Don’t you just love smoothie recipes?
I have always said that I am all about the liquids – coffee, wine and smoothies! Fruit smoothies are great for those times when you need something healthy fast and don’t feel like a huge production. It was only in the last few months that I even thought that the term quinoa recipe and smoothies could be found in the same sentence. Then, I read Quinoa 365 (you can check that out here: Quinoa 365: The Everyday Superfood
The planets must have been aligning because around the same time I first heard of the Green Smoothie Girl, who is truly a goddess teaching the rest of us how to improve our health and eat right with smoothies. I really get her message, and am going to be trying some of her green smoothie recipes in the near future. (I can already hear my hubby groaning….)
Anyways, today was one of those days when I am just DYING. I have been waking up at 3:30 am every night and really need to catch up on my sleep. I hadn’t had lunch and knew I wasn’t going to make it if I didn’t get some energy fast. Soooo, smoothies recipes to the rescue!
The inspiration for this recipe came from a banana smoothie recipe that I found on Sophies Foodiefiles. I am sure the original recipe was quite lovely, but I did not have the ingredients in the house to make it so I had to create my own. I know quinoa flour sounds strange in a smoothie. If I hadn’t heard of it from Quinoa 365 (which is a great cookbook) I would have been insanely skeptical. But, surprisingly it was not all that gritty. I definitely am going to pick up some quinoa flakes which seems to me like it would be even better. I have also seen a few smoothie recipes that use cooked quinoa, so next time I have some that hasn’t been cooked in broth I am going to give that a shot! Next thing you know I’ll be getting a smoothie maker! 
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Banana Pecan Quinoa Smoothie Recipe
Ingredients
1 banana (frozen if possible)
¼ cup Greek Yogurt (non-fat)
½ cup Vanilla Almond Milk
2 T finely chopped pecans
2 T quinoa flour or 4 T quinoa flakes
Agave nectar, to taste
Ice
Directions
- Slice the banana into chunks. Combine the quinoa flour with 2T warm water until dissolved. Combine all ingredients in the blender and process until smooth.
If you were looking to make this a vegan quinoa recipe, you could very easily leave the Greek yogurt out. As a new vegetarian, I am putting it into everything because it is a great way to boost my protein consumption. (As is quinoa of course!) Recipes with quinoa are always versatile, so feel free to experiment with this one. Stay tuned for more smoothie recipes! (You know how I get when I am hooked on something…)
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{ 4 comments… read them below or add one }
Can I use regular quinoa in the smoothie? Regular = the grain that is most commonly sold in store? What if I cook it like oatmeal? I sometimes put oatmeal in smoothies but I cook it with water for 1 minute first. Any suggestions would be appreciated. And thanks a lot for your great quinoa website.
Jim – I would put cooked quinoa in a smoothie (and I have!) I don't think raw would work so well unless you don't mind a little crunch in your smoothie! But cooked quinoa blends in a smoothie the same way it does in hummus so it works just fine. Cooked quinoa keeps for a week in the fridge so you could make a large batch and have it on hand! Hope this helps! Wendy
Do you think I could 'make a flour' with my 'wheat grinder'. I have the Quinoa grain, but am wondering about the flour. We are not so allergic for this to be a problem (wheat flour residue in the grinder), we are just trying new grains and seeing it helps with clearing up Acne.
Yes, I think you could. I have actually made a flour with a coffee grinder before. One thing to remember is that you will still need to rinse the quinoa unless you have purchased pre-rinsed quinoa. 3-5 minutes under warm water should do it. Then I would let it dry slightly before grinding. If you are short on time you could always put them in the oven or microwave for a minute to make sure the seeds are completely dry before grinding. Thanks and hope this helps! Wendy