Tag: butternut squash

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Sweet Potato Spice Smoothie

Happy October! This month is characterized by crisp air, cooling temps, changing colors and happy hearts. It also marks the beginning of peak apple picking season and, lest we forget, pumpkin spice everything!

Always a bit of a rebel, I’m skipping the pumpkin patch and going tuber on all of you who are craving fall flavors and sweet treats but hoping to stay as healthy as possible before the holidays set in. Sweet potatoes, my favorite tuber, are a root vegetable which swells underground to store more nutrients to survive the cold, dry winter months and to provide energy for regrowth. Sweet potatoes literally swell with nutrients like beta-carotene which the body converts into vitamin A (retinol) and give these tubers their orange hue. We need vitamin A for healthy skin and eyes and to reinforce our immune system. Sweet potatoes are also loaded with vitamin C–a boost we all need this flu season–and several B vitamins.

Go on now, put down the pumpkin spice latte and try this fun Sweet Potato Spice Smoothie, bursting with fall flavors and the fuel you need to fortify your body before hibernation season hits.

Sweet Potato Spice Smoothie_MOARfit by Amy Rizzotto

Sweet Potato Spice Smoothie

{serves 2}

What You’ll Need:

  • ¾ cup sweet potato purée (canned)
  • ¼ cup nonfat plain greek yogurt
  • 8 oz unsweetened almond milk (or use hemp, coconut or rice milk)
  • 4 oz apple cider
  • 1 Tbs maple syrup (optional)
  • ½ tsp cinnamon
  • ¼ tsp nutmeg
  • ⅛ tsp (or “a dash”) ground cloves
  • 1” fresh ginger, peeled
  • ½ tspn vanilla extract
  • ½ cup ice
  • 2 Tbs chia seeds

How to Make It:

  • Blend all ingredients except the chia seeds in a high speed blender until smooth.
  • Add more ice to thicken, or almond milk to thin out as desired.
  • Split into two portions and stir one tablespoon of chia seeds into each glass.

If you love this, try using the more conventional smoothie ingredient, pumpkin purée, or the less conventional but still delicious ingredient, butternut squash purée, instead. It’ll change the taste a touch but still be packed with immunity-boosting vitamins A and C. Bon apetit!

 

{Originally published on the Relay Foods blog, October 19, 2014.}

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Butternut Squash-Sweet Potato Bisque (V)

I don’t know about you, but when winter rolls around salads just don’t do it for me anymore. What to do when my usual lunch option becomes lackluster? Make soup! Vegetable soups are easy to make, packed with health-boosting nutrients to help you ward off those pesky winter colds, and filling enough to get you through those long afternoons in front of the computer. Bonus: this Butternut Squash-Sweet Potato Bisque recipe (and another variation that I’ll post later this week) freeze really well for up to 3 months.

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Though I’ve called this a bisque, that’s technically a misnomer as this is a vegan recipe. Keeping it dairy-free makes this recipe waistline-friendly, which is much appreciated in this season of cookies and cocktails.  And honestly, the butternut squash and sweet potato are so yummy and creamy once puréed that they don’t need any help from the dairy fairy. Health benefits abound  thanks to the two starring ingredients in this recipe. Both vegetables get their yellow and orange coloring from beta carotene, which is converted into vitamin A in the body–a key nutrient for our eyes/eyesight. Sweet potatoes and butternut squash are also both rich in potassium and dietary fiber.

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Butternut Squash-Sweet Potato Bisque 

What You’ll Need:

  • 6 cups reduced-sodium vegetable stock
  • 1 butternut squash cubed
  • 2 large sweet potatoes, cubed
  • 1 shallot, diced
  • 1/2 onion, diced
  • 3 cloves of garlic, crushed
  • 2 tbs olive oil
  • 1 tsp nutmeg
  • 3/4 tsp cinnamon
  • 1/2 tsp chili
  • 1/2 tsp cayenne
  • salt and pepper, to taste

How to Make It:

  1. Heat oil in a large (5-6 qt) saucepan over medium heat. Add onions and shallots, sautéing 5-7 min or until tender and translucent.
  2. Add garlic, nutmeg, cinnamon, chili, cayenne and salt and pepper, cooking until fragrant for another 2-3 min.
  3. Add butternut squash and sweet potato, giving them a good mix to coat in spices and onion.
  4. Add vegetable stock, bring mixture to a boil, then reduce to a simmer for 10-12 min. The veggie chunks should be easy to pierce and pick up with a fork.
  5. Finally, using a hand blender if you have one, purée the mixture in your saucepan until smooth. (If you don’t have a hand blender a standing blender does the trick).
  6. Adjust your seasoning for kick and salt, then serve hot or cold and enjoy!

Note: if you aren’t worried about keeping it vegan, I highly recommend adding a tablespoon or two of your favorite shredded cheese. Dee-licious!