My 7 Go-To Smoothies for Summer

Smoothie season. Hooray for frosty, creamy, blended, rainbow-colored sips and banana bowls. I definitely have a few go-to faves that I am drawn to this summer, so I wanted to share them with you guys. These are My 7 Go-To Smoothies for Summer - plus some summertime ramblings and even a list of recipe faves from my smoothie book. Fellow smoothie lover? Read on..

Summer Everything + Smoothie Cravings. I love it when the sun gets all soft and hot like a lightbulb. And the sky fills to the brim with shades of milky blue and blueberry. Soft, puffy clouds stretch and fade into a sort of cooling beach fog, or sometimes just 'smog,' here in LA, but still, tiny humans splash in turquoise pools that twinkle with sunbeams. And swift birds chirp all day long. And everything summertime soaks into our skin and thoughts. Making us all kinda lazy and spacey, in a beautiful way.

And while all this goes on, our appetites shift too. BBQ and salads, hot dogs and salty Boardwalk-y things like fries and popcorn. Picnics, granola bars and chugging water just because it feels so good. Pink drinks and bowls of farmer's market fruit. Fizzy drinks and greasy pizza.

Then.. What's that? Yup, that craving kicks in. The craving for a smoothie. But not just like, "Hm, kinda hungry. Oh, maybe I'll have a smoothie because it's healthy and tastes really good."

..More like, "OMG, all I want right now is a giant smoothie bowl, and a big spoon. Yes, oh yes." *grabs blender container with gusto*

Smoothie cravings are awesome because they are so easy to satisfy. And bonus, they usually fill you up with a diverse array of healthy foods like fruit, nuts, seeds and sometimes even veggies! They can also be taken to-go, if need be. And there are sooooooooo many possible recipes out there that I promise, you will never get bored.

As of right now (and yes, they always change..) my go-to smoothies for summer, are...

My 7 Go-To Smoothies for Summer - quick list:

- peanut butter banana
- acai bowl
- watermelon frosty
- chocolate
- matcha
- pineapple whip
- green smoothie

side note - And if you own my smoothie book, 365 Vegan Smoothies, be sure to check out 45 favorite smoothie recipes to try. With page numbers for easy browsing!.. (at bottom)

My 7 Go-To Smoothies for Summer:

1. Basic Peanut Butter Banana (or Almond Banana)

This is actually a spin on one of my most popular blog recipes, the Easy Energy Shake. The original uses almond butter. But lately, I have been craving peanut butter so here it goes. - recipe here - just sub almond with peanut butter.
Pro-Tip: Add as many frozen bananas as you blender can stand - for the thickest ice cream-like smoothie possible. Another trick I LOVE is to add a handful of frozen watermelon to your blend. YES. Seriously, try it sometime. It makes the texture extra dreamy and frosty, yet so creamy.
Ingredients: Frozen bananas, peanut butter, non-dairy milk, optional adds: pinch of sea salt or cinnamon, ice, vegan vanilla protein powder

2. Acai Bowl

I just love a creamy, purple acai bowl. I make mine using wild blueberries for peak antioxidant potential. - recipe here
Pro-Tip: Add Brazil nuts to the blend for extra body and creaminess. Add a few soaked and pitted Medjool Dates for bonus sweetness and texture. Add lots of fun toppings too! Fresh fruit, rice puffs, spicy pumpkin seeds..
Ingredients: Frozen banana, frozen acai packs, non-dairy milk, optional adds: nuts, protein powder, seeds, toppings, Medjool dates or agave syrup

3. Watermelon Frosty

For the most refreshing, cool-me-off, pretty pink blend, try my classic Watermelon Frosty. - recipe here
Pro-Tip: Add extra lime juice for a sassier sour-sweet flavor. Add as little liquid as possible for the frostiest texture. Hand-cutting a local summer watermelon usually yields a sweeter, brighter red fruit! The sweeter + redder the flesh, the better the frosty will taste.
Ingredients: Frozen watermelon, limes, banana, coconut water or water, ice, agave

4. Chocolate Chocolate
This pure chocolate shake is my go-to when I just want, well, chocolate. - recipe here
Pro-Tip: You can always add nuts to this smoothie to add depth. To make it more dessert-like, add a scoop of vegan chocolate or vanilla ice cream.
Ingredients: Frozen bananas, non-dairy milk, Medjool dates, cacao powder, sea salt

5. Matcha Shake

This is still an absolute all-time fave smoothie. I love it in place of my morning matcha latte, if the weather is super sunny. Or as an afternoon boost. - recipe here
Pro-Tip: Add a few drops of peppermint extract for a cool minty accent! I usually do that..
Ingredients: Non-dairy milk, matcha green tea powder, frozen bananas, frozen watermelon, ice, (peppermint extract optional)

6. Pineapple Whip
Just like the classic Disneyland treat, this DIY "DOLE Whip" is super delicious and cravable. - recipe here
Pro-Tip: Buy and slice and freeze your own pineapple for the freshest, sweetest flavors!
Ingredients: Frozen pineapple, non-dairy milk, ice, optional: fresh pineapple juice

7. Sweet Green Smoothie
My green smoothie cravings change all the time. Sometimes I need a really sweet one, other times I actually enjoy something grassy and less sweet. But as of right now, I am into the blend I made last spring. right now, I am into subbing out peaches or mango for fresh green grapes. I love the sweet-tart flavor they add. - recipe here
Pro-Tip: Always adjust the ingredients to your tastes when it comes to green smoothies. If you want just a tiny handful of greens, do that. No pressure. even a little green is a great thing!
Ingredients: Non-dairy milk, coconut water or water, spinach, orange, green grapes, banana, avocado, cashews or Brazil nuts

I hope your summer can feel like this with these recipes..

And for all you 365 Vegan Smoothies fans... Here are 45 fave recipes of mine. I went through my book today and picked out all my faves for you!..

One of my faves... Pure Pistachio, page 166

More of my faves..

45 smoothie favorites from my book 365 Vegan Smoothies:

- sassy green kick-start, page 81
- piña-vocado, pg 83
- spicy cantaloupe cooler, pg 87
- fresh start, strawberry-lime frosty, pg 90
- blueberry beginning, pg 93
- sunburst watermelon, pg 95
- green with energy, pg 98
- g's chocolate espresso frosty, pg 99
- "c" you before sunrise, pg 100
- secret-ingredient matcha shake, pg 106
- the green-ergizerm pg 115
- watermelon frosty, pg 118
- frozen orange bliss, pg 119
- heavenly honeydew, pg 129
- pineapple sunbeam, pg 133
- watermelon "milk" shake, pg 146
- watermelon-citrus stress melter, pg 157
- quiet bluebird, pg 157
- peaches and calm, pg 159
- pure pistachio, pg 166 - pictured above
- sunset island frosty, pg 170
- purple productivity, pg 186
- creativity shake, pg 188
- chocolate avocado, pg 191
- i heart chocolate shake, pg 225
- summer haze, pg 255
- frozen cantaloupe infatuation, pg 232
- pineapple shake shake shake, pg 233
- LA green smoothie, pg 240
- banana split smoothie, pg 243
- poolside peach, pg 246
- sassy southern citrus-peach, pg 248
- happy banana, pg 252
- woo-hoo watermelon, pg 254
- mom's peach pie, pg 257
- green me up, scotty! pg 259
- sweet green glee, pg 263
- strawberry-banana-peach shake, pg 265
- cold-smasher citrus smoothie, pg 273
- peachy-keen shake, pg 273
- rosy cheeks delight, pg 287
- ravishing raspberry, pg 289
- hot date shake, pg 293
- surf's up peach shake, pg 296
- pretty in purple, pg 297