Low Carb Smoothies – the Essentials!

This is a reference for all of the low carb and keto smoothies you could ever imagine making!

I have been obsessed with my morning low carb smoothie here lately! I like to practice a little IF (Intermitted Fasting), so I normally just have coffee in the morning and then around 10 or 11 I will make one of my low Carb Smoothies.

The thing with most smoothies is they are huge sugar bombs…am I right? A perfect example is this Apple n Greens Smoothie from Jamba Juice. A small(12oz) has 56 net carbs and 45 grams of sugar…OMG! A SMALL! THAT IS MORE SUGAR THAN A 12 OZ CAN OF COKE!

So I have scoured the inter-webs for all of the essential ingredients of a Keto Smoothie! I would recommend picking one from each category to make the perfect low carb smoothie!

How to make Low Carb Smoothies:

FRUIT

You really want to keep the fruit to a minimum, obviously. I stick to berries like a few frozen strawberries or blueberries. These just add a touch of sweetness.

GREENS

Spinach, kale, arugula, parsley, romaine, celery, etc. My favorites are frozen chopped spinach or kale. I like to add a lot of greens to my low carb smoothies…at least half a cup! Have you tried frozen okra in your smoothie? I have been adding that lately and you cannot taste it at all! I have been reading about okra becoming the next superfood and it has also been shown to help control blood sugar.

PROTEIN

Feel free to add a scoop of protein powder. Find one that is sweetened with stevia and is lower in carbs. I actually can’t tolerate Whey protein, so I add a scoop of vanilla pea protein to my low carb smoothies.

SUPERFOODS

Chia seeds, flax seed, cacao nibs (use sparingly), spirulina, hemp seeds, matcha, and Acai. My favorites are chia seeds and matcha. You can add these directly into your low carb smoothie and blend them up, or you can sprinkle the hemp hearts, chia seeds, cacao nibs, or flax seeds on top for a little crunch.

A little note about hemp hearts…these little things are amazing! For 3 tablespoons, your looking at zero net carbs, 15g of fat, and 10g of protein!

FATS

Coconut oil, Almond butter, natural peanut butter, cashew butter, or avocado. Make sure the nut butters have no added sugar! My favorite to use is almond butter.

LIQUID

Almond milk, cashew milk, coconut milk, or just plain ol water (my favorite). Make sure the milks are unsweetened, obv!

SWEETENER

Stevia, erythritol, monk fruit powder, xylitol (toxic to pets). My favorite is Swerve or liquid stevia! If I have added protein powder to my smoothie then I will reduce or skip the sweetener. It just depends on how sweet your protein powder is and how sweet you like your low carb smoothies!

What else could we need…besides a blender! Here is my favorite blender!

INGREDIENTS

3 frozen organic strawberries
1/2 cup frozen spinach or kale (whatever I have on hand)
1 tsp chia seeds
2 tbsp almond butter
1 Tbsp Granular Sweetener (Click here to see my favorite on Amazon)
fill the cup with water or Almond milk

INSTRUCTIONS

add all to a blender cup and blend until smooth
enjoy!

JENNIFER'S TIPS

For any of the other ingredients that I talked about, I would use 1 serving. So if you wanted to add hemp hearts to your smoothie, add 3 tablespoons which is zero net carbs, 13g of fat, and 10g of protein!