BANANA WALNUT GREEN SMOOTHIE BOWL

I don’t know about you, but with March dancing on the horizon I’m so over winter. Today I decided to bring spring to JustineCelina a bit early with a Pantone Inspired Banana Walnut Green Smoothie Bowl! I’ve been on a mission to simplify, streamline and organize my life this year in an attempt to cultivate more balance — and that’s definitely trickled into my diet as well. Although I tend to favour simple, seasonal recipes packed full of awesome, fresh ingredients, I’ve found myself especially drawn to culinary minimalism (did you catch my Blood Orange Creamsicle Mimosas!?). This beautiful bowl of plant based goodness comes together with just 6 superfood ingredients and is brimming with ultra nourishing, hearty healthy, skin helping, brain boosting, anti aging benefits! It’s the ultimate beauty food.

Although I love smoothies, I was feeling a bit uninspired about drinking them from a mason jar as of late. So, I reignited my passion for smoothies by enjoying them bowl style — decked out with delicious, fresh toppings (hey, we eat with our eyes first, right?)! My Pantone Inspired Banana Walnut Green Smoothie Bowl is packed with plant based protein (read: no prepackaged protein powder necessary!) thanks to a healthy dose of walnuts and a protein rich nut milk. This bowl’s vibrant green hue is courtesy of tender baby spinach — with a natural, creamy sweetness thanks to bananas, powerhouse medjool dates and fresh vanilla bean. It seriously tastes like dessert, but you can eat it for breakfast!

PANTONE INSPIRED BANANA WALNUT GREEN SMOOTHIE BOWL

I’m so excited to be playing around with Pantone’s Greenery in my FOOD section! I briefly introduced you to Greenery in January’s Digital Blooms, but you’ll be seeing a lot more Greenery around here this year — it will be a huge part of my 2nd Blogiversary celebration, publishing in March! I just love vibrant greens juxtaposed against soft pinks and neutrals. It seems that whenever I’m lacking inspiration in the kitchen I turn to the worlds of design, fashion and beauty for inspiration — hence this Pantone Colour of the Year inspired bowl!

Despite the trendy hue of this Pantone Inspired Banana Walnut Green Smoothie Bowl, it’s a classic smoothie ingredient combination for me and I almost always have these ingredients on hand. Although I adore spinach (seriously, I could eat it at every meal), if you have a picky eater in your life and you’re trying to integrate more greens into their diet, this is a great way to do it. This smoothie is creamy, sweet and nourishing — you seriously can’t taste the spinach, at all. It’s definitely kid friendly!

I haven’t published a smoothie recipe for almost a year and I think it’s because fell out of love with protein powder somewhere along the way. As you’ve probably noticed, I like to eat as many fresh, unprocessed ingredients as possible in my diet — so adding a scoop of something artificial to my smoothies just wasn’t sitting well with me. Recently I’ve begun experimenting with blending nuts into my smoothies and I’m thrilled with the results! Walnuts add healthy dose of vitamin E, folate, melatonin, omega 3 fats, antioxidants and tons of natural protein to these vibrant smoothie bowls.

Every ingredient in these bowls brings something unique to the table nutritionally. Bananas offer fibre, as well as nutrients essential for digestion, heart health and weight loss. Spinach is my favourite food to eat for beauty — it contains vitamins and minerals for optimal skin and hair health, while also having a high protein and iron content — both of which are important for plant based eaters. Cashew milk is relatively low in calories while being super creamy, which is exactly what I look for! And I honestly can’t believe I’ve never published a recipe with medjool dates — they’re one of my favourite all time favourite treats (I eat them almost daily!). In this smoothie they work as a powerhouse natural sweetener, providing extra fiber, potassium and copper — but they also help keep you satiated throughout the day, making breakfast the ideal time to enjoy them! Last but not least, natural vanilla is chock full of antioxidants and aids is helping the body fight inflammation.

INGREDIENTS

Yields 20 oz, serves 1-2

PANTONE INSPIRED BANANA WALNUT GREEN SMOOTHIE BOWL

• 1 1/2 cups frozen banana
• 1/3 cup walnuts
• 1 cup spinach
• 1 cup unsweetened nut milk (I used cashew)
• 4 medjool dates
• Seeds from 1 vanilla pod (or 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract)

OPTIONAL GARNISH

• Banana slices
• Walnuts
• Hemp hearts
• Baby spinach leaves
• Edible flower petals
• Whatever else you like!

INSTRUCTIONS

1. If you don’t have frozen bananas on hand, you’ll need to make some! Frozen bananas are absolutely essential for a thick, creamy smoothie bowl (trust me — you’ll thank me later!).  To make them, simply peel and slice your bananas, then scoop them into plastic bags and freeze for at least 4 hours.

2. Slice your vanilla pod down the centre lengthwise and scrape seeds into your Vitamix (or similar) along with frozen banana, walnuts, spinach, nut milk and medjool dates. If you’re not using fresh vanilla seeds, simply add your pure vanilla extract to the blender along with the other ingredients.

3. Blend until smooth.

4. Pour the Pantone Inspired Banana Walnut Green Smoothie into a serving bowl and garnish with fresh toppings. Some of my favourites include any of the ingredients featured in the bowl, along with hemp hearts, berries, shredded coconut and edible flower petals.

5. Serve immediately, enjoying before it thaws!

Print

PANTONE INSPIRED BANANA WALNUT GREEN SMOOTHIE BOWL

Prep Time

10 mins

 

This beautiful bowl of plant based goodness comes together with just 6 superfood ingredients and is brimming with ultra nourishing, hearty healthy, skin helping, brain boosting, anti aging benefits! It's the ultimate beauty food.My Pantone Inspired Banana Walnut Green Smoothie Bowl is packed with plant based protein (read: no prepackaged protein powder necessary!) thanks to a healthy dose of walnuts and a protein rich nut milk. This bowl's vibrant green hue is courtesy of tender baby spinach -- with a natural, creamy sweetness thanks to bananas, powerhouse medjool dates and fresh vanilla bean. It seriously tastes like dessert, but you can eat it for breakfast!

Course: Breakfast

Author: Justine

Ingredients

PANTONE INSPIRED BANANA WALNUT GREEN SMOOTHIE BOWL

• 1 1/2 cups frozen banana
• 1/3 cup walnuts
• 1 cup spinach
• 1 cup unsweetened nut milk I used cashew
• 4 medjool dates
• Seeds from 1 vanilla pod or 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract

OPTIONAL GARNISH

• Banana slices
• Walnuts
• Hemp hearts
• Baby spinach leaves
• Edible flower petals
• Whatever else you like!

Instructions

1. If you don't have frozen bananas on hand, you'll need to make some! Frozen bananas are absolutely essential for a thick, creamy smoothie bowl (trust me -- you'll thank me later!).  To make them, simply peel and slice your bananas, then scoop them into plastic bags and freeze for at least 4 hours.
2. Slice your vanilla pod down the centre lengthwise and scrape seeds into your Vitamix (or similar) along with frozen banana, walnuts, spinach, nut milk and medjool dates. If you're not using fresh vanilla seeds, simply add your pure vanilla extract to the blender along with the other ingredients.
3. Blend until smooth.
4. Pour the Pantone Inspired Banana Walnut Green Smoothie into a serving bowl and garnish with fresh toppings. Some of my favourites include any of the ingredients featured in the bowl, along with hemp hearts, berries, shredded coconut and edible flower petals.
5. Serve immediately, enjoying before it thaws!

MORE SPRINGTIME SMOOTHIES & FRESH JUICES

Tropical Pineapple Turmeric Cooler

Dragon Fruit Bubble Tea Smoothie

Blushing Beet Juice

Blackberry Sage Smoothie

Apple Carrot Lemon Ginger Juice

Superfood Shamrock Smoothie

Lean Green Protein Juice

Super C Hibiscus Berry Smoothie

Are you as excited for spring as I am? I hope this Pantone Inspired Banana Walnut Green Smoothie Bowl has you looking forward to sunshine, greenery and above zero temperatures! As always, I love to hear from you — so if you try this recipe, let me know how you liked it by leaving me a comment below, or tagging me on Instagram, Twitter or Facebook. You can use the hashtag #justinecelinarecipes in your recreations so I can find them — I love to see what you make! I also have a Pinterest board for my recipes if you care to follow along.

Thank you to FeedFeed for featuring this recipe in their Vitamix Feed.

Disclaimer: This post is not sponsored, and contains my genuine thoughts, ideas and recommendations. JustineCelina uses affiliate and referral links, which allow me to receive a small commission when you make a purchase through one of my links. Thank you for supporting the brands and businesses that support JustineCelina!