based smoothie in awhile, need to change that 🙂
I LOVE using pears in smoothies. It gives them a slightly grainy texture that I love. 🙂
Haven’t seen that almond milk yet… hmm… time to be on the lookout
I just made this for dessert and it was fantastic. I had an overripe pear and a frozen banana, and a huge sweet tooth, and came across this! I used a packet of Justin’s maple almond butter instead of the almond butter and sweetener. Thank you for the inspiration! I can’t wait to have it for breakfast with some rice protein powder. 🙂
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