It’s that time of the year again! Kind of like Sept/Oct become ‘all things pumpkin’ – well, I like to spread the ‘all things green’ throughout the week of St. Patrick’s Day. When my kids were little it was fun to change up any meal I served with a dab of green food coloring to make it fun and festive. Today? I don’t use food coloring at all, nor do I have little ones around anymore BUT I still love making my meals with the color of “green” taking over.
Green is actually my favorite color! I pretty much love all shades of green but my favorite would be the color of the green M&M. I would hand pick out all of the green M&M’s from any and all bags (or worse, snag them from candy dishes when they were served at parties!) and put them into jars etc. in my room. I just thought they were a fun way to decorate and they honestly made me feel happy seeing that color brighten up my room. I know, this is really some useless information but it really does tie into the fact that I love making green foods this time of year! I mean, clearly green food – other than greens – aren’t the most appetizing looking meals (think green pancakes) but we can all accept them when we tag them with a St. Patrick’s Day dish! Right??? Or is it just me?
SO! As I tried to whip up a favorite go-to every single year …..the Shamrock Shakes from McD’s (Do they even serve these any more??? It’s actually been years since we grabbed one and now that I think about it, I don’t even know that I’ve seen them advertised….) — I tried to think of what would make this a guilt free shake but taste like you’ll feel as though you’re giving in to a treat and I came up with 2 things — spinach for the green factor and frozen cauliflower for the bulk (and nutrition) instead of using a frozen banana. My daughter doesn’t like bananas at all and any time I whip up any kind of smoothie/shake, she always puckers because she can taste the banana, no matter how hard I try to mask it. I didn’t come up with the frozen cauliflower idea but quite honestly, can’t even remember where I heard of it! It occurred to me while trying to create this recipe, that I could use the cauliflower in hopes that my daughter would like it! I am not gonna lie — it’s pretty freakin good & you do not taste the cauliflower at all!!
I also used Primal Kitchen Foods ‘Vanilla Collagen Protein’ to kick up the nutrition and flavor! It’s new and will be coming soon but there are many vanilla protein powders out there to add to this shake. In fact, Primal Kitchen Foods has another one already on their website if you need a good referral. All of their stuff is amazing! And guess what??? They are even coming out with an egg-free mayo! WHAT??? And it’s so good – I was able to taste it at the Natural Products Expo this past weekend.
…..anyway, back to the recipe! It’s definitely something I feel good about drinking. It has so many great health benefits and yet, you feel like you’re splurging! I did add some dark chocolate chips for fun but you can keep this keto friendly but just adding some cocoa nibs or shavings from 100% dark chocolate. It’s sweetened with a little Swerve (erythritol) to keep it sugar free but you can definitely add a smidge of honey or coconut sugar, or even a couple of dates if you’re ‘ok’ with that. I tried to make this keto friendly so my hubby can enjoy it — he is Irish after all 🙂 Give it a try and tell me what you think!
- 1 can full fat coconut milk
- 3 handfuls of spinach
- 2 1/2 heaping cups frozen cauliflower florets
- 2 scoops vanilla (collagen) protein
- 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
- 6 drops peppermint essential oil
- 1 packet or 1/4 tsp Swerve sweetener (keto friendly) or 1 tbsp of honey or 1 tbsp coconut sugar (paleo)
- 1/4 cup 85% dark chocolate chips*
- In a blender, combine all ingredients, except chocolate chips and blend until thick & smooth.
- Toss in chocolate chips and pulse a few times to break up.
- Serve with coconut flakes, more chocolate chips or even top with coconut whip.
- *To keep it keto approved, omit and use 100% dark or cocoa nibs.
